As many of you know I am a doctoral candidate (and have been for the last year) in Educational Leadership at the University of Oregon. Today I attended a workshop on dissertation writing as I am preparing to better engage with the dissertation process, hoping to complete it year from now. The workshop was really great! As a reminder to myself and to share with others, I was “tweeting” during the workshop. The twitter summary can be found below. Since tweets are recorded in real time, start from the bottom and read up. Each bullet point is a “tweet.”

If you are interested, there is a great community in Twitter that uses the #sadoc hashtag to share information such as this as well as provide support.

What other advice do you have for the #sadoc community on writing a dissertation? Share in the comment section!

• what r ur “rhetorical moves?” how do you take specific moves in your intro? tell a story, create a niche, then occupy the niche #sadoc
• Need 2 Know: background context, problem ur addressing, YOUR focus/claim, support 4 ur claim. Intro of paper #sadoc
• Writing 4 an Audience: what does a reader of academic texts need 2 know? How do I position myself as a member of this academic field #sadoc
• wow! that 5 min was uber productive. Wrote down an entire page of ideas! #sadoc #fiveminadayfan
• What r key words related 2 my paper/research? What would a visual schema of my ideas look like? Some ideas related to my paper are.. #sadoc
• We are doing it right now! Taking 5 min writing break!!! Get ready for starter phrases…. #sadoc
• outline early, then fill in content. provides a balance of the big picture against the trees. #sadoc
• write down notes/ideas as you read. write a little every day- notes, diagramming, freewriting. Just something. #sadoc
• Getting started: write to yourself first. Don’t let your eventual audience intimidate you. #sadoc
• for a visual of the painting a canvas approach to see how the stages of writing http://bit.ly/id3NKU Inspire you to see as process #sadoc
• the #sadoc writing tips are coming from Dr. Keli Yerian, Linguistics and Am Eng Inst http://bit.ly/eH92li Super helpful!
• writing is more like adding layers to a canvas than adding links in a chain #sadoc
• often an iterative process. draft, reorganize, add new material, cut material, revise after someone reads it. improve as you go #sadoc
• often like herding cats, because there are loose ends and doesn’t always feel like it’s headed in the same direction #sadoc
• is writing more like herding cats or like driving a car from point a to b? #sadoc
• we are talking about managing advisor and committee dynamics- expectations, personalities, ownership of process #sadoc
• excited 4 presentation from “Rehearsals 4 Life” theater troupe presenting on topics 4 grad stus. Love this group! #sadoc
• create an elevator speech 4 your diss. practice presenting your project and answering questions #sadoc
• Dealing w/ stress- ask for help (emotional/practical), interact w/ others as writing can be lonely, easy to become isolated #sadoc
• create a papertrail- clear communication btwn u & advisor. mini-contracts of what ur doing and what they r doing #sadoc
• when u have work time and writing is not flowing, focus on the tasky things- title page, references, formatting. Check off the list #sadoc
• the red markings and edits fr: ur advisor are helping you. means they r taking u serious as a scholar and advancing ur work. #sadoc
• remember it is a privilege 2 b at this point- to have the opportunity to advanced edu & to write on something ur passionate about #sadoc
• frame writing as enjoyable & stomething that brings you satisfaction #sadoc
• mini-deadlines are impt. stick to your schedule. find balance- make sure to exercise and take breaks #sadoc
• where might you work best, and get yourself there. Reward yourself for meeting deadlines #sadoc
• writing tips 4 #sadoc: block out times to write and work. don’t wait until you feel like it.