For this post, I thought it would be best to post something that I had submitted for my Colloquium course that accompanies the thesis. I thought that this post in particular really captured what is going on internally at the moment as I continue researching and writing. It also explains why I haven't posted in roughly a week. But the assignment was to respond to Joan Bolker's Writing Your Dissertation in 15 Minutes a Day, chapters 7-9.
Bolker had a lot of useful things to say in the latest batch of chapters. As I got lost in the research and writing process, I forgot how reassuring her book was. Writing is indeed a lonely experience, and I can't help but feel it at this point. I hope I haven't hit a wall, as I keep thinking about the project, but I have found myself actively keeping away from adding more content to the written draft. Aside from the Thesis Colloquium, I really don't have anyone to talk to about this project. Friends and family who are from an Education/Teaching background are too far removed from video games to comprehend any of the ideas I discuss, whereas my video gaming friends don't seem to want to discuss the educational merits that their favorite titles have to offer. No one seems to take the project seriously, or at least that is the impression I get. The blog is getting hits, but no comments. People ask how the thesis is coming along, but don't want to hear the content.
Just reading Bolker's words are a huge help though. It's not an experience that is unique to me just because I am writing about video games. Everyone who writes a thesis or dissertation has to endure the lonely period of writing, and they might feel like they hot that wall and see the "impossible barrier" between now and the due date. So rather than feeling sorry for myself, I am going to try and turn this into motivation. If people are uninterested or uninformed, then it is my duty to make my project as informative and as engaging as possible. When I am at that "more general" stage of selecting readers to take a look at my work, these same friends and family may be able to gain a new understanding on the subject.
That's pretty much it for my Rocky moment of the week. There was still plenty of great content here, specifically with the revision process. I am an English tutor at MCC, and many of the revision techniques that Bolker preaches are practiced at the community college. One of my favorites, as ridiculous as it might sound, is reading the work aloud. This puts you in the position of a reader, so you can hear how the words sound, listen for repetition or confusing rhetoric. I may even have to steal a few tips for tutoring this weekend!
That about sums it up. I am inspired at the moment by the challenge I am presented with. While before I was excited about a new notion, I have witnessed firsthand what it's like when people either don't agree with you or only have a passing interest in the subject. So it is my duty to make this thesis as strong and intriguing as possible, otherwise I will have failed in my goal of making a convincing argument for the inclusion of video games in the curriculum at the high school level.
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