Writing is a process best begun early.

Here are two conversations I recently had with different students:

Student 1: "I'm having trouble focusing my thoughts. I just keep going around and around in circles. I feel like I'm trying to include too much."

Me: "Well, how many pages have you written so far?"

Student 1: "Oh, none."


Student 2: "I'm really worried about this topic. It just doesn't seem like there's enough to say. I don't really know where I'm going with it."

Me: "Well, how many pages have you written so far?"

Student 2: "Oh, none."


Okay. See the problem here? I suspect I'm speaking in another language when I tell them, "Write first. Make writing a part of your process. Writing is an act of discovery. No time spent writing is ultimately wasted."

They have also not heard me when I said, "The best paper is a done paper." Less than half of my students managed to submit their final papers on time.

My current mood vacillates between frustrated and punitive.