As a former English major, I find there is a certain style that each person comes to have when they go to write a paper. Some write a little bit at a time, others write basically the entire paper the night before. For me, I have to take basically an entire weekend where I focus on nothing but my paper until it is completed. Oh, and I usually start this process about two or three weeks before it's due.
I do this for a couple of reasons. For one thing, I edit. A lot. I'm never extremely happy when I am handing a paper in. There is always something that can be tweaked or changed. Usually I just have to get to a point where I say to myself, "Stop it. You're being ridiculous. Print the paper out and move on with your life." Of course this never really works, but it would be so nice if I could actually start listening to myself for once.
I also need to start the paper way before it's due because I always get all nervous for papers that I won't have enough time to write them. I'm not sure why I get like this, because I can actually organize and write my thoughts out fairly quickly. I think what happens is that the thought of a looming paper will just sit in the back of my mind and whenever I go to do anything that is not work related I have a little voice inside of my head that says things to me like, "What kind of a sorry excuse for a person watches a movie when you have a paper due in three weeks? How can you afford the time to make yourself breakfast when you have that paper to write!? Why are you taking so long to shower when you have a paper to write!? You're wasting water AND time!" Eventually it gets to the point where I can't take it anymore and I will put off all other homework until my paper is written.
My process for actually writing papers is interesting:
First Sit Down to Write Paper: Okay. I've got this. Going to write a paper. It's going to be awesome. Worth 10% of my grade so I have to put some effort into this. Just think, once you're done with this it will be out of your head forever!
Hour Later: Hmmm. That hour long break I took to try and get rid of my writers block didn't really help. I still have nothing written.
Hour Later: Phew! Introduction, DONE. Only took me an hour to write five sentences. At this rate I'll be done by...oh jeeze.
Hour Later: Wow I totally just whipped those 2 pages out like nothing! I bet I can finish this today. I have so many ideas, so many places I can take this paper.
30 Minutes Later: Shit, I've ran out of things to say. Well maybe another break will help.
Hour Later: Do taking breaks ever really help or is it just something people say to put off writing anything more? Because I just spent the last hour looking at videos of cats, but I have gained no new insight on the topic I'm supposed to be writing about. Well, I guess it's that time in the writing process where you have to start making things up in order to meet the page requirement.
Hour Later: There is no way I can keep anything of what I just wrote. I'm fairly certain my cat could come up with something more intelligent sounding by randomly stepping on the keyboard. But I don't really feel like writing another two pages so maybe I'll just reword what I already have some other day. Future me problem.
Hour Later: Why do they always make the conclusion sound like the easiest part to write? It is most certainly not! I have no idea what to write. Rephrase what I already said? Seems so silly because I literally just talked about it on the page before. Oh well, I doubt the professor even reads the conclusions anyways.
So you see why editing is usually a bigger deal for me than most. My attitude of "meh whatever, I'll fix it later" always comes back to bite me in the butt. Of course I perfectly aware that I am doing this. Does that stop me from doing this every time I go to write a paper? Of course not. It would be amazing all the things I could accomplish in my life if I actually listen to what I try and tell myself.
On my ipod today: "Superman" by Goldfinger. The lyrics are far from poetic, but the beat is happy and the sun was out today so who cares?
No comments:
Post a Comment