Liquirizia

If you have been accepted to programs this year, you will likely be accepted next year. Clearly, you are a qualified applicant. Taking a year off won't harm you; it will only help you. In my opinion, the debt is not worth it. It's not like you're going into CS where you'll be making 6 figures after you graduate. A career in the humanities will not be fruitful in the beginning, if at all. My advice is to learn from this application cycle to create an even better dossier for the next cycle for PhD programs. It'll be easier next year anyway because you've already been through it. 
Taking a year off will also give you time to get work experience as well as extra money that can go towards your existing loans and be saved for retirement (start now). The work experience is more valuable than you might realize. As you mentioned, the PhD programs you wanted weren't accepting applications this cycle so it is better to wait to be in the right program than to be in the wrong program earlier. Grad school is not something to rush.
Yes, these programs are cash cows and what's worse is that the professors know it and will treat you as a second class citizen because your only purpose is to fund their PhD students. You want an enjoyable as possible experience in grad school. To achieve that, you want to be a prioritized student. You especially don't want to carry the burden of financial stress every day. If you're funded, you can at least sleep at night.
Finally, I wanted point out that you didn't need to hesitate on applying due to not having a thesis in your application. I'm sure it will make your applications next cycle even more competitive, but you could've been an excellent applicant without it this year for PhD programs. I applied without a special thesis and have gotten into multiple PhD programs this cycle. I only have a BA. I think you deserve to be more confident in yourself.

They say I say By: Gerald Graff 
Write it Up By: Paul Silva
Chicago Guides to Writing By: William Germano

If you have been accepted to programs this year, you will likely be accepted next year. Clearly, you are a qualified applicant. Taking a year off won't harm you; it will only help you. In my opinion, the debt is not worth it. It's not like you're going into CS where you'll be making 6 figures after you graduate. A career in the humanities will not be fruitful in the beginning, if at all. My advice is to learn from this application cycle to create an even better dossier for the next cycle for PhD programs. It'll be easier next year anyway because you've already been through it. 
Taking a year off will also give you time to get work experience as well as extra money that can go towards your existing loans and be saved for retirement (start now). The work experience is more valuable than you might realize. As you mentioned, the PhD programs you wanted weren't accepting applications this cycle so it is better to wait to be in the right program than to be in the wrong program earlier. Grad school is not something to rush.
Yes, these programs are cash cows and what's worse is that the professors know it and will treat you as a second class citizen because your only purpose is to fund their PhD students. You want an enjoyable as possible experience in grad school. To achieve that, you want to be a prioritized student. You especially don't want to carry the burden of financial stress every day. If you're funded, you can at least sleep at night.
Finally, I wanted point out that you didn't need to hesitate on applying due to not having a thesis in your application. I'm sure it will make your applications next cycle even more competitive, but you could've been an excellent applicant without it this year for PhD programs. I applied without a special thesis and have gotten into multiple PhD programs this cycle. I only have a BA. I think you deserve to be more confident in yourself.

Congrats on the acceptance! That is so exciting, especially for it being a top choice! 
I know it is hard not getting to visit the city. (Currently dealing with the same issue actually.) The experience gives so much precious information that doesn't transmit well over the internet. As you mentioned, the internet can also be quite polarizing. I will do my very best to give a fair answer. While I am a native, I've lived in other places (including abroad), which has informed my opinion of Chicago to be less biased.
As an international student, you should feel at home. Chicago is so diverse! You can find food from anywhere, friends from anywhere, etc. It's truly a treasure.
Transportation - honestly some of the best you will find across the US. It's called the CTA and the trains are specifically called the "L" because it runs in a Loop. The red and blue line runs 24/7 and they cover a lot of the city. The other lines run roughly 4am to 1 or 2am. The blue line takes you to/from to O'Hare airport. They are very reliable and come often. Transferring lines is generally very simple, occasionally you might have to leave a station to cross the street to get to another station, not typical though. The buses are great too. A lot of people are scared of them because they're "more dangerous." But that is just not true. They have lots of different schedules though. You can check it out: https://www.transitchicago.com/
Safety - ugh, this is a tough one. It is a city, and like any city there is crime. There was a brief interlude where we were the murder capital of the US, but honestly, if you avoid certain areas, take precautions/be aware of your surroundings, don't do stupid stuff (like get blackout drunk and wander alone at night), etc. you'll be fine. If U Chicago is the school you're going to, stick to campus. The surrounding areas can be a little dangerous at times. We can get into this more if you like. It's truly no different than living in other major cities though in terms of safety. Owning pepper spray never hurts (you).
Scenery - some of the most beautiful architecture the US has to offer. Lots of gorgeous skyline views. However, there is a serious lack of nature. We have no mountains or even hills. There is Lake Michigan which is a major attraction in the summer (but also beautiful in winter). You can enjoy the beach or kayak on the Chicago River. There is a nice bike/run path along the lake (Lake Front Trail or LFT). There are some nice parks scattered throughout the city. Lincoln Park being the biggest, I think. Not sure what other scenery you are interested in, but let me know.
Weather - it has the lake effect so there will be more snow than other parts of Illinois in winter. It has big temperature swings. It's very cold in the winter (sub 0F a few days, not often) and very hot in the summer (highs in the 90's F a few days, not so often). We joke a lot about how sometimes we skip fall or spring because it goes from freezing to warm in a matter of days without easing into the seasonal change. Overall, the weather is very manageable all year round. Winters aren't that bad unless maybe you've never experienced winter before.
General notes - Chicago is the 3rd biggest city in the US, but one of the more affordable cities. NY and LA are notoriously expensive. You can find some cheap rent in certain neighborhoods. I lived in Rogers Park, and my rent was 750 for a 2 bdr. Groceries aren't absurdly pricey unless you shop at certain places like Whole Foods. You can find good prices at small family-owned grocery stores. It's a bike-able city, some areas less than others, though. There is plenty to do in Chicago in terms of activities/events. Lots of concert venues, museums, theaters, etc. Ice skating in the winter, Lollapalooza and the Taste of Chicago in the summer. Typical city stuff.
It's also a spread out city. It's shape is a big rectangle along the lake with an easy to navigate grid system. 
Please don't hesitate to ask follow up questions. I'm happy to help. ?

