Co-supervision? I have to say I've never heard of that and I'm quite sure a number of universities wouldn't stand for it. What a strange idea.

Still, with regards to your problem... it seems to me that a "quick apology" wasn't enough. I don't want to make you feel worse, but what you did would probably upset most people, if not personally then professionally. As you seem to have had a friendly, chatty working relationship in the past, I would bring the subject up again and make sure he knows that you know you made a mistake. You might also think about reiterating how much help he has been to you so far and that you feel lucky to have him.

To react to your question by suggesting that you were asking to be spoonfed is nasty, unpleasant, irresponsible and downright impolite. No matter how expert she is she does not have the necessary social skills to be pursuing a career in education. (I work as a teacher by the way.) It is not enough for supervisors to know their stuff - they should also have people skills. If someone spoke to me in that manner I would go over their head and report them.

Hi Smilodon,

I had a flat in Agouza. Where were you? Damascus was very different, certainly felt less liberal, but what was nice was that when you got fed up with it you could trot off over the border to Lebanon for a few days. I was in Syria first and for longer, so by the time I went to Egypt I had picked up Syrian dialect and a thick accent, which the Egyptiansd found endlessly amusing!

I'm not unhappy being back in the UK, but I miss it sometimes too.

Also thankd to you, zippy, I shall definitely check that out.

Thanks for all the tips bakuvia. And congratulations on having had your novel published! I didn't know this type of PhD existed either until I came across it by chance, before that I was planning on something combining English and Arabic literature... but when I found this there was no looking back. Strangely, a large chunk of my story is also set in the Middle East, but it's modern day. I've lived in both Damascus and Cairo so it feels very familiar to me as a setting. The rest takes place in Wales however, where I grew up. I've kept it to three characters so that there's a tight focus - which I think makes for easier dramatic conflict. I'm sure I shall make a lot of mistakes in the first draft - but hopefully I shall learn from them.

I've never been to anything like that but I hear good things from others and hope you have a great time.

Jouri, you do make me smile.

I'm not in quite the same situation, but suffer from similar difficulties. I agree that small chunks works - but also small (but frequent) time periods. For example, when I'm struggling I tell myself that I don't have to work for more than 15 minutes at any one time - after that, I get to walk away again for a bit. What usually happens, is that during one of these 15 minute sessions, I get reabsorbed withiout realising it and go on working for hours. I don't know if that will help you - but I guess the idea is that by not being too strict on yourself you can relax into work more naturally.

I can see it must be difficult. My advice would be just make sure that you make the decision together rather than alone. If it is seen as "your decision" it may come back to haunt you in terms of blame if things go wrong. However, if you make a considered decision together then you are both taking responsibilty for the future. And that's a positive start.

Hello shani, thanks for extending the metaphor. Works for me too.

I think the key thing is to talk about all this very honestly with your partner. You're going to need his (or her!) support whether you decide to start a family, take on a PhD, or do both. You say that you suspect your partner isn't quite as ready to settle down as you are - and I think it's probably best to find out for sure. Good luck whatever you decide.

Pure fantasy? Well, I would be a wizened old storyteller in a cafe in Damascus. I would spin episodic sagas that lasted for years on end and know all the great narratives in history off by heart.

Hi,
I was wondering, does anyone else get a lot of backache from sitting around writing so much? And if so, do you have any tips to avoid it? I'm ok at home because I have a good chair, but I do get very achy from sitting in the library.

In my experience that's completely normal. So is choosing something that doesn't work out and then changing your mind! I've just finished my first year and it took me most of it to figure out which direction I was going in. Don't worry and keep exploring ideas.

Sorry to hear you sounding disillusioned. Have you spoken to your supervisor about this? It might help if you talked it through - and it might get you feeling a bit more interested again. Everyone has times when they get fed up with their subject, you're not alone, but try thinking about whether there are any practical, positive steps you can take to help yourself. If possible, talk to other PhD students too.

English Lit? I envy you the amount of knowledge you must have ammassed by now - My undergraduate degree was in Arabic, and my masters in screenwriting and film, so I'm still playing catch-up when it comes to modern and classical literature in English.

Hmm. Good question, haunts me too. There are endless theories but I think that in novel writing terms, it is a good story well told. After all, there are many good stories badly told and many bad stories fairly well told. For me, at the risk of over simplifying a complex debate, it has to be both style and content combined.