The Productive Graduate Student Writer

How to Manage Your Time, Process, and Energy to Write Your Research Proposal, Thesis, and Dissertation and Get Published

Jan E. Allen

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2023
• Print ISBN:
  9781620368909
• eBook ISBN:
  9781000978063
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Higher Education

This book is for graduate students--and others--who want to become more productive writers. It's especially written for those who want to:• increase their motivation, focus, and persistence to move a project to completion• overcome procrastination and perfectionistic tendencies• reduce (or write in spite of) their anxiety and fear of writing• manage their time, work, energy (and advisor) for greater productivityThe process or craft of sustained writing is not a matter that's taught to undergraduate or graduate students as part of their studies, leaving most at sea about how to start a practice that is central to a career in academe and vital in many other professional occupations.This book grew out of conversations Jan Allen has held with her graduate students for over 30 years and reflects the fruit of the writing workshops and boot camps she has conducted at three universities, her own and numerous colleagues' experiences with writing and advising, as well as the feedback she receives from her popular Productive Writer listserv.While Jan Allen recognizes that writing is not an innate talent for most of us, she demonstrates that it is a process based on skills which we can identify, learn, practice and refine. She focuses both on the process and habits of writing as well as on helping you uncover what kind of writer are you, and reflect on your challenges and successes. With a light touch and an engaging sense of humor, she proposes strategies to overcome procrastination and distractions, and build a writing practice to enable you to become a more productive and prolific writer.Jan Allen proposes that you read one of her succinct chapters – each devoted to a specific strategy or writing challenge – each day, or once a week. When you find one that increases your concentration, motivation or endurance, make it a habit. Try it for two weeks, charting the resulting increased productivity. It will become part of your repertoire of writing and productivity tools to which you can progressively add.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• FOREWORD
• PREFACE
• ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
• 1 WRITE EVERY DAY
• 2 SCHEDULE YOUR WRITING
• 3 WRITE EARLY IN THE DAY
• 4 WRITE A VERY BAD FIRST DRAFT
• 5 SET WRITING GOALS
• 6 CHART YOUR PROGRESS
• 7 PREPARING TO WRITE
• 8 WRITE BEFORE YOU WAKE UP (WHAT?)
• 9 WRITE WITH DEADLINES
• 10 DEVELOP AND USE AN OUTLINE
• 11 FILL YOUR RESERVOIR
• 12 AVOID DISTRACTIONS
• 13 THINK AHEAD AND PLAN BACKWARD
• 14 GETTING TO FLOW
• 15 AVOID BINGE WRITING
• 16 OVERCOME PERFECTIONISTIC TENDENCIES
• 17 STOP PROCRASTINATING—NOW
• 18 STAYING MOTIVATED
• 19 THE LAST FIVE MINUTES OF WRITING
• 20 YOUR WRITING ENVIRONMENT
• 21 STUCK?
• 22 REVISING AND EDITING
• 23 TIME MANAGEMENT
• 24 ENERGY MANAGEMENT
• 25 ADVISER MANAGEMENT
• 26 PRACTICE WRITING
• 27 USING A WRITING SUPPORT GROUP
• 28 RESPONSIBLE WRITING
• 29 WRITING A GRADUATE FELLOWSHIP APPLICATION
• 30 WRITING A GRANT PROPOSAL
• 31 WRITING A RESEARCH PROPOSAL
• 32 WRITING A THESIS
• 33 WRITING A DISSERTATION
• 34 WRITING A JOURNAL ARTICLE
• 35 WRITING A BOOK PROPOSAL FOR AN EDITOR OR AGENT
• 36 HOW TO THINK AND ACT LIKE A WRITER
• APPENDICES
• REFERENCES
• ABOUT THE AUTHOR
• INDEX