Bravo, Kaelyn! I'm a senior lecturer in history and supervise PhD students. Your observations and techniques are spot on. I actually restart with primary sources first, for the very reason you mention. That's when the ideas flow, and when I can see which approach and framework works best for the evidence. I, too, started to freeze up in writing, but finally broke free when I started writing for the public again. It was so fun, and brought my enthusiasm back. Keep going, you're doing great!
Appreciate so many of these actionable tips! As someone who was working full-time while writing the dissertation, I also really had to lean into the mindset shifts. The body-doubling was something I used during most of my writing sessions as well. The way I brought "fun" into my writing was I bought a D100 die and rolled it at the library each night after work to tell me how long I had to write for. More often than not, I found myself writing for even longer - sometimes even rolling twice when I had a particularly low number on the first roll. Not knowing the exact number gave me something fun to write towards each evening, and I feel like it helped me make a ton of progress in my later chapters when the going got tough.
Yess!! 🙌🏾🙌🏾 Writing sprints instead of word/page count was a complete game changer! Never was told to do word counts in my program but my advisor was in his late 60s and early 70s, so I’m sure timers weren't a go-to tool for him when he did his PhD lol.
I greatly appreciate the recommendation to write your own thoughts and in your own voice. Starting with the literature is overwhelming, and self-comparison can certainly be defeating. I am a 2nd year grad student and I feel this in my soul .. lol…. Congratulations on the new role. Foregoing the fellowship and taking your own path can be so challenging to do…well done!
Thank you so much, Kaelyn! I'm writing my master's thesis on creative writing and screenwriting and I've been struggling so much lately. The advice you share, particularly about writing before reading and going back to the source was a huge mindset shift for me, because I think the cause of my difficulty is precisely the fact that I was afraid to articulate my own thoughts and point of view, and I always thought I had to put theory & the views of others first. Mind-mapping is a technique that I always use in writing, and it really helps in organizing similar thoughts and concepts into chapters. Thanks again for everything!!! ❤
It's good to see that there is a community out there that goes through the same things as myself and found solutions. ❤from Trinidad and Tobago 🇹🇹. Currently on my thesis & starting law at the sametime😢😅
I am currently writing my thesis research paper. I had this idea, concept, and research question I was really excited and passionate about, already put them into words and research proposal, all within a month. Writing it was enjoyable and didn't feel like a burden because what I was researching about was the health tech product I had previously developed with my co-founder. I had to present the proposal to three people: one professor and two lecturers. The two approved, but one didn't. Her disapproval required me to revise my research question and make several heavy changes on my first proposal. Her disapproval was somewhat principal to my thesis, so I felt like I had to change the course of my research. I was on a very strict timeline and had to present my research updates almost every week. So within the crunched time, I had to read and research a lot, while also coming up with something to write to keep the ball rolling. Within that short period of time, the title and method changed, so everything else that went along with it also changed. Unfortunately, my second fully finished research proposal also faced a problem, which was along the line of the copyrighting of the product being researched. So, I am currently advised to write a third proposal with somewhat different title and changed the method just so I can protect my product's copyright. I am currently trying to build up my confidence as somehow this rollercoaster journey for the past 2-3 months really messed up with my head and somehow made me question my own thought process and ability. Honestly, I wouldn't be able to change the course of my research the first time so quickly if it wasn't for your videos making me feel not so alone in this journey. This is the second big revision I need to work on and this video is really spot on. Everything seems intimidating for me right now. Every time I try to write, I imagine that professor reading my writing and not approving again. Thank you for the tips of changing my mindset. This video (and your other videos) really helped me. I hope you keep making more videos.
