10 Tips for Starting, Continuing, & Finishing Writing Projects

Dear Dissertators and Other Aspiring/Practicing Writers,

Digital/analog dissertation-in-progress

Graduate school presents countless opportunities and challenges for getting started and/or keeping going on writing projects, and it can be difficult to be kind to ourselves when we aren't as productive as we intended. One of my favorite quotes from NCFDD founder Kerry Ann Rockquemore is: “Let go of any past writing shortcomings and release yourself from the negative feelings associated with not writing, producing, or finishing your work.” In the spirit of practicing the processes of starting and continuing, however many times or as often as necessary, this post summarizes some of the most useful tips I've gleaned from various writing tools and personal experience over time.

1. Write every day! For real… even if it's only for you to write about what you're feeling, what you're confused about, or what you need to write more about. As Dr. Lili Milanes, a friend and relatively recent fellow UK anthropology graduate, says, "Writing is always the answer."
2. Be generous about what counts as writing! Writing gurus agree on this (including Dr. Rockquemore), though sometimes with different takes on the theme. Separate writing from reading/researching BUT include all the minutia that brainstorming, outlining, drafting, revising/refining, etc. entail that results in completed drafts. Tara Gray's 12 very helpful writing steps include highlighting/outlining KEY statements and reverse outlining, and Cornell Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs Jan Allen suggests compiling a separate "to-do list" of items that are not relevant to the current task. (Also see Jan Allen's book, The Productive Graduate Student Writer.)
   
3. Practice creating concrete "SMART" goals, even if (like me) you don't really know what that means at first. S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable (or sometimes Action-oriented, Attractive, or Attainable), Realistic, and Time-framed, and the concept is common in writing and other professional development workshops (for example, see Kerry Ann Rockquemore & Anthony Ocampo's "Dealing With the Curse of the Blank Page" in Insider Higher Ed). Frankly, I'm not very good at identifying and setting SMART goals, but observing, documenting, and reflecting on my writing process has been useful in discerning what works and translates into "SMART" goals so I can keep practicing on future projects.
   
4. Tracking goals/time helps show the big picture of work over time. I created a spreadsheet template I've used to document contract labor, TA labor, grant projects, etc. It can be adapted for both writing projects and managing/documenting time for hourly contract labor. (The first three sheets are templates for the summer, fall semester, and spring semester, which include formulas for calculating and adding time logged. The last sheet is a reference that converts time increments to decimals.) I also really like the PomoDone app, which integrates with several productivity/to-do apps. (I also reviewed PomoDone in the previous App Report: Other Apps for Research and Writing.)
5. Daily check-ins on goals and progress, whether for yourself or to share with a writing/accountability group, is another way to track not only what you're working on but also your writing process and what does/n't work and why. NCFDD has a couple of good daily check-in templates that I have continued using for other projects. Any method for setting, documenting, and following up on writing goals and reflecting on the process will do.
   
6. Use a note-taking app to manage notes, research data, deadlines, etc. and use Word documents to piece together outlines, jottings, citations, etc. and work on actual drafts. As I've previously written in another App Report, OneNote is my go-to for many, many personal and academic documentation/organization projects, but I recommend using whatever you're already used to.
7. Alternate between multimodal methods of writing, analyzing, etc.(including digital/analog, recording/transcribing voice notes, digitizing handwritten notes). Typing/inputting handwritten notes is a good way to "write" without writing and, for me, usually inspires writing more on the digital document. Similarly, when I reach a block working on my computer, I print what I have so I can review and write on the paper document for a while. And the cycle continues… Another multimodal approach to "writing" is using AI-based automated transcription like Otter.ai for recording thoughts for follow-up. (Here's a nerdy interview about how I used Otter.ai for part of my dissertation research and writing.)
   
8. Focus on revising distinct sections one at a time rather than the whole chapter (unless you're proof-reading/copy-editing the entire final document for external review). I'm pretty terrible at this as well as refraining from revising as I write, but I keep working on it. (Again, Tara Gray has tips on this…)
9. All tips/tools do not always work, even when they have in the past. I have found that there is a point at which certain "tricks" that I use to motivate myself and document my progress (such as tracking my time) become onerous and oppressive in terms of meeting "productivity" goals that are external to my own values and progress. I'm learning that letting go of routines that don't work are just as important as using them when they do, and I can also pick them back up again if/when they are useful again.
10. Realistic positive affirmations are helpful even for pessimists! I have a posterboard above my desk where I collect inspirational quotes that resonate with my personality and work ethic.

Future-Dr.-AnthroBone's Dissertation RQ & Inspirational Images/Quotes

When Jan Allen spoke to UK grad students at the May 2020 Dissertation Writing Camp,* she talked about the common themes/experiences of fear, anxiety, despair among grad student writers in general. If these are existing struggles, grad school can make the feelings of doubt, unworthiness, and paralysis overwhelming at times. I have several tiny habits and tools I try and stick to every day no matter how little I feel like I accomplish otherwise, and they have really helped in my overall outlook and motivation over time. But the struggle is daily, the struggle is with ourselves, and the struggle is ultimately what it's all about. We do it by doing it every day and forgiving ourselves and trying again even when we don't.

Be Kind, Be Kin,

*Dr. AnthroBone

P.S. Shout-out to the folks who organize and participate in the semesterly Dissertation Writing Camp at UK, which was so helpful as I began, continued, and finished the process of writing my dissertation. Here's a super-nerdy spotlight featuring a much earlier writer on this journey (starting at 52 seconds) ...

I have taken advantage of many resources that have been available to me through UK and other academic networks and knowledge bases. However, I have always wished that I knew that I could participate in the Writing Camps from the very beginning of my program instead of waiting until I felt I was "officially" working on my dissertation. Friends and colleagues who participated on various writing projects along the way benefited from the routinization of a daily writing habit sooner. So consider this a BONUS TIP if you are just beginning or part-way through your graduate program!

* I shared earlier versions of these writing tips and the list of UK-access resources with UK Writing Camp participants and organizers, and I'm re-posting these updates in solidarity with current and future dissertators and life-long writers.