Monday, September 29, 2008

Procrastination finally pays off!

So, back in late July, when I was avoiding working on some chapter or other (or maybe it was the introduction), I started a file called "conclusion notes." These were just random fragments that I had run across that I thought would fit well in a conclusion. I can't remember when I last modified that file (probably in early August?), but I can tell you that I forgot all about it. Until tonight.

Let me tell you, I am grateful I have this thing. A couple of things are shaky, but a couple are, I think, pretty good. So I'm now just over 600 words into the creation of what may be charitably described as a "conclusion-shaped object." I'm gonna shoot for 1000-1200 as a nod toward a real conclusion, go over it again tomorrow, and send it off, with a note that I plan to expand it.

But now, I need bed.

(Oh yeah -- and I finished the edits on the chapters and bibliography around 8:00 tonight. I could open and check one more time tomorrow, but I'd probably just find another sentence that could be rewritten, another paragraph to be moved somewhere else... basically all the stuff I've been doing for the past ten days. But I'm smart enough to know that this could go on forever, and I don't want it to. So I refuse to give the thing "just one more read-through." There will be plenty of opportunity for revisions in the coming months, I'm sure.)

4 comments:

Good Enough Woman said...

I just want to make a note indicating how much I'm enjoying and appreciating your blog. I'm on sabbatical (from a community college) and I'm working on my sabbatical project while also beginning my dissertation. I'm starting at the beginning of your blog archives to get tips about how to get it all done. I'm really good at procrastination--like readings blogs . . .

squadratomagico said...

Congratulations on reaching this milestone!

Matthew Gabriele said...

Notorious, I responded to your question about Palgrave on my blog but thought I'd say something here to. Feel free to email me with questions, if you want. Anonymity guaranteed... :-)

Susan said...

Isn't it great to keep those running files of oddments? I'll sometimes have all sorts of pretentious things that I think would make a good conclusion cluttering up my file, but then they are there.

(Actually, I do this for every chapter, and every writing project.)