Week 13: Parking on a downhill slope

I kind of hate to have to mention this, but we have just two weeks to go of this iteration of TLQ group, and some north American acadabloggers are already clearly gearing up for the start of the new academic year.  So I thought this week we should carry on thinking about the writing process, this week focusing on a metaphor that has been used for ages in this online community - I read it first over at Notorious' place - and which I've found a really helpful tip for myself and when shared with real-life colleagues - the notion of parking our work on a downhill slope. It follows on nicely from last week's topic, as one means of avoiding getting stuck is to always make it as easy as possible to re-enter work, whether it's just carrying on the next day or getting back to writing after a busy month or two of classes, tests, grading, student emails and bureaucracy. 

I "park my work" in one of two ways - first, I aim to end a writing session with a few "what next" notes.  For academic papers this is usually bullet points of the ideas I have for the contents of the next few paragraphs or the things I need to mention - even if I think it's obvious! - whereas for fiction it's more often a question or single phrase ("how does she feel when she wakes up the next morning?  Why did it dig a hole? He really doesn't want to answer that question so he'll evade, "look shiny!", now it's time to switch to what's happening in the woods").  Then the next session begins by writing those notes into sentences and expanding on them.  I try to stop before I run out of steam, so that it's easy to have a couple of nascent ideas to note - also that's a better use of time, as the "thrashing" of the last part of a writing session can be quite unproductive and confidence-destroying.  I'm getting better at accepting a good chunk done rather than trying to force myself to do MORE!  Second, when I leave a piece of work in progress for a longer period, and especially for working in semester time, I also aim to make a list of small, concrete "useful steps" - "add references to paragraph 7" or "format table 3" or "check journal rules for referencing" - that make using half an hour of writing time easier, as I spend much less time working out where I was, I just pick a thing from the list and do that, knowing it's necessary.  And I try and leave those lists somewhere really obvious, e.g. at the top of the document in bright red, again to avoid spending ten minutes of my half hour trying to work out what to do.  What about you?  How do you "park your work on a downhill slope"?  And especially for those of us on a Northern Hemisphere academic cycle, are there specific things you can prioritise in the last part of this iteration to park your summer's work on a downhill slope and keep some TLQ momentum going into the new semester?

Also, any volunteers to coordinate the next iteration between September and Christmas, and suggestions for dates to start?

____________________________

Last week's goals:

Contingent Cassandra (from week ten)

1. Get grades in (TRQ, but also necessary to having a bit of time to concentrate on TLQ)
2. Figure out what I'll do when in the next month as much as possible
3. Keep lifting weights; get in the pool; move some more mulch if weather cooperates

DEH

1. Relax and have fun.

Elizabeth Anne Mitchell

1. Walk forty-five minutes a day.
2. Clear my part of the study so I can think.
3. File eveything on my desk at work so I can think.

GEW

1. Do online registration tasks Monday or Tuesday.
2. Write 3x for 30 minutes.
3. Read a couple of more chapters of book on structure.
4. Make appointment to see my primary about weird symptoms.
5. Do 2 syllabi.
6. Do sprucing up of laundry room.
7. Sort through 1-2 boxes or bags in garage.
8. Get (or at least choose) some plants for the backyard.

heu mihi

1. Read MM's dissertation.
2. Finish at least 1 Big thing for ch. 2 and as many of the S & M things as Interlibrary Loan will allow.
3. Create a course pack for FYS.
4. Take notes on the books sitting on my desk.
5. Complete syllabus 2/3.
6. Annual faculty report.

humming42

1. finish revisions to rbp chapter 2 (saving intro chapter for last)
2. grading for summer class
3. follow up again with co-author

Matilda

1. Finish first draft of Chapter 2.
2. 5-minute-exercises at least twice a day.
3. Find ‘my own 15 minutes’ as many as possible, and do something.
4. Re-consider my plan.

JaneB

1. write very rough draft of a paper which is for a special collection and is due at the end of September. This is the third ProblemChild paper (we originally planned on four, but have decided one meatier one is probably better). It is a nice long way off now but it will catch up VERY SOON.
2. remake figure for Tagalong paper (so-called because I feel a bit of a fraud being a co-author, although I've written a nice chunk of the discussion and edited the heck out of the draft)
3. get as much as possible done on Black Summer Project in the two days
4. keep in touch with PickyPaper (I have sorted out the next batch of simulations today, so I can set them going between meetings & stuff so I can feel a little productive).
5. read at least one more novel (I like reading novels)

KJHaxton

1. finish posters
2. finish exam questions
3. finish skirt
4. start new knitting project (wool is ordered, sketches and plans made...)

Notorious, PhD (carried over)

1. Writing: 2500 words
2. Research: One volume of ordinances
3. Mind/body: 3 yoga, 4 morning meditation

Susan (carried over)

1. Make sure I've ordered desk copies of all books for fall
2. Keep moving
3. Keep reading

Waffles (carried over)

1. Practice APA talk
2. Winnow down something in my house (to prep for move)