So. I need to submit some pages to my advisor in January. I want to get it done at least a week before I start teaching again. I'd REALLY like to have a draft done by the end of next week, so that I can just tinker over the holidays, adding stuff, fixing footnotes and filling in references.
But here's the rub. Suddenly, I feel as if I know nothing. Or, at least, that I have read nothing.
Suggestions about how to slog forward?
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Maybe start with some timed freewriting (but with topics). It might help to write about everything you don't know (sometimes it leads to what you do know). An "if I were to write a brilliant draft it would contain . . ." or a "here's what I want my paper to say" can sometimes get the juices flowing. Perhaps even better is the "here's what I DO know" freewrite. It seems like the way you define "draft" can increase or decrease the pressure. If you're good at tinkering (which you are), just assume it's going to be really crappy with lots of holes and go for that.
A 20 min. walk or a hot shower can sometimes get the inspiration to click in.
Trevor's advice is always to find the worst dissertations that your uni has graduated and read those for inspiration. We all want to have great dissertations, but it's really nice to know what the low bar is. It's also helpful for me to think that I passed the test when the grad department let me into the program. Turning in less than stellar writing isn't going to change my status in the department (my advisor just might think he has a little more work to do than previously thought).
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