BA Student Tips - A Student Support Document

Studying a mixed degree like Creative Writing & English Literature involves, naturally, spending a roughly equal amount of time working on Creative and Critical pieces. If you consider yourself a creative writer and feel that studying/writing critically is something you are being made to do, I would advise you to not see these as two distinct, disparate areas. Every single writer you like, whether they’re working in print, TV, performance etc. have all had to critically evaluate anything and everything to get to where they are. Try to treat every piece of critical writing you have to do for this degree as adding another tool to your toolkit – you will be able to use this to make your work multi-layered, enriching whatever you produce. Not only will your degree performance improve, but you will gain graduate skills that are transferable outside of the creative writing practice. Hopefully this document helps you to bridge that mental gap, should you need it.

It should go without saying that attending all your scheduled lectures and seminars is the best way to achieve more. Obviously, life has a way of getting in the way sometimes. The tutors have made it a priority to get the lectures recorded for those who are genuinely unable to attend, and the University has a very generous Mitigating Circumstances system in place for those who are struggling to meet any deadlines. You can find all the information here: link. However, your seminar/workshop sessions are not recorded and this is where a large chunk of the practical knowledge is gathered (in my opinion). 

As you progress in your modules, the assignment requirements ask you to draw connections between the individual weeks of lectures as well as show your ability to reflect on the ongoing workshop/seminar sessions. The ideas presented in both lectures and seminars are not arbitrary; they are there to give you the building blocks of a solid essay argument and creative writing piece. This also persists throughout the degree as a whole — ideas presented in the first year are foundational to those in the second and third year. 

While this may sound daunting at first, and you may have questions about whether or not you can retain everything that’s said week in week out. You don’t need to. I struggled with this at first and the biggest thing I did that helped me was to reframe my assumptions and anxieties about the workload. You are not expected to be a master of each topic the week it is presented to you. Even if you only manage to understand one thing per week, after a few weeks of lectures you will be able to make connections that will help you understand the other aspects of the argument easier.

Also, it is worth noting that by “attendance” I do not mean just merely turning up. Being physically present does not mean you are mentally present. You might want to tune the lecture out, think about lunch or look at something on your laptop where your tutor cannot see (trust me, they know what you’re doing). While the pandemic has had a marked impact on student-student and student-tutor relationships, it is important to understand that the lectures and seminars are not a one-person-play put on by your tutor; they are a conversation, a focus group, a book club. By turning up, by being in the same room as this conversation is going on, there is a social contract between you and everyone else in that room.

Everyone gets anxious when it comes to speaking, especially when presenting ideas you are uncertain about to a group of people you see only a few times a week. That’s natural. And there really is only one way to get over this and that is to do it. No one knows everything, and your tutors will be the first to admit that. You are not being graded on what you say in your lectures/seminars. Even if you are wrong, you’ve misunderstood something or your argument isn’t as fundamentally solid as it could be, you are showing your willingness to get involved with the conversation and the ideas. Voicing an opinion in class, whether people agree with you or not, is beneficial for everyone in the classroom because it adds to the wealth of knowledge you possess as an individual and a collective. Something you might be too anxious about sharing with the group may just be the key that helps you, or someone else, make sense of a topic, generate an idea for a piece of creative writing or formulate a thesis statement for an essay. 

In summary, it is impossible to understate how important it is to turn up to lectures and seminars. Not only does it benefit you — because you’re getting all the information you need and aren’t wasting your time and student debt — but it also benefits everyone else who turns up. The more voices, opinions and beliefs that are heard, the better everyone's experience will be. These voices do not need to be “right” or “the best” — it is a conversation between peers on a given topic, in much the same way you would have a conversation outside of the classroom. Treat the time you’re able to speak like an intellectual playground, where ideas are shared for fun, to see what sort of rabbit holes it will lead to. 