Also, I realize your question was, "is there a best language to learn for students of comparative literature or students of linguistics?"
The best language is always one that interests you. Any language is learnable. How fast and easily you learn it depends on your native language to an extent and to a larger extent your motivation to learn the target language. If you have no interest in the target language, it will be hell to learn. So picking a language means finding a culture you find endlessly fascinating - that way learning the language will be much less work for you. And it will be enjoyable.

Disclaimer: I am not a student of comp lit, but I was planning to pursue it (applied last year) so I took some time to really learn about the field.
Learning Turkish will definitely help you in Comp Lit - in fact it will hurt you if don't have multiple languages. However, you already have Persian and French under your belt so while learning Turkish is nice, you've already won the battle. 
In general, language combinations are totally up to you in Comp Lit, but you have to be ale to connect them somehow -- whether that is a shared literary movement, did a famous French author live in Turkey and that informed their writings, do the languages share politics, borders, etc. You need to be able to connect them somehow. This is crucial for you to be apple to explain in your applications. Funny enough a friend of mine is getting her PhD in Comp Lit and her languages are Turkish and French - but it is uncommon. She said it is both extremely challenging, but extremely impressive because it's not common. She mentioned that it adds to her stress a little bit because it's only impressive if she does it well. I think her foci are memory, trauma and genocide connecting the languages). TLDR: Any language combination is good as long as you can connect them.
For linguistics, you don't need to speak another language to study it. Some of the most famous linguists like Noam Chomsky don't speak any languages other than English. So knowing other languages will certainly help you as a linguist (and make you stand out in your apps), but it isn't required in the way Comp Lit requires languages.

Hey! I hope this helps.   I ended up doing some research and got an E-Reader called the Onyx Boox Note Air, which runs on a limited version of Android 10. However, it's great for reading PDF's and taking notes on the actual device and the transferring process is relatively easy. I am also in the humanities and it's been wonderful thus far. I cannot speak about the longevity of it, but I enjoy using it. 

Hello colleagues in the humanities,
I've read some of the previous threads on eReaders but they're all from around 2011. I'm particularly interested in updated information on quality eReaders as well as how they would function for someone in the humanities. Do you recommend using one or not? If so, which eReaders would you recommend? How is using an eReader in class?
I'm in the languages, and I've heard you can find books in the target language for cheaper on eReaders and then you have the added benefit of a built in dictionary and can take notes more easily in the text. I'm very old-fashioned so the idea of using an eReader isn't particularly thrilling, but at the same time, neither is lugging around copious amounts of books. Any information on the great debate of eReaders would be appreciated.
 

Definitely leave out all high school stuff. Perhaps if your awards are highly relevant to your field, maybe add those to your Awards/Honors section, but realistically all high school related content should be left off. For reference, if you received your undergraduate degree and were applying to jobs, you shouldn't have high school stuff on it either.
 
 

They say I say By: Gerald Graff 
Write it Up By: Paul Silva
Chicago Guides to Writing By: William Germano

biotechie, I know Mendeley is free. I tried it out once before but didn't like how it handled books. Actually, it handled them like EndNote, which meant it was a pain. One of the things I love about Zotero is how easy it is to add a book, journal article, web page, newspaper article, etc. to my library without any fuss or extra steps. As someone that references a lot of physical and e-books, it's important to me to have an easy way to do that. And, at least several years ago when I tried Mendeley, it took longer than it did while using Zotero, which is why I switched to Zotero.
 