I am sorry to hear the research process has been so tenuous but am really glad my videos have been comforting in some way, shape, or form. I am rooting for you
Once I have my research notes and outline prepared, or my “mise en place” to use a French culinary phrase, I try and write 500 words per day. If I write more, great, but I don’t get upset with myself as long as I stick to 500 words. I also have an upper limit: typically I will not write more than 1500 words. After that point, I see rapidly diminishing quality. My best work happens when I write between 6 am and 9 am, take a an exercise break, and then continue writing for another 2-3 hours (with perhaps a brief lunch break as well). I use the rest of my day for admin, computer based training, calls, etc.-lower order work. This strategy has gotten me through a PhD dissertation and 7 published books in history. A 120,000 word book requires less than 240 writing days using this approach. Of course, research adds years to the process.😊
@@KaelynGraceApple First chapters are always a steep climb. I just completed one for a new book earlier this month. It gets easier after that. I always end up throwing out 1-2 chapters per book, so don’t be afraid to put pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard. You can always refine the product downstream.
Speaking about my writing and research has made it so much more accessible to me and helps others learn too (even against their will 😂). It also helps me realize that how it sounds/comes across might not be exactly how I intended and helps with the editing process so much!
5 pages a day is a lot, wow!!! I also tended to try to structure my work in sprints/stints. When I was drafting I did often have a word goal but it was usually 500 words which I could almost always hit + frequently exceed significantly and knowing it was achievable felt really good. Once you get to revisions the word count/volume of production isn't really a factor anymore, but having the routine of focused work stints helped me make progress on my revisions as well. I also totally agree that seasonality is a factor in when your best brain work happens!
Thank you so much for this video, Kaelyn! I'm currently struggling with that perfectionistic mind block that comes with the neurodivergence brain when faced with writing, and your tips have me excited to try and write my research paper. Cheers!❤
Thank you so much for this, Kaelyn! I completely agree with starting with the primary sources (literature, for me). Then it is a lot easier to see yourself as entering the scholarly conversation that already exists, because you got your own ideas while reading. And it is also the most exciting part to dissect literature/historical sources that give you this direct contact with the past! Other things that have helped me immensely in my 5th year (1st year of writing the dissertation) were: 1) to get the dissertation template document required by your uni library and start putting stuff in there, like your working title and the acknowledgements. Then, create a table of content with very descriptive titles for each of your chapters, especially the ones that are still prospective. And then copy paste in there all the work you have done so far, using your prospectus as part of your introduction and your sample chapter and whatever else you have written so far. I did this before I had started a proper chapter, and just with the prospectus and sample, I was stunned to see I already had 90 pages! It really shows you how much you've done so far and makes you see that whole work as manageable. 2) since my MA thesis, I have got in the habit to track my writing and reading rather than plan for it in detail. I do set weekly goals, but never a goal of how many words I want to write or how many pages to read. For me personally, tracking gives me just enough pressure to do work so I can write something on that spreadsheet, without making the goals feel unsurmountable, because I work in ebbs and flows and sometimes I don't feel like writing, and at other times I write 1000 words in a day. Maybe some people are able to write a set amount of words each day, but for me, that's unrealistic, especially when I have other duties than my own research. 3) use conferences as deadlines for chapters or chapter sections. My advisors don't give me deadlines for submitting my chapters, so I draft a rough plan for the year (funding pressure helps!) and then I use conferences as deadlines to get a part of a chapter done that I can present, or, if I'm not presenting, just test my ideas at a conference on a related topic. Prepping for a conference is certainly work, so I think I won't commit to more presenting in my 6th and hopefully final year of the PhD, but you can just attend, or maybe chair a panel, and that can give you so many fresh ideas for research. Then of course it looks good on the CV when you present/chair/organise, and although these have usually been very stressful for me, the more I do it, the more I learn to be confident in what I say and fight impostor syndrome. Most people are lovely at conferences and they don't know your specific research, so they might ask questions and give advice to a incipient scholar but are not there to correct anything you say. And if you ever encounter that imaginary smug scholar, say thank you and that you'll consider their advice! That's my internal monologue anyway 😄
Also, 5 articles of 50 pages each is 250 pages, but don't underestimate the number of pages you'll need for your introduction and conclusion, so maybe the dissertation can be 4 chapters and a 25-page intro and a conclusion of about the same length. I think of it that way because I feel like I'm stretching the topic into a 5th chapter that I don't really have ideas for, and coming up with it once I'm done with my 4 chapters versus using what I have to write my intro and conclusion may make the difference to finishing while I have funding...
