Writing Advice Needed

[bratty_jedi]

This is specifically about academic writing for my dissertation, but any of you that write a ton of fiction or journalism or whatever might still be able to help as it is more focus, motivation, discipline kind of stuff than anything specifically academic...

Comments

[unsentimentalf]

I can see your problem, yes. I'm not sure that it's any help, but with essays I tend to stop the outline stage and start the write stage earlier so that although I've got an outline for each para with details of the material I need and the rough argument I'm making I'm still working on the final arguments as I write them. On the few occasions when I've tried outlining more I've also found the actual writing too dull to get on with. Normally I like the writing stage; I'm always impatient to get there.

[ancarett]

Okay, I hear you. This isn't easy, I know. But let's shake up some stuff.

First, are you married to seeing your writing life in seven day stretches? Maybe a three or four day cycle is what you need with two days on and one off. Yes, this messes up weekends, but highlight days you really need to devote to other things and work around those.

Embrace your productive rhythms. It sounds as if afternoons are good for sprawling out words and notes, with mornings better suited to nailing them down. Is that right? Then maybe a work day for you is one afternoon and a following morning?

Put a priority on what work habits keep you energized and engaged. And what leisure habits re-energize you. Weave them both into a shorter term cycle.

And do NOT waste prime productive time tweaking and revising. Push on after making a note of what will need to change. Tweaking the in-progress draft is seductive but unhelpful because you end up doing it all over again in round three and four.

Good luck and have fun!