Reading pieces of academic literature can be painful, in much the same way that reading a piece of creative writing can be dull. You’ll no doubt have come across certain essays which feel like they’ve been run through a thesaurus for every other word. Unfortunately, that’s just the way some academic writing can be. In my experience of this degree, there are some challenging, dense texts but very few have been absurdly difficult to grasp. This is where it all comes down to how you frame your emotions and reactions to the text in question. This usually presents itself as something like “This is crap, I don’t understand a thing, I hate it.” We’ve all been there. Where most people fall, however, is thinking that they’ve failed by not understanding something and therefore react negatively towards the text. What follows are some pieces of advice I’ve learnt over the years that have helped me eventually tackle really dense texts:

You are always told that an essay contains an argument and that the essays you produce should build that argument over multiple paragraphs. This is the standard for all academic writing. Use that to your advantage. As a general rule of thumb, each paragraph of an essay should present an idea that builds on the previous paragraph and flesh out the overall argument. Do not think “I have 20 more pages to read” and get downtrodden about how insurmountable this feels. Take it one paragraph at a time. Re-read if you have to. Look up any words you’re unsure about. Any well-written essay will contain the most relevant terms and broad concepts on the first page or two. Find them. Research them 

If you’ve been set a specific essay to read ahead of class and find yourself struggling, try reading the first and last lines of each paragraph. Like I mentioned above, the way published essays are structured is fundamentally similar to the way you are taught to write essays at Undergraduate level, and anyone who has attended Trevor’s essay writing workshop will know that having your first line of a paragraph introduce an argumentative point, and your final line of that paragraph linking back to your opening argumentative point, creates cohesion between paragraphs in the long run. It also highlights the main point you’re trying to make. Applying the same logic to more challenging essays will help you gain a sense of where the essay is taking you so you will not be overwhelmed as easily.

Just as you don’t learn to swim by going out into the middle of the Pacific Ocean, you don’t learn to read challenging texts by struggling through the hardest one you can find. Do not be afraid to say “This one is too difficult, I’ll come back to it later.” Find essays that are slightly less dense, or written in a more reader-friendly style. Any negatives you may feel about a certain essay may simply be down to the way the author writes. 

That’s all well and good for essays, where you’ve got many different angles on the same topic, but what about novels you have to read? This is where it does get a bit more frustrating. I’ve struggled with a few of the set texts over my time on the degree. It’s natural. No-one can like everything they read. Much like with the example above, the knee-jerk reaction to a complex text is “I hate this, I don’t understand it” but I am of the belief that in every book, even if you wish to throw it into a volcano because you hate it so much, there is something of value you can learn from it.

Check out various reviews/summaries/recaps online. While this is no replacement for reading the full text, knowing what is going on at any one point in the book will help lift some of the negativity.

Unfortunately, the text is already written and nothing will be able to change that. However, what you can do is interrogate what you dislike about the writing style. Are they using too many similes? Do they love run-on sentences? Are they swapping POV’s too often? Is the writing meandering? Figure out why you dislike the writing style and you may be able to overlook it and put it down to personal differences. Also, this makes for very good conversation in workshops — after all, you’re creative writers so try to treat every book you read as if you were workshopping a classmate’s writing. You wouldn’t say “I hate it” and leave it at that. You’d give them constructive ways to improve. Even Stephen King needs help once in a while.

As soon as possible, especially when it comes to complex texts. Depending on when you’re reading this, you may be able to dedicate more or less time to the required reading. The best time would be during the summer when you have around 4-5 months off. Obviously, real-life gets in the way but even if you set aside one hour a day, or aim to do X number of pages or chapters, you will make a sizable dent in the required reading for your first term (once the reading lists are finalised, of course.) Giving yourself more time to puzzle through the more complex or dense texts will alleviate the anxiety you may feel when reading to a strict, tight deadline.

For me, the biggest help has been using Zotero as a means of organising research material and generating citations and bibliographies. While this is not as necessary for First-Year students, I highly recommend spending some time on it. 

Collate all of the research I have found for a particular topic/assignment in one folder within Zotero. This is where everything is kept for assessing the relevance of the research. Anything I wish to use then goes into a different folder to help keep track of citations/bibliographies.

I highlight areas within the PDFs that I feel will be most helpful in generating ideas. Anywhere from one line to an entire paragraph. This also starts the ball rolling with testing my ideas against what is being said by others. 

Once you have a good, varied collection of quotes and secondary texts, you can begin to think of how they fit together, within your own thoughts on the topic, and the overall assignment conditions.

With regards to what constitutes good research, the best advice I can offer is to spend some time scrolling through the Talis Reading List for your modules. For early on in your first-year, you could just stick to the essays posted in the Learning Materials section of Weblearn, but as you move through the years it becomes more important to show some initiative in finding your own research. 