FWIW, I think everyone should investigate if their university has any free options and, if so, what those are. At my MA institution, all graduate students could download a personal copy of EndNote free of charge. At my PhD university, students can download RefWorks free of charge. In cases like that, it's highly likely that your professors (at least those on campus) will be using whichever is free, so that might be the one you should use too.

Hello all,
Does anyone have suggestions or thoughts on different reference/citation management systems? Mendeley vs. Endnote vs. Zotero, etc. My partner, who is in the sciences, uses Mendeley and likes it a lot. It seems fairly robust, but I'm not sure what most people in the humanities prefer. Are there any systems that are particularly good for organizing digitized primary sources?
I'm starting my PhD in the fall and want to get myself as organized as possible this summer!
Thanks!

Some links to past discussions:

About your dog: I think that depends entirely on you and your program. I am in a social science program where the majority of my analysis and writing can be done from home, and I prefer to work from home or from a library (as opposed to my cube in the windowless cube farm). When I was taking classes I was generally there from 9-6 or so, but now that my coursework is finished I am rarely at the school itself. I go for meetings, seminars, interesting kinds of things and I do most of my work remotely. My time is verrry flexible, and if my building didn't prohibit it I would get a dog in a heartbeat. Another thing to keep in mind: a dog can be a great comfort when you're all stressed out over graduate school.

Advice?

Age:
-Don't feel like you have nothing to offer just because you are younger. I was 22 when I started graduate school. You got accepted to the program for a reason, and chances are you are just as equipped as any older students are to successfully complete the program, just in a different way.

-Your older classmates may be just as terrified as you. Talk to them. You have a lot in common. You are, after all, in the same place.

-You will feel like an imposter, like you don't belong, or like you are constantly behind. Or all three. It's normal. It will pass. (Well, sort of.) People of all ages go through this.

Adviser related:
-If you are lucky enough to get both research interest fit and personality fit perfect, congratulations! But sometimes, personality fit is more important than research interest fit as long as the research isn't too different. A great adviser is interested in your career development, likes you as a person, advocates for you, and wants to hear your ideas. Even if his or her research is quite different from yours, they may give you the autonomy to work on your own projects and just supervise you. A bad personality fit will drive you nuts, even if you love his or her research. Consider that when evaluating your adviser fit. (This will vary by field: research fit may be less important in the humanities, more important in the natural and physical sciences. Social sciences are somewhere in-between.)

-Don't be afraid to be straight up blunt with your adviser when it comes to asking about your progress. Ask if you are where you should be both academic program wise and getting-a-job-after-this-mess-wise.

-Be proactive. Advisers love when you draw up an agenda for your one-on-one meetings, come with talking points and progress to share, have concrete questions to ask, and have overall shown that you have been thoughtful and taken control of your own program. Of course, this won't immediately come easily to you, but in time you will work up to it. Every semester I type up my semester goals, and at the beginning of the year I type up annual goals. I show them to my adviser and we talk about whether they are too ambitious, or whether I need to revise them, and how I can meet them.

-Don't expect your adviser to actually know what courses you have to take to graduate. They will know about comprehensive exams and the dissertation, but a lot of professors don't really keep up with the course requirements, especially if their program is in flux. Get you a student handbook, and find out what you need to take. Map it out in a grid, and check off things when you finish them. Show this to your adviser every semester. You may have to explain how such and such class fills a requirement.

-Nobody loves you as much as you, except your mother. Keep this in mind as you take in advice from all sources, including your adviser. Your adviser is there to guide you, but that doesn't mean you have to do everything he says.

Studying:
-You will have to read more than you ever did before, in less time than you ever have before, and you will be expected to retain more than you ever have before. The way that you studied in undergrad may need some tweaking. Be prepared for this.

-Corollary: you may find that your methods change with age or interests or time. I preferred to study alone in college, but in grad school, I prefer to study in groups. It keeps me on task and the socialization keeps me motivated. You may find that you shift from being a more auditory learner to a visual learner or whatever.

-You will feel behind at first. This is normal.

-At some point you will realize that your professors don't actually expect you to read everything they assign you. This, of course, will vary by program, but there will be at least one class where the reading is actually impossible to do in one week. The point is to read enough that you know the major themes and can talk intelligently about them, and then pick some of the readings to really dig into and think more deeply about.

-For most programs, don't worry so much about grades. If you stay on top of your work and do what you're supposed to, you will probably get an A. How much grades matter varies from program to program. In some programs, a B is a signal that you are not up to par, and more than a few Bs will warrant a discussion with your adviser or the DGS. My program isn't like that - A, B, it's all meaningless. My adviser doesn't even know what my grades are. But at almost all programs, a C means you need to retake the course, and two Cs means you have to convince the DGS not to kick you out.

