cassystudies

[cassystudies]

Hello! As finals season (aka 5-research-papers-due-in-a-week season) dawns on many of you, I thought I would share the process I used to write papers in college. This made writing long research papers much less daunting (but can also work on shorter papers). I really hope this helps some of you who feel stuck. Especially during these ridiculous times, when you’re stuck at home and might have other uncontrollable factors affecting your mental health, a clear framework of what to do could be helpful. Good luck, my friends! You got this.

About me

I graduated college in 2018 with degrees in Political Science + International Studies and will be starting law school this fall. I wrote nearly 20 15 to 25-page papers, never earning below an A. I loved researching about my topics but hated writing. It’s tedious, takes so much time, and everything I write sounds bad at first. Plus, I was a terrible procrastinator so most of these essays were written in under a week. Talk about stress.

Over time I found a process that worked for me, one that made churning out a paper seem straightforward, like going through a factory line rather than this terrifying concept of writing 10,000 words. It kept me sane without decreasing the quality of my work (or more importantly, how much I learned!) 

I’m thinking about making a short video to show this in action… let me know if that could be helpful!

Step 1: Research

How you organize your research is a key step in keeping you sane. Usually I’ll have a pile of 20 books in my dorm along with dozens of JSTOR tabs open on my laptop, and that can get overwhelming very fast. Right now just focus on collecting ideas, not developing an argument or even an outline! As with most research papers, you could be starting with little to no background information on the topic, so it is still too early to be thinking about an argument.

Put all your research in one document

Open up a new doc: this will be the heart of everything. For a 15-page paper I usually end up with around 14-18 pages of typed research, 10 pt font, single spaced, tiny margins. This seems like a lot, but essentially all I do is type up anything I read that seems relevant to my topic, so luckily this step does not require that much brain power. Just type type type!

Use the table of contents

Find the chapter(s) that are actually relevant instead of skimming through the whole book. Time is of the essence here!

Use Zotero, cite right away

You can also use easybib or whatever you’re used to, but keep track of your sources. I like Zotero because I can keep a log of all of my sources and copy the footnote or bibliography version whenever needed. Before you even begin reading, cite the source and copy it into your research doc. This will save you so much time later when you have to put in your citations in the actual paper. 

Here is an example of what my research doc looks like:

Full citation is my heading for each source just so it’s crystal clear

I ignore all typos (I don’t think there are any in this part though, go me!) because my head is buried in the book just trying to get all the info down

I always start with the page number so I know what to cite when I go back

Create a shorthand 

While typing up research, you might think of something that the author didn’t talk about that you’ll want to write in your paper. Or perhaps a few sentences already start to form. Put them all in one place, with your research, so you know what source you’ll have to cite to then lead into your idea. I type “!@#” before anything that is strictly my own idea so I’m never confused. It’s fast and stands out.

This is an example: the two bullet points above are evidence from my source, which made me think of this argument I could make, which I noted with “!@#”

Step 2: Read Your Research

Now that you have all your information, go back and read through it all. Every time you read about a new theme/person/event, write it down somewhere. You may come up with a list of 20+ different ideas in your research. No matter how small, as long as there is something about it, write it down. Each of these mini themes is going to end up being a paragraph in your paper or combined with another mini theme. 

Once you’ve made your list, look for larger overarching themes. In the paper I’ve shown you, I had mini categories like “political party x” “religion” “labor groups” “little organization” and “hierarchy.” When I looked back I though, hey these are all groups and how groups are working together, so they each became their own mini paragraph under the subsection of “Alliances.”

As with most research paper structures, I try to find three general themes/subsections (like an extended version of that 5-paragraph essay we wrote in middle school). It makes the paper less messy and also makes sure I’m not covering things that are beyond a reasonable scope.

During this step, you are also searching for your thesis. It won’t be your final version. As you fill in your outline in the next step you may make slight changes. But this is definitely when you start thinking about it.

Step 3: Outline

We’re ready to outline! Once I’ve collected all my different themes and organized all my subsections and paragraphs, it’s time to fill in that outline. I start a new doc just for the outline and take advantage of google doc’s headings function to make a clear document outline.

Here comes the fun part, I read through my research one more time, this time copy and pasting all my research into each section of the outline. The document outline in google docs makes this easy because I can just click on each subheading to get me there (super helpful when you’re dealing with 15+ pages of research).

Here is what it looks like:

Let’s say I need to add something to my outline about labor groups. Boom, labor groups. Also, the typos are really abound here haha

Step 4: Write the Paper

Okay, I get it, easier said than done. BUT! You already have everything set up. Your outline is essentially just a list of your paragraphs and all you have to do is paraphrase, cite, and create a topic sentence. And that’s how you should think about this: you’re essentially transforming bullet points into sentences and adding footnotes. 

In high school my English teacher introduced us to Sh*tty First Drafts for creative writing, but honestly the same applies to research papers. Sometimes I’ll even have phrases like “wait no that’s not what I meant but basically…” and when I go back to edit, I realize that what came after “but basically…” is fine! And I keep it. So just start typing.

How do you cite while you write? Because we’re trying to get a constant stream of writing going, inserting proper footnotes after each sentence you type is too bothersome. I usually split screen with my outline and my paper so I just copy and paste a few words from my bullet point into my footnote, like so:

(This is from a different paper about cluster munitions.)

Step 5: Edit the Paper

I work best when I print out my first draft and make all edits in red pen. I feel more productive and can visually see where I want to move sentences and what I need to change. The more red there is the better I can feel the paper getting. (Whether or not that’s true doesn’t matter. We’re trying to stay motivated here!) When it’s all digital I don’t really see the progress. Plus, once I finish all the red, I get another moment of passive brain work, where all I’m doing is transferring edits rather than thinking. And at this point in the process, that kind of relief is much welcomed. 