It is also worth mentioning that a lot of the more interesting secondary resources aren’t listed in the Learning Materials section for the most part, as the learning materials are more concerned with giving an intro to the topic, a broad look at the subject or to supplement the angle/argument being presented in the lecture. By using the Talis Reading List, as well as the University Online Catalogue, you can find some really niche stuff. If you’re struggling to find interest in a particular topic based on the Learning Materials, I highly suggest having a bit of fun with the University Online Catalogue to see if the topic you’re researching can be combined with something you’re interested in outside of the University syllabus.

Also, if you struggle with long PDF texts, or the more academically challenging material, do not forget that research extends beyond textbooks. While Wikipedia entries are not good for research, the citations at the end of the Wikipedia articles often lead to some good research. Beyond this, Youtube lectures, talks, keynote speeches, etc. can act as a gateway into the subject, as well as potentially being full of interesting, unique insights. This might help you build a stronger foundation of familiarity with the topic at hand so you can easily understand or appreciate the more challenging material.

Beyond YouTube, you have access to Kanopy.com and BoxOfBroadcasts, both of which I highly recommend.

This is probably the hardest part of the whole creation process. Whether you’re writing an academic paper or something creative, the blank page is a horrible thing to look at. More often than not, this causes you to doubt anything and everything you’ve researched or planned in your head. I’m in my third year and I still struggle with this anxiety about whether what I’m wanting to write about is “smart enough” or if it’ll get a good grade, impress the tutors etc. 

One big piece of advice I can give you is to not think of an assignment as a single, giant thing. It isn’t. Let’s take the basic plan of an essay of 1,000 words as an example. 1,000 words is not a lot to work with. Because of this, you cannot fit everything you want to say into it. So where do you start? 

This is where a good portion of the process comes down to your personal writing style. Some people, like myself, are discovery-writers who have a general direction and see where the process takes them. Others are planners who need a step-by-step layout. Both ways are valid and you will flit between the two styles over the course of your degree. 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Jfsq2YCRRMAUkdvE2X0CH-DcGG__BJ3tcLfbfJ8oNyk/edit?usp=sharing 

Around 10-15% of your word count will be reserved for your introduction. Another 10-15% of your word count will be reserved for your conclusion. This leaves 70-80% of the word count for the points you wish to make. 

For a 1,000 word essay, I typically choose to make two main points. This is just my way of working, and you may find it more useful to work with three main points so that you  have a nice five-paragraph essay (intro, three points, conclusion).

Now, this is where you can have some fun. Writing an assignment is not a linear process. Yes, it may seem more intuitive to write from introduction to conclusion, but if you are unsure about your argument or want to work through some ideas or have a particular point you want to make, by all means, start there. Almost every essay I’ve written has changed its central argument, in bigger or smaller ways, in the process of writing a first draft because I’ve worked with the most interesting part first. 

You might tell yourself, “There’s no way I can fill the word count”. By starting with the point you’re most interested in, you will inevitably make a big dent in your word count. Being interested in a particular point you’re wanting to make will also stop you from immediately second-guessing yourself with regards to how “academic” or “smart” you’re sounding. Your first draft is designed for you to work through your ideas. 

Once you’ve got words on the page, it is no longer blank. You’re on the way to finishing the first draft. Now, instead of having 1000 words left to write, you’ve got substantially less. This is one of the main points I cannot stress enough; your word count is not holding you hostage, forcing you to write beginning to end in one continuous motion. 100 words a day is easily achievable. Nine times out of ten you will do way more than this but to get yourself started, it is a nice round number and is, above all, achievable. 

You’ll no doubt be nervous about writing an Introduction. Leaving it until later in the writing process is the standard for most people I’ve spoken to in various fields of research. By tailoring your introduction (and conclusion) to the argument you’ve started already you obtain a higher level of cohesion and make the actual writing of the Introduction much easier and less daunting. 

Post-it notes and/or those record/note/revision cards. Having a non-digital way of organising your writing may help you change the way in which you think. Try writing keywords on them, or the assignment question, or various authors/thinkers/books. Maybe you’ll be able to find the connections and physically move them to each other so it is much less of an abstract concept. 