This was an excellent, extremely useful video! Truly one of the best! I make the mistake of Reading and reading and reading before I actually start writing. I need to take your advice and start by articulating and stretching my own ideas, engaging with the primary sources first and foremost, and then bring in the ideas of other scholars. Thank you for this!
Using a very general writing strategy whether it is for an academic paper, or my my master's thesis (past), or my novels (in training), I have to write the body first (i.e., paragraphs for paper or chapters for thesis and novel). I can know all the sources that I will use and how they will work, but it is the body that dictates the final introduction and conclusion content. I don't have to set a definable page count goal per day, but I do set a page count goal for that chapter. If I'm writing a novel, I need at least 9,000 words per chapter, which comes to about 24 pages or longer if there is heavy dialogue. A novel page length ranges from 50,000 to 100,000 words. That's why I set that page count goal based on 10 chapters. For the master's degree, I set the goal to write it during summer 2003 and have the content completed in draft form before the fall semester. I wanted the whole thing completed before my graduating semester, which was May 2005. I completed it and shelved it in 2004. I didn't set a page count goal. Instead, I was resolving my personal issues with procrastination, and I used the master's thesis to tackle that issue. The real question is what would be your writing strategy for a journal article? To me that seems harder to organize than a larger work because of all the content you have to cut. Great video.
Primary sources first is great for confidence in your own ideas. I think I have tried to do this but not really clearly as a step so I’m gonna do it as a clear step for my next essay. ❤❤
Kaelyn, I'm a medical Student here in India. And I just want to say, you're addictive.❤ I came across your videos 4-5 days back, and they are just amazing ✨ Lots of Love From India.❤
I have enjoyed your videos on your academic journey - you keep trying and adapting, which is inspiring. I struggled while writing my dissertation, and when a chance to write a textbook came my way, to stay sane, my writing process had to change. What eventually worked for me was writing at regular times; write first, revise later; and like you, talk through my ideas out loud. Personally, I could write about a page a day, six days a week - a goal of five pages a day would not work for me. Today when writing I focus on making the data tell a story. For example, what’s the hook? How do I get the reader engaged? What is the moral of my story?
Okay, writing 5 pages a day actually really HURT me because it wasn't quality pages, so I just had a LOT of pages and it was overwhelming. Way too much to wade through. And I've written way more than necessary within my PhD which is making it take so long.
Love this video thanks! I have been implementing the writing sprints and they are so effecitve. But after 1.5h of really deep focus writing my brain is fried (meaning at like 9am 😅). How do you deal with this?
Only write 1.5 per day if that is what works best for your brain 🥰 studies show the average high performing knowledge worker only has the capacity for around 3 pure focus hours perhaps day! Give yourself some grace and use the 1.5 hours as effectively as possible to write and the rest of the day to do the tasks which require less brain function ♥️
Bravo, Kaelyn! I'm a senior lecturer in history and supervise PhD students. Your observations and techniques are spot on. I actually restart with primary sources first, for the very reason you mention. That's when the ideas flow, and when I can see which approach and framework works best for the evidence. I, too, started to freeze up in writing, but finally broke free when I started writing for the public again. It was so fun, and brought my enthusiasm back. Keep going, you're doing great!
This comment is so comforting!! I am so glad it sounds like I am on the right track
Appreciate so many of these actionable tips! As someone who was working full-time while writing the dissertation, I also really had to lean into the mindset shifts. The body-doubling was something I used during most of my writing sessions as well.
