I worked in our writing center for 2.5 years before I decided to go there myself. Knowing that I had to have at least an outline to discuss with the writing consultant made me write. I kept making and keeping appointments, and these self-imposed deadlines made progress really steady. Find someone to talk to and work with regularly. It also helps to articulate your argument to new people; every time you do it, you get to your point with more confidence, and new questions often provoke new directions.

It really is all about discourse.

My advisor says, "The perfect is the enemy of the good."

Just start writing and don't try to be perfect. It's impossible to be perfect. There's always something you missed, someone's always publishing on your topic etc etc. Just lay out your ideas, why they're different than other ideas and why they matter.

The last time I got really stuck my advisor suggested that I wrtie a "zero draft." It's NOT a first draft, don't think that hard about it. If you're far enough along in your research, STOP READING and put away your notes. Then sit down at the computer and write a longish "letter" to your mom, bff from high school or whoever to tell them what you're working on. (Imagine it as a presentation to lay people about your work) This allows you to figure out what you have to say, how your argument works etc but you don't have to worry about all the details or footnotes. Then, you already know how to lay our your argument and where to put in the details. Thie method also allows you figure out what you need keep reseraching and what is not essential to your work so that you can stop chasing details that are not critical to your argument but you end up with a nice outline of your main points and sections.

I also find that this method gets me away from the perfectionist feelings that give me writer's block - of course I can write a letter to Mom and tell her what my paper is supposed to be about!

Also, I try NOT to get hung up on the introduction and just write sections as they come - even if it's just a paragraph. You can always cut & paste later. I avoid writing transitions by using section headings until I can figure out how to make the transition.

I also know that at a certain point, I actually have to be awake at 3am to get the brillinat vision of how it all works - no matter how far in advance I work on something, if I'm not up past 3am, I won't "get it."

Wow! Thanks, both Dex and Ms. Em -- excellent & helpful advice.

I especially like the idea of the zero draft - that sounds right up my alley - and I can *totally* relate to the post-3 a.m.-sleep-deprivation-induced-brilliance phenomenon - I thought I was the only one!