General Tips
Write 200 words every single day!
Make a goal to write at minimum 200 words a day. It’s so easy to do! In fact, I just did it right now in this very post. A 200-word goal is very easy to accomplish and requires maybe 20 minutes of your time. Too often I find people saying that they need a whole day to write but as a grad student, who has a whole day to spend writing? If you say you need to write 200 words before you start your writing exercise, invariably you’ll write more at the end. Writing 200 words can also mean doing a revision, a lit review, or annotated bibliography. 200 words is an easy, accomplishable goal that if performed regularly, will give you close to 200 pages of written content in 8 months. – Medium, 8 Tips for Writing a 210-Page Doctoral Dissertation in 8 Months
Choose a topic that you actually care about.
Every now and then when we are picking a subject or research question, our advisors tell us to think about the job market. This is great advice. However, really ask yourself, “Am I going to be able to obsess about this for a year?” If the answer is no, then don’t choose that topic. Choose a topic that you are deeply invested in. My dissertation was on race and comedy — something that I did during my free time as well. Whenever I felt burnt out, I would just go perform and feel reenergized, full of new insights and questions that my dissertation was going to engage in. – Medium, 8 Tips for Writing a 210-Page Doctoral Dissertation in 8 Months
Set deadlines early on in the process.
Having a goal to work towards is incredibly important for sustaining motivation over a long period of time. As someone who needs the pressure of a deadline to get anything done, I found that a list of due dates was essential for keeping me on track – Inside Higher Ed
Celebrate accomplishments as you go.
Take time to appreciate all of the little accomplishments as you write. Working solely for the “reward” of defending or graduating is overwhelming, so find little places to celebrate as you go along. Finish a page? Have a cookie! Finish a chapter? Go get a beer! Work through data you were struggling with? Take the rest of the night off! Find places to feel good about what you’re doing. – Inside Higher Ed
The First Draft is Not the Final Draft.
When taking on a project of this magnitude it’s important to remember that your first draft is not your final draft. The sentences don’t have to be perfect and the argument airtight on the first try. Rewriting and revising are crucial parts of the writing process. Just start writing and refine your work in the subsequent draft. – Academic Positions
Move Around.
In a similar vein, if you find yourself stuck on a certain section in a chapter move on and come back to it later. As long as you have outlined your argument and approach for the chapter, you can easily skip a difficult part and use your time more efficiently to write a straightforward section. Having made progress on an “easy” section, you will be more confident when returning to the tricky paragraphs. – Academic Positions
Use a Reference Manager.
Dissertations have hundreds of references and you don’t want to be scrambling at the end to track them all down. Using a reference manager like Endnote or Zotero will help you keep track of all the documents you might need to cite and make adding citations easy. They can also easily adapt to any citation style. – Academic Positions
Spend adequate time determining your thesis and methodology.
This probably could fit in the number one slot, but I wanted to emphasize the importance writing right away. Besides, you might find that you modify your thesis and methodology slightly as you write and make progress in developing your overall argument. Nevertheless, the adage is true: form a solid thesis and methodology statement and your dissertation will “write itself.” Plan to spend some time writing and rewriting and rewriting (again) your thesis and methodology statements so that you will know where you are going and where you need to go. – Southern Equip
Get exercise, adequate sleep, and eat well.
Because our minds and bodies are meant to function in harmony, you will probably find that your productivity suffers to the degree that you are not giving attention to your exercise, sleep, and eating habits. Like it or not, our ability to maintain long periods of sustained concentration, think carefully over our subject matter, and find motivation to complete tasks is dependent in a significant sense upon how we are caring for our bodies. When we neglect exercise, fail to get adequate sleep, or constantly indulge in an unhealthy diet, we will find it increasingly difficult to muster the energy and clarity with which to complete our dissertation. – Southern Equip
Build up your toolbox.
Pick up a dictionary, thesaurus, and the required style guide that you need. If you can, Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style is also a great writing book. If funds allow for other books, here are some that we would recommend as well. To write well, you need to be prepared. These are always handy to have at your side. – Dissertation Editor
Avoid getting stuck on introductions.
It’s usually easier to create the main body of the chapters and then return to the introduction. This is a basic rule in writing a dissertation as many people are used to getting stuck on the introduction and waste time while they aren’t sure what to write about. – PapersOwl
Do not ask friends how much work they’ve done.
You’ll end up paranoid – or they will. Either way, you don’t have time for it. – The Guardian, Ten Things I Wish I’d Known Before Starting My Dissertation
Finishing it will be one of the best things you’ve ever done.
It’s worth the hard work to know you’ve completed what’s likely to be your biggest, most important, single piece of work. Be proud of it. – The Guardian, Ten Things I Wish I’d Known Before Starting My Dissertation
