So Academic Writing Month 2014 has been and gone. On the whole I have found it to be an enjoyable and useful experience, and a way to keep my thesis at the front of my mind, despite all of the other irons we have in the fire at the Estoria Project. In this post I will briefly discuss how I have worked towards the AcWriMo goals that I set out for myself at the start of November. I hoped to spend so much time transcribing for my thesis as to allow me to make a serious dent in the list of folios I need to transcribe for the first case study of my thesis. I have extended the month by a couple of working days to make up for the days I spent at the colloquium and at the workshop in Madrid, and have now transcribed 19.5 sides of the 39 that will form my first case study. I have also read the book for and written my first academic book review in my AcWriMo time. So, I can say that I have found that having a specific goal has been really beneficial, and I am pleased with the thesis work I have completed during the busiest project month of the year.
Another benefit of taking part in AcWriMo is the feeling of camaraderie developed through the use of the hashtag on Twitter. It has put me in touch with those completing research and writing papers of all levels, from undergraduates to established academics, many of whom share tips for staying focused and improving academic writing, and has helped reinforce the feeling of being part of a worldwide research community. This is great, as apart from at conferences, it can often be easy to think of ourselves as working like little islands, aware that other islands are out there, but not really in touch with them. This can particularly be the case of the postgraduate researcher, although I know that Christian, Marine and I are lucky to be working within a project such as EDIT which helps us to keep that community-feel going, even when we are wrapped up in our own theses.
I would definitely recommend taking part in AcWriMo to all other researchers, UG, PG, early-career and beyond, who perhaps need a bit of a kick up the proverbial, or just as an exercise in goal-setting and being aware of the need to create the conditions we need as individuals to ensure we are able to focus on our research around busy university life. Looking forward to AcWriMo 2015!