Ella Hawkins

Writing Strategies

By: EllaMcHawk August 1, 2020July 19, 2021

Organisation & Productivity, Post-PhD, Uncategorized, WritingOrganisation, Post-PhD, Productivity, WritingLeave a Comment

I’ve been getting back into the swing of writing lately. It’s been a fair few months since I last sat in front of a blank page. I took some time out to rest after submitting my thesis, and the final stretch of my PhD was much more about editing and formatting than writing. After a…

PhinisheD! Now What?

By: EllaMcHawk July 11, 2020July 11, 2020

Organisation & Productivity, PhD, Post-PhD, Shakespeare, Uncategorized, WritingBirmingham, Mental Health, PhD, Planning, WritingLeave a Comment

It’s been a while since I last posted a PhD update. A lot has happened. I submitted my thesis for examination at the end of April, my viva was mid-June, and I deposited the final, hard-copy version of the thesis with the University Library last week. I’ve officially finished my PhD! I’m still not really…

How’s the PhD Going? Pandemic Edition

By: EllaMcHawk April 4, 2020April 4, 2020

Health and Happiness, Organisation & Productivity, PhD, UncategorizedMental Health, PhD, WritingLeave a Comment

I started writing a blog post on 1 March. It was my annual PhD update. I wrote a few paragraphs about the bizarre emotional rollercoaster of thesis completion: what it felt like to be two months away from submitting, what sort of work I had left to do, and how general life chores (shopping, cooking,…

(Alternative) Acknowledgements

By: EllaMcHawk February 10, 2020February 25, 2020

PhD, Uncategorized, WritingPhD, WritingLeave a Comment

This PhD thesis would not have come to fruition without the help of numerous inestimable contributors. Woodland walks of the West Midlands: our regular meetings were essential for the development of key ideas within this project, and for my mental health. The scones and parkland footpaths provided by the National Trust (especially Hanbury Hall) have…

Welcome to Mission Control

By: EllaMcHawk January 6, 2020January 6, 2020

Organisation & Productivity, PhD, Uncategorized, WritingOrganisation, PhD, Planning, Productivity, Reading, WritingLeave a Comment

Reader, the final countdown is fully under way. There are now just under four (4) months until my submission deadline and things are getting intense. I have LISTS and SPREADSHEETS and WHITEBOARDS and a very strict schedule for getting each section of my thesis edited, proofread, and (gulp) finished. Thinking about actually submitting the thesis…

#AcWriMo: How’d It Go?

By: EllaMcHawk December 7, 2019

Organisation & Productivity, PhD, Uncategorized, WritingOrganisation, PhD, Productivity, Reading, WritingLeave a Comment

*Post written on 30 November; publication delayed in observation of the UCU strike digital picket.* Academic Writing Month is officially over! At the end of my last post, I set out my plan to make some serious progress in November. I made a spreadsheet with intimidating daily writing targets and challenged myself to get to…

Enough

By: EllaMcHawk October 31, 2019July 19, 2021

Organisation & Productivity, PhD, Shakespeare, Uncategorized, WritingOrganisation, PhD, Planning, Productivity, Reading, Writing1 Comment

My submission timeline just got a whole lot shorter. Until a few weeks ago, I was planning to submit my PhD thesis at the end of my fourth year (September 2020). I figured I’d use all the time I have available to make the thesis the best it can be. My new plan is to…

The Final Countdown Begins…

By: EllaMcHawk September 7, 2019

Organisation & Productivity, PhD, Uncategorized, WritingCompletion, PhD, Planning, Productivity, Writing4 Comments

Buckle in, team. It is T-minus 12 months until my final final (final) deadline. The time has come to get serious about my sit-rep and completion schedule. Current thesis status I’ve been thinking about my thesis as a patchwork quilt. Each chapter is a patch; the goal is to have a set of good-quality patches…

Manufacturing Moods

By: EllaMcHawk August 7, 2019

Health and Happiness, PhD, Shakespeare, Travel, Uncategorized, WritingAdventures, Hobbies, Mental Health, PhD, WritingLeave a Comment

I’ve always found I write best when I get a certain feeling in the pit of my stomach. It’s hard to explain exactly, but it’s a feeling that combines the nostalgic pangs of a sad sort of longing, frissons of excitement, and a deep drive to do something in the world. This feeling can be hard to…

Year 3: How’s the PhD going?

By: EllaMcHawk April 23, 2019

Health and Happiness, Organisation & Productivity, PhD, Shakespeare, WritingHobbies, Mental Health, PhD, Productivity, WritingLeave a Comment

It’s been 939 days since I started my PhD. My planned thesis submission date is 493 days from today. I still have plenty of time, right? Since my sojourn in the Valley of Shit/Tunnel of Doom last summer, I’ve managed to make solid progress on research and writing. My trusty (and, more importantly, healthy) new work…