The way I brought "fun" into my writing was I bought a D100 die and rolled it at the library each night after work to tell me how long I had to write for. More often than not, I found myself writing for even longer - sometimes even rolling twice when I had a particularly low number on the first roll. Not knowing the exact number gave me something fun to write towards each evening, and I feel like it helped me make a ton of progress in my later chapters when the going got tough.
I love your tactic for embracing fun
Yess!! 🙌🏾🙌🏾 Writing sprints instead of word/page count was a complete game changer!
Never was told to do word counts in my program but my advisor was in his late 60s and early 70s, so I’m sure timers weren't a go-to tool for him when he did his PhD lol.
haha I am glad we have found our own way
I greatly appreciate the recommendation to write your own thoughts and in your own voice. Starting with the literature is overwhelming, and self-comparison can certainly be defeating. I am a 2nd year grad student and I feel this in my soul .. lol…. Congratulations on the new role. Foregoing the fellowship and taking your own path can be so challenging to do…well done!
Thank you so much!!!
Thank you so much, Kaelyn! I'm writing my master's thesis on creative writing and screenwriting and I've been struggling so much lately. The advice you share, particularly about writing before reading and going back to the source was a huge mindset shift for me, because I think the cause of my difficulty is precisely the fact that I was afraid to articulate my own thoughts and point of view, and I always thought I had to put theory & the views of others first. Mind-mapping is a technique that I always use in writing, and it really helps in organizing similar thoughts and concepts into chapters. Thanks again for everything!!! ❤
This was SO helpful. Great thoughts and ideas. They hit me in exactly the right place and time. Thank you, Kaelyn!
It's good to see that there is a community out there that goes through the same things as myself and found solutions. ❤from Trinidad and Tobago 🇹🇹. Currently on my thesis & starting law at the sametime😢😅
I am currently writing my thesis research paper. I had this idea, concept, and research question I was really excited and passionate about, already put them into words and research proposal, all within a month. Writing it was enjoyable and didn't feel like a burden because what I was researching about was the health tech product I had previously developed with my co-founder. I had to present the proposal to three people: one professor and two lecturers. The two approved, but one didn't. Her disapproval required me to revise my research question and make several heavy changes on my first proposal. Her disapproval was somewhat principal to my thesis, so I felt like I had to change the course of my research. I was on a very strict timeline and had to present my research updates almost every week. So within the crunched time, I had to read and research a lot, while also coming up with something to write to keep the ball rolling. Within that short period of time, the title and method changed, so everything else that went along with it also changed. Unfortunately, my second fully finished research proposal also faced a problem, which was along the line of the copyrighting of the product being researched. So, I am currently advised to write a third proposal with somewhat different title and changed the method just so I can protect my product's copyright. I am currently trying to build up my confidence as somehow this rollercoaster journey for the past 2-3 months really messed up with my head and somehow made me question my own thought process and ability. Honestly, I wouldn't be able to change the course of my research the first time so quickly if it wasn't for your videos making me feel not so alone in this journey. This is the second big revision I need to work on and this video is really spot on. Everything seems intimidating for me right now. Every time I try to write, I imagine that professor reading my writing and not approving again. Thank you for the tips of changing my mindset. This video (and your other videos) really helped me. I hope you keep making more videos.
I am sorry to hear the research process has been so tenuous but am really glad my videos have been comforting in some way, shape, or form. I am rooting for you
Once I have my research notes and outline prepared, or my “mise en place” to use a French culinary phrase, I try and write 500 words per day. If I write more, great, but I don’t get upset with myself as long as I stick to 500 words. I also have an upper limit: typically I will not write more than 1500 words. After that point, I see rapidly diminishing quality. My best work happens when I write between 6 am and 9 am, take a an exercise break, and then continue writing for another 2-3 hours (with perhaps a brief lunch break as well). I use the rest of my day for admin, computer based training, calls, etc.-lower order work.
