======= Date Modified 08 27 2009 07:27:50 =======

I'm not a PhD student..yet. but i write in this forum since i figured here is where i could get the most help when it comes to writing up research. so here goes...

Hello.
I should have written to you earlier i just realized. It's regarding work on a research paper...based on the study i did for my masters dissertation. I've been working on the paper for 2 months now. I stay at home (but I have the pasrt about 'workign at hoem' figured out, so that's not the problem).
I find myself suddenly so muddled with my paper..with parts written, parts where i need to do more stats, parts i need more referencing, parts where i find arguments against my own work. and i just wish i had a more systematic way of working with it. i just get lost in the stats i have to learn, the parts i have to write, the different colored fonts and comments in the paper, all my notebooks and i just keep making lists of what all i have to do, all that i have to read. I am also trying to learn R on my own on the side. and whenever i have to send an update of the paper to my guide i realize i haven't written much, maybe because i was reading and not writing. and in the end i feel that all the reading didn't help me do any more work actually...although i know it was useful. But the point is..after all the reading, making lists, thinking, learning R, rearranging the plan of my paper, the flow of my text..i haven't added much to the body of my paper!
And it's like everything comes with a rush to my head..all these things i have to do or new ideas i could put down in the discussion and I feel all muddled up because of too many things to do. and then everything goes all out together! I hope I make sense..i do to myself :/
You who've worked on a paper(s) or even thesis..do you have anything to say to me?

This is a process that can vary infinitely and everyone on here will give you their own idea of what works for them. So here's what works for me: I find it useful to start from a structure. So I am one of those people who spend the most amount of time designing a table of contents, upto heading 3 for each section. This changes as I go along but it helps me to envisage a complete whole from the start, and then I alter bits as the writing flows.

I have recently received some very useful advice, which may be helpful. Once you have a draft, you can run this check: do I have a 'problem/gap/puzzle'? Have I added stuff to it to flesh it out? Have I brought out the three or four best points I have to offer a solution/suggest a way forward? Have I planned out a conclusion that is more than just a summary of what I have written? Have I then gone back and revised my introduction to introduce this highly altered document properly?

Other questions I ask myself which helps with structure are:

1. At the end of each section: What is the best point I am making here? Does it come across clearly?
2. At the end of the piece: Have I threaded together the series of 'best points' well? Does it offer some sort of a narrative?
3. At the end of a rough draft: Where are the gaps? What do I need to insert to fill the gaps?


And one last. My supervisor who has taught me that a well written piece may well travel through many (!) versions, reminds me that writing is like chiseling a lump of clay. Version after version after version. But each is progress...

Good luck!

I like to write to questions.

Ie.

What is the problem?
What do we already know about X?
Y? etc etc etc
What don't we know?
What do I aim to do?
How could I do it?
How will I do it?
Why will I do it like that?
What are the advantages of this technique?
What did I do?
Who did I do it with (participants/cells/etc etc etc)?
...continue for the rest of paper...

Remember to always think of it as a reader - i.e., what do you want to know when you're reading papers. Also, look at papers who have done similar things and consider using a similar structure to them.

Good luck

A

For me, what works is structure, structure, structure:

When you 've worked out what you want to say, and have assembled the ideas/evidence in the appropriate order, divide it into sections with an allocated wordcount for each component.

The really time-consuming bit, for me, is the massive cloud of information that swamps me before I start distilling down the ideas. Sounds like you're at that stage, so get some sleep/fresh air and remind yourself what you're trying to communicate.

(up) i appreciate all the replies..thanks! well yes..I'm at the stage where the initial structure is set, as is the word count and the question answer session in each...the problem really begins when everyday i feel the need to rearrange my structure because the discussion will seem better this way or that...do you understand? plus i have gaping holes in the structure and i fall into them every time i sit down to work. and if only i could once get it all down i would take care of the holes and the rearrangement! so...ok i will take some tips from this discussion already and see how i can get it more structured...maybe keep a basic set of what, why, how question for each heading.

another quick question though...is it a mammoth task to learn R on your own or has some of you out there managed it?

oh and hellos to everyone visiting this thread!