Ready, set, WRITE!

Image from http://office.microsoft.com/

Whether you’re a natural procrastinator or someone who likes to get the work finished a week ahead of time, there are always those times when you just can’t get started. If you’re like me (a terrible procrastinator, or, as I prefer to say, one who works best on a deadline), you’re always thinking, “I’ll start...later!” No matter your stage in your graduate writing career, getting started on your writing assignment—from an article summary to a thesis—can be the hardest part of the process.

You’re watching the clock tick, beginning to panic, thinking, “Time is running out!” And yet, you cannot seem to put the proverbial pen to paper. Maybe you don’t know where to start because you’re confused by the assignment, or you haven’t written an academic paper in a while, or the task at hand just seems too big and daunting.

My approach to the can’t-get-started conundrum is to just do SOMETHING. Anything. I always liked to start my papers by putting together my works cited page first. (Of course, this requires having already done your research, but that is a topic for another post!) You have to have a works cited page, so you’re doing important work, but it doesn’t require you to analyze and create complex sentences. It does, however, require you to sit at the computer and start typing, which is a great place to be—especially if you were previously banging your head against the wall and, well, doing nothing. 

Once I drag myself to the computer, I find that I’m literally in a position to keep going. I also like to do an outline (in pencil) to sketch out my thoughts and see how they link together. There are all kinds of “getting started” exercises out there (several good ones are here on the Writing Center Web site, and more about the writing process here)—just find the one that works for you and BEGIN!

Of course, MALS students can always contact me for help getting started on an assignment, or finishing up, or any point in between!

Happy writing!
~Lahla