This strategy has gotten me through a PhD dissertation and 7 published books in history. A 120,000 word book requires less than 240 writing days using this approach. Of course, research adds years to the process.😊
This gives me hope 🥺
@@KaelynGraceApple First chapters are always a steep climb. I just completed one for a new book earlier this month. It gets easier after that. I always end up throwing out 1-2 chapters per book, so don’t be afraid to put pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard. You can always refine the product downstream.
Speaking about my writing and research has made it so much more accessible to me and helps others learn too (even against their will 😂). It also helps me realize that how it sounds/comes across might not be exactly how I intended and helps with the editing process so much!
Yes! I am so glad you have had a similarly positive experience
5 pages a day is a lot, wow!!! I also tended to try to structure my work in sprints/stints. When I was drafting I did often have a word goal but it was usually 500 words which I could almost always hit + frequently exceed significantly and knowing it was achievable felt really good. Once you get to revisions the word count/volume of production isn't really a factor anymore, but having the routine of focused work stints helped me make progress on my revisions as well. I also totally agree that seasonality is a factor in when your best brain work happens!
So glad my findings seemed to line up with your experience as well!
Thank you so much for this video, Kaelyn! I'm currently struggling with that perfectionistic mind block that comes with the neurodivergence brain when faced with writing, and your tips have me excited to try and write my research paper. Cheers!❤
Thank you so much for this, Kaelyn! I completely agree with starting with the primary sources (literature, for me). Then it is a lot easier to see yourself as entering the scholarly conversation that already exists, because you got your own ideas while reading. And it is also the most exciting part to dissect literature/historical sources that give you this direct contact with the past!
Other things that have helped me immensely in my 5th year (1st year of writing the dissertation) were:
1) to get the dissertation template document required by your uni library and start putting stuff in there, like your working title and the acknowledgements. Then, create a table of content with very descriptive titles for each of your chapters, especially the ones that are still prospective. And then copy paste in there all the work you have done so far, using your prospectus as part of your introduction and your sample chapter and whatever else you have written so far. I did this before I had started a proper chapter, and just with the prospectus and sample, I was stunned to see I already had 90 pages! It really shows you how much you've done so far and makes you see that whole work as manageable.
2) since my MA thesis, I have got in the habit to track my writing and reading rather than plan for it in detail. I do set weekly goals, but never a goal of how many words I want to write or how many pages to read. For me personally, tracking gives me just enough pressure to do work so I can write something on that spreadsheet, without making the goals feel unsurmountable, because I work in ebbs and flows and sometimes I don't feel like writing, and at other times I write 1000 words in a day. Maybe some people are able to write a set amount of words each day, but for me, that's unrealistic, especially when I have other duties than my own research.
3) use conferences as deadlines for chapters or chapter sections. My advisors don't give me deadlines for submitting my chapters, so I draft a rough plan for the year (funding pressure helps!) and then I use conferences as deadlines to get a part of a chapter done that I can present, or, if I'm not presenting, just test my ideas at a conference on a related topic. Prepping for a conference is certainly work, so I think I won't commit to more presenting in my 6th and hopefully final year of the PhD, but you can just attend, or maybe chair a panel, and that can give you so many fresh ideas for research. Then of course it looks good on the CV when you present/chair/organise, and although these have usually been very stressful for me, the more I do it, the more I learn to be confident in what I say and fight impostor syndrome. Most people are lovely at conferences and they don't know your specific research, so they might ask questions and give advice to a incipient scholar but are not there to correct anything you say. And if you ever encounter that imaginary smug scholar, say thank you and that you'll consider their advice! That's my internal monologue anyway 😄
Also, 5 articles of 50 pages each is 250 pages, but don't underestimate the number of pages you'll need for your introduction and conclusion, so maybe the dissertation can be 4 chapters and a 25-page intro and a conclusion of about the same length. I think of it that way because I feel like I'm stretching the topic into a 5th chapter that I don't really have ideas for, and coming up with it once I'm done with my 4 chapters versus using what I have to write my intro and conclusion may make the difference to finishing while I have funding...
