thesis update ( 1

i am officially working on my thesis now. yes, the half truths are over! i am REALLY working on it now and it is the most painful experience. i took an hour nap earlier this afternoon when i just couldn't look at it anymore. i have been typing for two hours straight but i just want to scream! i might email the "rough" version of my prospectus to my advisor as is and get some feedback (although it may be harsh) - i just feel as if i have reached the point where i cannot write anymore without some sort of feedback! any thoughts on this, kris?
anyone?

[DCJenn]

I have no input other than to be thankful that my Master's Program offered a choice in doing a thesis or taking a four hour test....hmmm four hours vs. four months... No brainer!!

Jenn

i just emailed my draft to my advisor. wow - that felt really good. i feel as though i am really back in the game - and i also feel as though this thesis will REALLY get finished this semester! the fact that i paid tuition for thesis hours this semester might have something to do with that!

. . . . ahhhh, relaxing life without the constant cloud of an impending thesis over my head is but a few short months away!

[houseelf]

Claudia,

I have no experience thesis writing, but studying for my license was extremely painful, obsessive, and unhealthy. I did nothing else but study for 10 hours a day and drink vats of coffee. I woke up in the middle of the night reciting lists of things that I had studied. It seemed like I never had enough time to learn everything and yet I couldn't wait for the test to come quick enough. It felt like I would always be in this mode. And then the three day test came....I don't know who was happy about my completing the test, my hubby or me.

In retrospect, I'm so glad that I had this experience because I'll always have this credential. But it was a painful exercise in self-discipline. I feel for you. Please know that this effort is worth the hard work and that you will be glad that you did it. Good luck!

Kelly

[houseelf]

Sorry to bring up a painful subject, but what is the topic? (In English please )

Kelly

I can't believe that I missed this thread, Claudia!!! WooHoo for you! Doesn't it feel great to have the ball rolling again!!! (I'm still leaving you with the nickname procrastinator though! ) I know that by the time I actually got my final draft in, I had reached the point of just mechanically going through the motions But it is soooooooo NICE to have it done!!!!!

Go Claudia, Go Claudia, Go Claudia!

kris

Claudia,

my experience of getting the the point where you cant write no more is to just leave it

and wait for that inspiration and motivation

(not too long though as inspiration doesn't tend to come at 4am the week of the it is due ))

I always sought feedback the whole way, i found that it stoped my tendency to head off on irrelevant tangents.......
Once i got that advice i found i had the motivation to keep going.

I get a number of people to read my work and do the same for my students. Plenty of suggestions are made and that and suddenly your thesis blows out to massive proportions! Thats where you need the phrase

"that is beyond the scope of this project"

good luck claudia, the pain will be over soon

Tegan

Tegan: ABSOLUTELY. I think that I am under the impression that I am writing a NOVEL sometimes instead of just a little THESIS. Sure, the thesis is large but it is NOT that large when you really NARROW your topic. I always need help in that area. "Don't bite off more than you can chew"

Kelly: I feel that I can actually speak somewhat intelligently now about my thesis! It is on television studies and feminism -and in a nutshell, how "femininity" and "woman" get defined and redefined by television programs, the producers, the viewers, the press - and how all of these conflicting meanings are negotiated . . . and so I will be discussing the femininity of the late 90s and early 00s with a focus on the program "Felicity" --

I am one chapter away from finishing a book that is very related to my thesis - I can't believe that I didn't read this book earlier. This process would have been so much easier. The author did the same thing with Cagney and Lacey in the 80s - and so I am doing an updated version of her book.

I'm working. I'm working. She returned my draft and I am going to have a revision to email her on Tuesday.

[houseelf]

Claudia--

Super interesting! Is your field women's studies, sociology, communications, what?

Kelly

Kelly -
It's communication studies - in a department of very liberal individuals so I don't think that calling it a feminist communication studies program would be out of line!

I'm working on it right now - and hating every minute of it. Well, OK, not every minute. . .maybe 40 seconds of every minute. I am going through all of the fan sites dedicated to Felicity and there are like 250 of them - I am like almost halfway done. Urrrrrrgh.

I don't know what happened - last week I put in maybe 3 hours per day on this and felt quite OK with that. This week, I am doing 4-8 hours per day and sweating at night that I will not finish by the end of April.

Claudia,

I totally sympathize. I think I spent more time online screwing around during the writing than at any time in my life....I made more web pages, changed more fonts and backgrounds...anything to not think about my paper...and yet simultaneously I had my thesis open in word with my notes all around me...You develop a sort of love/hate relationship with both the writing of the paper and the fooling around online you are doing!!!

All I can say is:

YOU CAN DO IT...

GO CLAUDIA...GO CLAUDIA.....

Kris

all i have to say is: UGH. UGH. UGH.
i am having serious thesis writing-induced depression. i CAN see the light at the end of the tunnel but the problem is the distance from here to the end. i am literally working on this (it seems) every waking hour when i am not eating, cooking, cleaning, etc. - and yes, OK, taking the occasional web surfing break.
and yet, it feels as if i have no idea what i am doing. i seem to get more confused about my topic and the order of my paper than ever before.
UGH. UGH. UGH.

kris, i am soooo happy that you finished - you are my inspiration now.

I hear you, Claudia!!!!!! I used thesis writing as a time in my life to ponder the meaning of life and my existance hahahaha...really, I had more prozac moments during that time than any other in my life and found myself really limping through the last bit of writing....I don't even know how I finished it.....

Here is the funny part...I procrastinated and put it away for awhile...then I went to get the zip disk and it was GONE...I LOST IT...I had to go back and spend 2-3 days RETYPING.....and then recheck all of my errrors, reinsert all of my pics....are you hearing this????????? I was so disgusted with myself and sick of it. I later discovered a couple of errors in it and just said to heck with it...I don't care !!!!

Guess what....last week I was cleaning out my bookshelf, and guess what I found????? MY ZIP DISK..........

Hahahaha...so whatever you do, don't set it aside...keep working!

Kris

hi there all -
i hate to ask this, but is anyone interested in reading a few pages of my thesis? i'm curious to know if it is "flowing" well - and my advisor keeps reminding me to write for the audience that is not familiar with my topic so i want to make sure that it is clear. trust me, you will not hurt my feelings if you decline. if *I* have to read over it one more time, i am going to scream.
i think that i still see the end in sight. i'm not sure. i wrote about 36 pages the other week and it was total junk. it did help me in the sense that i am further along now, but i have ended up just writing it fresh this time. so i am now at 11 (hopefully) "quality" pages with roughly 39 to go this week in order to meet my self-inflicted april 1rst deadline.
errrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrghghghghghghhghhgg!!! !!

[DCJenn]

Claudia-

email it to me- at work (so I can print it) jennifer@diamondbackmgt.com

Jenn