Thread by @emuehlbe

Next side quest---"Get Structure"---is open for my history writing seminar, and I'm going to post a twitter-friendly version of it here:

#acwri #twitterstorians

Writing something the length of a dissertation/book chapter is not a natural thing to do! It takes effort, and to be sustainable, it takes effort distributed over time.

Even the most insightful thinker does not think in polished essays; they think in chunks, in furtive observations, in half-realized concepts, and then they fashion all of those things into a polished essay by spending the time to develop them.

Lynn Hunt has argued that we don't even really start thinking until we start writing:

historians.org/publications-a…

So, the purpose of this side quest is to explore all the ways you can help yourself do that long work in a sustainable way by structuring your time.

There's no single model for success (despite the enthusiasm people have for saying "just write every day!"). Instead, there are a lot of different options for practice, and part of your task is to figure out what is the sustainable way *for you* to manage *your* effort.

So, what's your current structure for writing and research? (If the answer is, "I don't have one!" that's okay!) Think about it as you answer these questions---and I suggest actually writing out answers.

*what does a normal writing session look like for you? where and when does it happen? how long does it last?

*do you have any regular schedule for your writing?

*where and how do you keep track of your deadlines?

*what usually interrupts or gets in the way of your writing?

*what's the largest project you ever completed, and how did you manage it?

*were you satisfied with how sustainable your practice was? were the people around you---your friends, your loved ones who know you---satisfied with how sustainable your practice was?

*when do you start drafting ideas during a project?

*relatedly, how often do you find yourself looking for just one more article before you get started?

*do you use any accountability tools, like writing together with others? keeping a logbook of your writing sessions?

Once you answer all of those with a clear eye on what you've already been doing, you can evaluate where there might be room for change, and even start to think about experimenting with different practices.

Here's the trick: pick ONE THING to tinker with.

You can't overhaul a process that has served you---and if you're writing a dissertation, you've written well enough to get yourself into the position of writing a dissertation, so your process has been working!---all at once.

So, pick *one thing*, make yourself a limited schedule for trying it (like, two weeks), and commit to trying it.

Then, tell someone what you're doing, for how long you're going to try it, and how you'll decide whether it worked for you.

And---key step here---then you do it. When that experiment is done, look back at your answers, pick another thing, and keep tinkering.