Rachel Cayley opens her recent book on graduate writing with a reflection on the assumptions that students and their supervisors sometimes make about writing. Too often, she notes, graduate students assume they should already know how to write academically – after all they have been accepted into a high-level program and their supervisors are keen to work with them. Writing should be the easy part, but somehow it often is not.
As a teacher of graduate writing, I see a lot of what is commonly known as ‘imposter syndrome’ when it comes to academic writing, and it can be hard to convince folks that with patience and practice they will become more assured. Certainly, academic writing can be challenging, frustrating, even mystifying at times, but it can be learned and once you get the hang of it, you will find it both rewarding and fun.
Here are four key tenets to keep in mind as you engage in the process of writing your thesis.
As a teacher of graduate writing, I see a lot of what is commonly known as ‘imposter syndrome’ when it comes to academic writing, and it can be hard to convince folks that with patience and practice they will become more assured. Certainly, academic writing can be challenging, frustrating, even mystifying at times, but it can be learned and once you get the hang of it, you will find it both rewarding and fun.
Here are four key tenets to keep in mind as you engage in the process of writing your thesis.
Writing is thinking
The American writer Joan Didion once said: ‘I write entirely to find out what I’m thinking, what I’m looking at, what I see and what it means’. The quote efficiently summarises the symbiotic relationship between writing and thinking – each continually informs the other. Graduate writers often mistake this relationship; they see writing as an expression of thinking, instead of as an act of thinking.
If you have trouble expressing your ideas clearly, it might be that you haven’t quite worked through the logic of your thinking. It can seem like a vicious circle, but if this happens, try writing your way through the blockage. Write about the problem in different ways, from different perspectives, for different audiences and allow time for reflection between each piece of writing. Consider that you are writing each draft to work out what you think; the polish comes later.
Writing is iterative
If one of the functions of writing is to help refine your ideas, it follows that you cannot expect your early drafts to be perfect. We all write first drafts that are messy. Writing is an iterative process: the more you do it, the better it gets. Revision is, therefore, central to the process of writing, and this is particularly true for graduate writers.
You will likely get feedback from your supervisors on early drafts asking you to clarify, unpack and elaborate more fully upon your ideas. This does not mean you are a bad writer; it means you are working out what you think. Avoid putting too much pressure on yourself, especially in the early stages of your writing. Good writing can be learned, but it is always the product of lots of revision.
Writing is for a reader
When you are buried deep in your research – reading the works of others, setting up research designs, collecting data, getting ethics approval – it is easy to forget that you are writing for a very particular purpose and audience. In the case of a graduate thesis, that audience/reader is your examiner.
It is necessary as you progress with your writing to take a step back and see it through the eyes of your reader. Remember, although your reader is an expert in your field, they are not an expert in your project. You must explain the what, the why, the how and the so what of your research clearly, never assuming your reader already knows such things.
Clarity is imperative
Graduate writers often get tangled up in complex sentences and convoluted phrasing when trying to present their research in writing. There are several reasons for this, but it is often indicative of a lack of confidence, or of trying too hard to sound intellectual. However, the best academic writers express complex ideas in language that is clear and accessible. It is essential that you aim for clear, uncluttered prose if you are to communicate your research and its significance to others. Be kind to your readers and make the clarity of your prose a priority.
If you are finding writing challenging, it can help to ask yourself the following questions:
- Am I stuck with my writing or stuck with my thinking? Can I use my writing to help untangle my thinking? How?
- Am I expecting my writing to be polished too soon? Have I written multiple drafts of sections I am stuck with? Have I allowed time between drafts for reflection?
- Have I considered the needs of my readers? Am I assuming my reader already knows about my project? Do I articulate the purpose of each section of my writing clearly? How can I help my reader see and understand the logic of my thinking and arguments?
- Is my writing clear and free of unnecessary jargon, complex sentences and arcane vocabulary? Would an educated lay person be able to follow the basics of my argument?
You can also find a range of workshops on various facets of academic writing through the RED Program.
STOP PRESS: Check out this new La Trobe University resource to help with research and thesis writing! Whether you’re just starting out on your thesis journey, or stuck in the middle somewhere, the Graduate Research and Thesis Writing Guide offers strategies to help with all aspects of thesis writing.
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Lynda Chapple is an Academic Skills Advisor in the La Trobe library. She teaches graduate research writing in the RED Program and can be contacted directly for individual consultations about thesis writing.
You can email her at: l.chapple@latrobe.edu.au
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