Mired in the End of the Chapter

Published 07 November 06 02:54 PM
One of the most challenging transitions I have found in moving from undergraduate and Honours level to writing a PhD is dealing with the length of work that you are supposed to produce.

It isn't so much the amount of work required (though that is an issue), but more the problems of keeping up momentum over the 12000-15000 words that make up each chapter. Building an argument that can be sustained over this length without becoming boring or repetitive means having a clear picture of what you are trying to show or say, even if you only find this out by writing it. Making it understandable for other people requires pulling out of that intense argument-centred headspace for long enough to put in the signposts.

More than that, finding a rhythm to the chapter is neccessary: creating a sense of something building, something coming that you want to keep reading to find out about. This can be a regular beat - this, then this, then this - thumping everything into place, or some kind of crescendo that ends in a bright intellectual flourish. The chapter I'm trying to finish writing now (chapter four of six) has all the components in place but no sense of rhythm or momentum, and without that I'm struggling away, mired in the end of the chapter.
by Karen.Hall
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# Peter Buzzacott said on November 7, 2006 5:36 PM:
Man, I'd love to write a book one day.  Sounds like you're already doing it.  For my PhD I'm going for a series of papers.  I reckon it's a more manageable prospect.  I know just what you mean about keeping up momentum without boring the reader.

Good luck

Peter
# robyn.owens said on November 7, 2006 8:03 PM:
If there is one book that *every* research student should read, it is William Strunk Jr's "The Elements of Style". Luckily for everyone now, it is available online at http://www.bartleby.com/141/ and I thoroughly recommend it.

Strunk lays down the rules for good writing and makes it look easy. In fact, it *is* pretty easy once you know these basic rules.

Each paragraph is a unit of thought. Lay out your argument logically. Introduce the main purpose of the chapter, motivate the reader about why you are writing about this particular topic, and outline what you are going to do. Then do it.

Use concrete rather than general language. And you get that rhythm at the chapter level by the structure of your argument, at the paragraph level by the structure of your sentences (break it up a bit - don't use the same structure over and over), and at the sentence level by your choice of words.

The best way to see if you've got the rhythm? Read it out aloud. You'll soon see if it flows. Good luck!

More on argumentation soon in a forthcoming theEzone blog.
# Michael.Azariadis said on November 9, 2006 12:27 PM:
In connection to your concerns about momentum, signposting and coherence (and how to achieve these in the context of your thesis chapter) I would recommend looking at a UWA PhD thesis by Rosalind Lawe-Davies titled 'PhD Thesis Coherence in Tertiary Student Writing: Writer Skills and Reader Expectations'.
In the thesis Rosalind talks about the best ways to provide predictives statements, unifiers and dividers for signalling continuity or change in topic etc. I think these principles might help.

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About Karen.Hall

I've recently submitted my PhD thesis, titled 'Discovering the Lost Race Story: Writing Science Fiction, Writing Temporality', for examination. In the meantime, I'm teaching in the discipline of Communication Studies at UWA and starting a new project on medievalism and media through a Whitfeld Fellowship.