Writing your Dissertation Part 4: Revisions

A note of warning here, the revision process does not grant immediate rewards.  In my case, it delivers the exact opposition- pain and suffering.  OK, that is a wee bit dramatic, but it is important to prepare yourself mentally and physically for the amount of time and intellectual strain the revision process demands.

Here are some suggestions to make the process go smoother:
1- Know the formal and informal revision "rules" at your own institution.  At my institution it is an unofficial rule that your co-majors sign off that your dissertation is complete prior to sharing any versions to other committee members. I've heard of other programs that do it very differently, sharing each iteration of the draft as it's being compiled with all members.  The point is this, know how "things go" at your institution.  This won't be written anywhere so I suggest you find the most transparent, ho nest and trusted faculty you know and ask them directly for the low down on the revision process.

2- Chunk out a few weeks for this process and build in "down time".  After reading, re-reading and re-reading you will need to walk away for a day or more in order to get a fresh look at things.

3- Set it free..... seriously, it will never be perfect.  The writing process is never complete, so at some point you have to call it quits and just let it be what it will be or you're never graduate.  Give yourself a deadline and set the manuscript free.

I am in wait mode right now after setting mine free to the full committee for final revision recommendations.  Wish me luck for fast and meaningful feedback.

Writing the dissertation- Part 4: Respect your limits

This is a very important lesson I am about to share with you.

Respect your limits. This goes for the amount of time you can actually be effective, as well as the level of analysis your brain can possibly handle. What I mean is this: if you can only produce two hours worth of meaningful and quality work, then stop working after two hours.

Do not try to pull an all nighter. We aren't in high school anymore folks.

Also, be ok with hat you produce. It's good. Could it better, sure, but isn't that always the way with life.

Celebrate what you do have and respect your analytical limits. This is just your dissertation folks, not your life's work. You have the rest of your career to grow. T

On that note. I'm taking a coffee break! I think you should too.

Writing the dissertation- Part 3: Be OK with Change

It is inevitable that all great plans change, so allow it here too.

Can I just tell you how many times I've completely re-worked my Ch. 4- no, I can't bc I stopped counting at 5.  That is right, folks.


Also, don't forget to keep ch. 5 open while you write ch.4.  You will be inspired for points of discussion as you summarize results.  Having a place to put your "thoughts" about the data is exactly what ch. 5 is all about.  By putting it there right away, you accomplish 2 things: (1) you get to start the draft of ch. 5 early, and (2) you can do a better "objective" job at presenting the data and not your opinions about it.

So my lesson for you today is don't wait "until you're ready" to start writing your results and discussion section- just go for it.  Allow the organization to evolve as you type.  It will come together.  I promise.

That's what I keep telling myself anyway.

54 pages down folks!!!!!

Writing the Dissertation- Part 2: TRANSCRIBING and ATTACKING WRITER'S BLOCK

OK folks, here are my lessons for the week:

1- TRANSCRIBE YOURSELF-As painful as transcribing 30 hours worth of interview recordings may seem, DO IT YOURSELF. Plan accordingly, because it takes a looooooooooonnnnnnnnnggggg time!!!! However, doing it yourself allows you to begin raw analysis and "thinking through the data".  To me, transcribing served the purpose as the first read recommended by many qualitative researchers (Mchatton, class lecture, spring 2011), which leads me to my next lesson and time saving trick- write as you go.

2- WRITE AS YOU GO- If your brain works anything like mine it is on super power idea flow at all times, especially when I am reading.  This is a beautiful, bittersweet, thing. For, if I do not capture my ideas as they zoom past, I loose them, or worse yet, when I try to re-create them on paper later, they are a garbled mess with no organization (almost like a flow of consciousness that only I can follow) bc I've lost the higher order connection that sparked the idea in the first place- and that, my faithful readers, leads to HORRIBLE writing.  SO..... ALWAYS have your ms.doc chapter 4 (and even Ch. 5 if you're that good) notes open and ready for action. Then, type away- put in place holders with all caps, "WRITE SOMETHING HERE" if you can't remember exact quotes or data points.  Also, try to keep it organized based upon your pre-decided structure (see dissertation part 1 post) and even allow for sub-headers to sneak their way in as they emerge/fit. You can always change them later.  This will save you from the feared "writer's block" when you attempt to write the final chapter.  Heck, I already had more than 15 pages, organized by research question, theme, and participant sub-group before analysis was  complete. I, of course, need to fill it in to make it smooth, but that's a pretty good start if you ask me!

So that's it for now- remember: TRANSCRIBE YOURSELF and WRITE AS YOU GO!