Look over your notes and find connections there. Tutors structure their lectures much like essays. Each lecture introduces a topic and by the end an argument has been made. Then the next lecture does the same thing. The connections may not be obvious at first but the connections are there and will be made obvious over the course of the module syllabus. Trust me.

Find a way to reward yourself for incremental goals. For example, allow yourself a few minutes of Instagram/TikTok time for every X amount of words, or for each completed piece of research you’ve read. Breaking the processes into smaller chunks will help those who find it hard to multitask or find themselves easily distracted with their phones, the internet or other externalities. I personally use this so that my ‘reward’ is 10 minutes of a videogame for X amount of pages read, words written etc. 

One thing I would suggest against is removing all external distractions. This may be controversial, as some people require total peace and quiet, but I personally find it hard to work in silence. I always have some sort of music on — instrumental tracks, lo-fi, chill stuff etc. I know of others who can listen to music with lyrics, or have TV on in the background, but this method works for me. 

Going off of the above suggestion, having a dedicated working place - if possible - is ideal. Creating a mental link between a specific chair/desk/computer with the specific task of university work will help you settle into a productive mindset quicker. Obviously, this is very much dependent upon your living conditions, proximity to the university and your ability to commute there often etc. but even if it’s something small that you can do/wear/smell/touch that you can link to doing university work and nothing else, it could help.

Right, editing. The greatest thing ever. 

The previous sentence may be sarcastic but the more time you can spend editing, the better your work will be. That’s just unavoidable. 

First things first. Do not edit straight after you finish your first draft. Seriously, let it breathe and take a break from it. Because of this, you’re going to have to aim to leave enough time between finishing your first draft and submission date to get at least two solid editing sessions done as a bare minimum. My personal preference is to leave the assignment a few days between edits — this timeframe gets extended if I have a lot of time before submission. 

My first editing session is all about making sure my main points are cohesively expressed. Here is where I will reword sentences that may read as boring or clunky into a better style and ensure that this style is consistent with the rest of the document. Having a consistent voice, whether in an essay or a creative piece, is a big deal. With essays, this does not mean using a thesaurus to put smart-sounding words throughout. It is entirely possible to explain complex concepts in easy-to-read language. Edit under the assumption that the person who will read the essay is not your tutor but someone on your level of study. 

Also, this editing session is where I make sure my citations and references are done. While this may not be as important in the first year, do not engage in bad habits. If your references aren’t done during the drafting, the first editing session is where you must get a handle on them. Find a citation style and stick to it. I always use Modern Humanities Research Association 3RD EDITION (Notes with Bibliography) for my essays but as long as you stick to one style throughout, and do it correctly, you’ll be fine. Zotero does this automatically for you, and there’s a recent workshop recording in the Creative Writing and English Literature weblearn space.

After the first, big editing session, leave it for a few days. 

The second editing session I do is more focused on tightening up any loose sentences, making sure that the text is interesting to read from beginning to end. This is difficult because I’ve been working on it for a while so nothing new is being gained from it. Notice where your attention is starting to fall and figure out why — is it the writing style? Is the sentence too long? Too short? Are you backtracking in your argument? 

Here is also where I highly recommend going to the ‘Writing & Editing for Cohesion’ essay workshop that Trevor runs. I went in my first year and it’s given me an invaluable methodology for editing my essays. So much so that I find myself writing essays with a much cleaner first draft because of knowing exactly what has to go where. 

Before submission, or during any of the above editing sessions, you can do a variety of things that will help “trick” your brain into seeing the text as something new, meaning you will spot mistakes you’d have easily glossed over before because your familiarity with the text makes you skim-read. 

Try changing the margins of the text so it’s much narrower. Lines will end in places you’re not used to, so you’ll pay more attention to the individual words. You can also change the font style — I always write in Arial, but will swap to Calibri or Courier New for editing at times.

Change the spacing between the lines of text. I always draft and edit in double-line-spacing and found it much easier to avoid that feeling of looking at a “wall of text”.

When I draft, I usually highlight all of my quotes to ensure I can easily spot them at a glance. This helps me with footnotes, but it also helps when it comes to later editing sessions — I will remove the highlights and it will make me pay more attention to where the quote fits within the text. I can’t figure out why but hey, it’s something you can try.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoZPfsAwZDE&ab_channel=UnJadedJade - 5 study habits you should start now to help Future You.