the encouragement lounge: The writing process -- sometimes it is dinner for two, and sometimes it's a wrestling match

Friday, October 28, 2011

The writing process -- sometimes it is dinner for two, and sometimes it's a wrestling match

My colleague Melanie Booth, host of the higher ed blog Prattlenog, has just published a post about a challenge she is having in her writing process. She is working on a chapter for a book and is having trouble with one particular paragraph. I invite you to read this post and get a glimpse of her process and how she views it.

I love:

* the respect she shows for the process itself

* the drive she has to "get it right" to clear up the one paragraph that she and others say isn't working

*and the humor she employs to persevere and not be defeated by this writing challenge

If you are working on your thesis or dissertation, read this, it will give you a boost:

Meet Polly

Cheering you all (and Melanie and Polly) on in your work!

Harriet

photo by HLS

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Working adult students, on my mind...

I hope this blog will be helpful to friends and others involved in a variety of endeavors. However, I created the blog with students in mind and continue to develop it with that specific group as my focus.

I believe that with the increase in evening, weekend, and low-residency programs, students are working more and more in isolation. If we were all full-time students on campus, we would have the informal support that comes with being able to go down the hall and talk with a colleague, etc. But instead, we are working late nights and weekends at home in front of the laptop.

With that in mind, I hope the encouragement lounge provides brief moments of respite and energizing connection. This does not at all replace valuable face-to-face contact. Many aspects of the academic journey can only be addressed via in-depth conversations with colleagues and teachers. And I would always rather sit down and talk with someone than to communicate online. Nonetheless, my aim is to give you one more channel for quick hits of support.