The Clockwork Muse: A Practical Guide to Writing Theses, Dissertations, and Books - Hardcover

Zerubavel, Eviatar

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0674135857 ISBN 13: 9780674135857

Publisher: Harvard University Press, 1999

Synopsis

For anyone who has blanched at the uphill prospect of finishing a long piece of writing, this book holds out something more practical than hope: it offers a plan. The Clockwork Muse is designed to help prospective authors develop a workable timetable for completing long and often formidable projects.

The idea of dashing off a manuscript in a fit of manic inspiration may be romantic, but it is not particularly practical. Instead, Eviatar Zerubavel, a prolific and successful author, describes how to set up a writing schedule and regular work habits that will take most of the anxiety and procrastination out of long-term writing, and even make it enjoyable. The dreaded ‘writer’s block’ often turns out to be simply a need for a better grasp of the temporal organization of work.

The Clockwork Muse rethinks the writing process in terms of time and organization. It offers writers a simple yet comprehensive framework that considers such variables as when to write, for how long, and how often, while keeping a sense of momentum throughout the entire project. It shows how to set priorities, balance ideals against constraints, and find the ideal time to write. For all those whose writing has languished, waiting for the “right moment,” The Clockwork Muse announces that the moment has arrived.

About this title

About the Author

Eviatar Zerubavel is Board of Governors and Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University, where for many years he served as the Director of the Graduate Program in Sociology. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship and the author of many books.

Reviews

Zerubavel (sociology, Rutgers), the author of seven books, shares his strategies on getting writing done, no matter how busy or how blocked the writer is. The answer is to make a writing schedule and then follow it, staying slightly flexible, writing outlines and drafts, and writing to deadlines. Written in a light, breezy style, this small book offers little new information. Large libraries may want a paper copy, but a better choice for dissertation writers is Joan Bolker's Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day (LJ 8/98).ALisa J. Cihlar, Monroe P.L., WI
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0674135857
• ISBN 13: 9780674135857
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 128