This was an excellent, extremely useful video! Truly one of the best! I make the mistake of Reading and reading and reading before I actually start writing. I need to take your advice and start by articulating and stretching my own ideas, engaging with the primary sources first and foremost, and then bring in the ideas of other scholars. Thank you for this!
♥️♥️♥️ I am so glad this was helpful!
All of your videos are so helpful and timely! Thank you! Please keep putting out this content.
Thank you so much! So so so much more to come 🥰
So many good advices. thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Using a very general writing strategy whether it is for an academic paper, or my my master's thesis (past), or my novels (in training), I have to write the body first (i.e., paragraphs for paper or chapters for thesis and novel). I can know all the sources that I will use and how they will work, but it is the body that dictates the final introduction and conclusion content.
I don't have to set a definable page count goal per day, but I do set a page count goal for that chapter. If I'm writing a novel, I need at least 9,000 words per chapter, which comes to about 24 pages or longer if there is heavy dialogue. A novel page length ranges from 50,000 to 100,000 words. That's why I set that page count goal based on 10 chapters.
For the master's degree, I set the goal to write it during summer 2003 and have the content completed in draft form before the fall semester. I wanted the whole thing completed before my graduating semester, which was May 2005. I completed it and shelved it in 2004. I didn't set a page count goal. Instead, I was resolving my personal issues with procrastination, and I used the master's thesis to tackle that issue.
The real question is what would be your writing strategy for a journal article? To me that seems harder to organize than a larger work because of all the content you have to cut. Great video.
Thank you for sharing!!
Primary sources first is great for confidence in your own ideas. I think I have tried to do this but not really clearly as a step so I’m gonna do it as a clear step for my next essay. ❤❤
Lmk how it goes!! Best of luck ♥️
Kaelyn, I'm a medical Student here in India. And I just want to say, you're addictive.❤
I came across your videos 4-5 days back, and they are just amazing ✨
Lots of Love From India.❤
I have enjoyed your videos on your academic journey - you keep trying and adapting, which is inspiring. I struggled while writing my dissertation, and when a chance to write a textbook came my way, to stay sane, my writing process had to change. What eventually worked for me was writing at regular times; write first, revise later; and like you, talk through my ideas out loud. Personally, I could write about a page a day, six days a week - a goal of five pages a day would not work for me. Today when writing I focus on making the data tell a story. For example, what’s the hook? How do I get the reader engaged? What is the moral of my story?
Just starting my literature review....I am still so confused but everything will work out....will for sure implement your tips
Definitely check out my how to write a literature review video!
@@KaelynGraceApple I sure will👍
🥰 yay! I hope it’s helpful
THANK YOU FOR THIS!
I hope it is helpful!!!
Okay, writing 5 pages a day actually really HURT me because it wasn't quality pages, so I just had a LOT of pages and it was overwhelming. Way too much to wade through. And I've written way more than necessary within my PhD which is making it take so long.
This is so good to know! Thank you for sharing Morgan ♥️♥️
Love this video ❤
I am so glad!
Love this video thanks! I have been implementing the writing sprints and they are so effecitve. But after 1.5h of really deep focus writing my brain is fried (meaning at like 9am 😅). How do you deal with this?
Only write 1.5 per day if that is what works best for your brain 🥰 studies show the average high performing knowledge worker only has the capacity for around 3 pure focus hours perhaps day! Give yourself some grace and use the 1.5 hours as effectively as possible to write and the rest of the day to do the tasks which require less brain function ♥️
I m waiting for your next vedio ❤
Many videos to come
Check out Scrintal (and use code: KAELYN10 for 10% off): bit.ly/45QJtF5 #ad
I am from India Ninth grader ICSE board our syllabus use to be so vast but some how i still manage time for my writing practice 😢
❤❤❤
Thank you for watching