Someone recently asked me what advice I would give to my younger writing self and I immediately thought of the challenges and discomfort I experienced while writing my dissertation. I did indeed come up with advice for Her, and I thought maybe I should share that here as well - kind of like all of you are my younger selves…

Of course my first reaction was:
Don't go to graduate school??? Or at least don't work with the woman I did.

Translation: Investigate what’s required and what’s available before you just jump willy-nilly into a graduate program. Be sure that you are truly, deeply fascinated and ready to commit to your area of interest. If you get a chance (or can create one), find out from current students what your intended advisor is like to work with and what kind of support your chosen department provides to its students.

Given you decide you want to take the leap, here’s my practical advice for staying engaged and committed until you’re done:

Seek out strategies for being a prolific academic writer first thing:
That means read about writing and especially what makes some academic writers more prolific than others. Some of the other tips below relate to this as well.
Start a research journal and update it as you think about and through Stuff. Don’t just use it as a lab notebook repository for data and "facts":
Grab ideas as they come up, whether or not related directly to your thesis area of interest. In fact, if you didn’t start your program with a specific research intention, such a notebook may help you discover what’s most interesting to you and provide questions to mold into research undertakings. As a possibly even more important benefit, it will help you develop the habit of writing your thoughts down — and that’s critical for getting your thesis or dissertation done as painlessly as possible.
Surround yourself with People Who Write and write with them as much as possible:
Again, this serves a dual purpose. One is that the camaraderie of other people engaged with their studies or writing projects will help you stay engaged as well. Hanging out with writers (whether academic or not) will help you see the writing process as the iterative creature it is. making a time and space to write regularly will also help you discover what works well for you (or not) as a writer.
Share your written thoughts as much as possible with trusted audiences, including as they evolve:
Get in the habit early on of “thinking out loud” in writing. This will help you become a better, clearer writer. It will help you get over the feeling that what you share has to be perfect, brilliant, unique, oh-wow! material from the moment you share it. And that’s so key because you want to get lots of feedback on your ideas throughout the process. Too many people have a habit of withholding drafts until they feel they’re perfect — which means they may not share at all (which makes it hard to finish, eh?) or they are crushed when they get back feedback that something needs changing. Get in the practice of asking for developmental feedback and you’ll be able to move through the drafts process much more easily.
Practice thinking through writing:
For me, this was about writing letters and being thoughtful in them (this was all pre-personal computers, you understand). But in 2021, this means that unless you already think through your fingers (if so, you have been Gifted!), you can look for ways to practice writing wherever you can. Make notes on things you read (using your own words - note-making, not note-taking), journal, keep your research journal up-to-date, post your ideas in a community forum of some kind.
Make writing special:
Find a place and special Writing-Stuff that helps you enjoy the process of “thinking out loud”. Include a magic spell or other ritual if it helps you get in the flow.

Understand that it can be challenging to translate nonlinear thoughts to linear words. That’s why you need to practice not just the act of getting words out when absolutely necessary, but also the habits of thought and action that support the writing~thinking process. Think of graduate studies as being not just about your specific area of study, but also an opportunity to acquire the new skills you need to grow into a prolific producer of knowledge.

Be patient and persistent, most of us have to learn to find and direct our magic.