The good thing about this process is there’s not usually a need to cut entire paragraphs or pages because the paper you end up with is just a formalized version of your outline. Because you started with such a detailed outline, the cutting and editing now is just to refine your word choices and get rid of the “but basically”s. You’re almost there!

Step 6: Replace your citations

Now it’s time to go back and replace your footnotes with actual citations. Zotero makes this easy because in Word you can just insert and add the page number, and it’ll automatically do “Ibid.” for you when needed. Ctrl+f in the original research doc to quickly find the source.

Step 7: One More Read-Through and Submit!

Congratulations!! You’ve got a fully-researched and well-backed paper! Of course, even though the process is straightforward, it’s still a lot of work. In ideal situations I would start researching two weeks before the deadline, but if need be, I believe I’ve done this all in three miserable panic-filled days as well. 

Please message me if you have any questions at all! I really hope some of you find this helpful! Good luck!

[cassystudies]

27/03/2020 - hey everyone. I know I haven't posted. I guess I just lost motivation to post but I'm gonna try to keep myself motivated through quarantine. I live in Australia and for the next two weeks school is now at home. After my holidays I'm pretty sure I go online.

Today I had my media class which is already online and worked on my Hamlet Essay for English. I'm really lacking in motivation to write. Next week I have an essay for both media and psychology to write aswell as a maths assignment. I'm doomed!! Anyway let's hope I can get back into the hang of this account.

#100 days of productivity #hamlet #english #psychology #mathsassignment #biology #studyblraustralia #australian #studyblrcommunity #studyblr

[cassystudies]

18.02.2020 - Psychology notes from today

[cassystudies]

06.02.20 - First week back and I'm already stuck into Biology and Psychology notes. I'm not mad except for the fact that I've been forced to go out every day this week.

[cassystudies]

Hey Everyone, I know I haven't posted in months. Let me catch you up!

I finished all my exams and tests with mostly B's for my core subjects and A's for everything else.

Holidays have been chill I watched all 5 seasons of The Originals with a free month on Netflix. This year I'm starting 5 ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank) to hopefully get a score of 70 or above to get into my dream university

Today I got a new desk! A proper space for me to study and actually have a creative space in my room. Where before I had a small dresser that could barely fit a book in it and was basically storage. Here she is in all her beauty. She's not exactly done - I need some storage spaces in my draws for my makeup and random things plus a holder for all my pens.

I blacked out pictures of me and my boyfriend and family for everyone's privacy.

I hope this year is a good one for me. I'm not too excited but there's no looking back.

[cassystudies]

hi !! your blog is amazing !! wish you all the best luck for your studies !! keep dreaming!

Awww thank you! I try my best.

[cassystudies]

19.10.19 - this week is first of term. I've almost completed my maths on Quadratics. I also got some definitions down for my fashion which my friends and I are making a formal dress out of denim for our project. In science we're learning about Newton's laws. I have English but I'm a little confused and getting some help from a friend to get on the right track. Also I decided to listen to the Beetlejuice shoundtrack after I watched the movie for the first time last night.

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science #maths #quadratics #physics #physicsnotes #newtonslaws #beetlejuice #fashion

[cassystudies]

14.09.19 - Today I have the first performance in a show I've been rehearsing all year for. I did my maths notes for Monday and read a chapter and took some notes in Frankenstein aswell as go over my physics notes for a test (I forgot to show you all my recent notes but here they are)

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science #maths #english #frankenstiensmonster #marywollstonecraftshelley #physicsnotes #testweek

[cassystudies]

I'm about two pages in of my Maths Assignment and I have half a page left! We started Frankenstein in class last weeks and I quickly wrote up some notes on Galvanism for explanation in class when it's needed. Now I'm gonna sit back and smash some words out of the book I'm writing.

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #maths #english #englishnotes #mathsassignment #book #writing #own story

[cassystudies]

We started Physics this weeks and I finally got a chance to sit down and write my notes. Monday and Tuesday next week I'm only having 6-7 people in my classes due to a Uni camp I couldn't afford to go to.

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science #physics #physicsnotes #science notes

[cassystudies]

19.08.19 - little bit of revision for my science test this week. I'm going to get more study tomorrow.

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science

[cassystudies]

17.08.19 - major day of study and homework today. I'm sick so instead of my room I went out and sat next to my fire.

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science #maths #humanities #english #sciencenotes #biologynotes

[cassystudies]

13.08.19 - little study of my HASS for a test in a few days.

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #Hass #Humanities #geography

[cassystudies]

07.08.19 - summarised notes (not really) from class today. I tried to get the most important and some interesting things I know I'd be tested on written down.

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science #sciencenotes #biology #biologynotes

[cassystudies]

05.08.19 - Term 3 started a few weeks ago and I was so busy with work that I only just did my notes today. Today has been a lot for me.

How has your day been?

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science #biology #biologynotes #sciencenotes #procrastination

[cassystudies]

29.06.19 - I didn't post my exam notes I'm sorry but enjoy the notes I did today. I recently got a job so now I'm doing notes on weekends but it means I'm reviewing them for the next week! Also I'm in love with my little pea plant drawing I did

#new studyblr #like4like #studyspo #followme #notes #study motivation #studyblr #studygram #science #doodles #biology #sciencenotes #biology notes

[cassystudies]

Hey I'm a new Studyblr

Could you reblog/like this post so I could find some blogs to follow and maybe you could follow me back xxxx