Search Results for: questions approach

what’s all this reading about then – starting the PhD

Posted on October 25, 2021 by pat thomson

When you begin the PhD you will be told to read, and read a lot. But you’ll find not any old approach to reading will do. It’s a particular kind of reading that’s expected. So it’s important to get a … Continue reading →

Posted in literature mapping, literature review, PhD, reading, Reading, starting the PhD | Tagged literature review, literature work, mapping, Pat Thomson, reading, starting the PhD | 1 Comment

line editing – learning from editors

Posted on February 27, 2023 by pat thomson

If you are writing a book, it is highly likely that the publisher will send your manuscript to an editor. Most academic publishers these days do not engage editors who do a lot of developmental and structural work. So it … Continue reading →

Posted in line editing, revision, revision strategy | Tagged academic writing, line editing, Pat Thomson, revision | Leave a comment

what does ” connect your work to an ongoing conversation” mean?

Posted on March 14, 2022 by pat thomson

We often hear that writing about your research is, or ought to be, joining a conversation. Other people have discussed your topic before and your writing needs to connect with that conversation. And “the conversation” actually means the published literature. … Continue reading →

Posted in connecting, conversation, literature reviews, literature themes, literatures paper, meta discourse | Tagged connecting, literatures work, meta discourse, Pat Thomson, the conversation | 1 Comment

my supervisor expects me to keep revising – why?

Posted on May 9, 2022 by pat thomson

I often hear doctoral researchers asking this question. They’ve sent their supervisor some writing. It’s come back with feedback and suggestions and maybe actual corrections. The doc. researcher has attended to all of these and sent the revised text back … Continue reading →

Posted in doctoral experience, doctoral pedagogies, revision, supervision, thesis revision | Tagged academic writing, conversation, multiple iterations, Pat Thomson, revision, supervision | 4 Comments

can you say something about the “theory chapter”?

Posted on August 9, 2021 by pat thomson

I’ve been asked about writing a theory chapter. But should I say anything? I feel a bit iffy about the very idea. What to do? Take your own advice here. Write for ten minutes about a theory chapter. Write about … Continue reading →

Posted in academic writing, theory, theory chapter, thesis | Tagged Pat Thomson, theory, theory chapter | 2 Comments

why journal articles are rejected #2

Posted on April 18, 2022 by pat thomson

Here’s the thing. Journal Editors say that one of the major reasons that papers are rejected is when the writer is not clear about their point, and their argument. Accepted journal articles have a point to make. They work with … Continue reading →

Posted in argument, journal article, rejection, the point | Tagged argument, journal article, Pat Thomson, rejection, structured abstract, the point | Leave a comment

trouble finding a writing angle? try cubing

Posted on January 10, 2022 by pat thomson

You have research results. You want to write something – a book, a chapter, a paper. You’re in a field where there is already an active conversation. You’ve done an analysis which seems to repeat what is already out there. … Continue reading →

Posted in cubing, free-writing, ideas clarification, the angle | Tagged angle, cubing, free-writing, generating ideas, Pat Thomson | 1 Comment

revising – mark up your text to achieve focus

Posted on February 13, 2023 by pat thomson

There’s so much to say about revising. Even though I’ve just published a book on revising – shameless plug – I still have things I want to say about it. The key message in the book is that revising effectively … Continue reading →

Posted in annotation, revision, revision strategy | Tagged academic writing, annotation, markup, Pat Thomson, revising, revision strategy | 1 Comment

why journal articles get rejected #1

Posted on April 11, 2022 by pat thomson

Some journal articles never get sent out for review. They are rejected at the outset by the Editor. Why is this? Well, there’s a short and a somewhat longer and a very extensive answer to this question. The short answer … Continue reading →

Posted in choosing the right journal, editing a journal, journal, journal article, journal editor, rejection | Tagged journal article, journal editor, reasons for rejection, rejection of articles | 2 Comments

cutting and pasting early text into the thesis – part 2.

Posted on February 6, 2023 by pat thomson

So you are writing your thesis about the research that you have done. And what you write now is is likely to be a little different from the expanded proposal you wrote to confirm your candidature. And a little different … Continue reading →