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Crusading for Careful Crisp Writing
I begin with a story of a time in a graduate writing class. We were assigned to write dissertation abstracts. It was time to share our work. A colleague projected hers with the instructor’s document camera. We could all read what she wrote except that I could not make out what the abstract was all about. The writing was convoluted and full of technical words from the specific subject area. Surprisingly, everyone around me applauded and the instructor lavished praise on her. This was several years back. I wished I…
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What’s ice-skating gotta do with grad school?
I’ve often referred to the metaphor of competitive ice-skating to describe the PhD journey. Michelle Kwan was mentioned in my PhD personal statement. “Michelle Kwan, one of my favorite figure-skating athletes, has always said that “Life is not a triple lutz.” She was a world-class competitor, but even when competing, she knew it was temporary, and not her final destination. Skating to her was about the journey, not the destination, hence her ability to forgo the pursuit of the Olympic gold medal that eluded her. Doctoral studies, like world-class figure…
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The Writing Process
Source: http://www.historicroyalpalaces.com/victorian-writing-set.html “If the only time you decide to enjoy yourself is when everything is perfect, you are never going to have much fun!” – Joyce Meyer R-i-g-h-t! Writing a dissertation is often described as an isolating and alienating experience. It’s not much fun most times, and far from perfect. One really needs to make a deliberate choice to focus on the good parts and create some fun for oneself. “Such as?” When everything becomes overwhelming, I walk away and do something I enjoy and find inspiration in. Get away…