Extracurricular activity: What's that? No, seriously:
-A lot of your time will be unstructured. You will have coursework, but most grad classes meet once a week for two hours and you may have three classes. You may have meetings with your adviser every so often and some seminars or things to catch (like we have grand rounds and colloquia that are required), but a lot of time will be unstructured. However, since you have so much more work than you had in undergrad, you actually will have less free time than you had in undergrad. This may initially cause you great anxiety. It did for me. Some people love unstructured time, though. (I don't.)

-Because of this, you'll have to be planful about your non-grad school related stuff.

-TAKE TIME OFF. DO it. It's important for your mental health. However you do it doesn't matter. Some people work it like a 9-5 job. Some people take a day off per week (me) and maybe a few hours spread across the week. Some people work half days 7 days a week. However you do it, there needs to be a time when you say "f this, I'm going to the movies."

-Find your happy place, something that keeps you the you you were when you came in. I love working out. It gives me energy and I feel good. I stay healthy. I also love reading fiction, so sometimes I just curl up with a good book, work be damned. You have to give yourself permission to not think about work, at least for a couple of hours a week. You may also discover new hobbies! (I never worked out before I came to graduate school.)

-Your work will creep into all aspects of your life, if you let it. This is why I hate unstructured time. You will feel guilty for not doing something, because in graduate school, there is ALWAYS something you can do. ALWAYS. But since there will always be more work, there's no harm in putting it aside for tomorrow, as long as you don't have a deadline.

-You may need to reach outside of your cohort for a social life. None of my close friends are in my doctoral cohort. I've met master's students in my program, master's students in other programs, and I know a few non-graduate students I hang out with, too. Go to graduate student mixers. (If your university doesn't have any, organize some, if you like planning parties.) Join a student group that doesn't take up too much time. I had a doctoral acquaintance who kinda laughed at me because I joined some student groups other than the doctoral student one, and I was usually the only doctoral student in those groups, but I met some close friends (and future job contacts) and had a good time.

-DO NOT FEEL GUILTY FOR WANTING A LIFE OUTSIDE OF GRADUATE SCHOOL. This is paramount. This is important. You are a well-rounded, complex, multifaceted human being. NEVER feel bad for this. Everybody wants some kind of life outside of work. Yes, you may loooove your field, but that doesn't mean you want to do it all day long. Some other doctoral students, and perhaps professors, may make you feel bad about this. Don't let them. Just smile and nod. Then disappear when you need to.

Career:
-This is job preparation. Remember that from Day One. Always be looking for ways to enhance your skills. Read job ads and find out what's hot in your field, what's necessary, what's in demand. For example, in my field statistics and methods are a hot commodity, and they're not a passing fad. I happen to really like statistics and methods, so I have pursued that as a concentration of mine.

-Don't be afraid to take on volunteer work and part-time gigs that will give you skills that will be useful both inside academia and out, as long as it's not against your contract. Your adviser may be against it, but he doesn't have to know as long as it doesn't interfere with your work.

-If you want to work outside of academia - if you are even *considering* the possibility - please please definitely do the above. Even if you aren't considering it, consider the possibility that you won't get a tenure-track job out the box and that you may need to support yourself doing something else for a while. You will have to prove to employers that you have developed usable, useful skills and this is one of the easiest ways to do it. But don't overdo it - get the degree done.

-For more academic related ones - always look for opportunities to present and publish. Presentations look good on your CV. Publications look better. When you write seminar papers, wonder if you can publish them with some revision. Write your seminar papers on what you maybe think you may want to do your dissertation on. Even if you look at them three years later and think "these suck," you can at least glean some useful references and pieces from them. Discuss publication with your adviser early and often, and if you have the time and desire, seek out publication options with other professors and researchers. But if you commit to a project, COMMIT. You don't want to leave a bad impression.

-If you can afford it, occasionally go to conferences even if you aren't presenting. You can network, and you can hear some interesting talks, and you may think about new directions for your own research. You can also meet people who may tell you about jobs, money, opportunities, etc.

-Always try to get someone else to pay for conference travel before you come out of pocket. Including your adviser. Do not be shy about asking if he or she can pay. If he can't, he'll just say no. Usually the department has a travel fund for students, but often it's only if you are presenting.

-If you are interested in academia, you should get some teaching experience. There are two traditional ways to do this: TAing a course, and teaching as a sole instructor. If you can help it, I wouldn't recommend doing a sole instructor position until you are finished with coursework. Teaching takes a LOT of time to do right. You should definitely TA at least one course, and probably a few different ones. But don't overdo it, if you can help it, because again, it takes a LOT of time. More than you expect at the outset. If you are in the humanities, I think sole instructor positions are very important for nabbing jobs so when you are in the exam/ABD phase, you may want to try at least one. If your own university has none, look at adjuncting for nearby colleges, including community colleges. (I would wager that the majority of natural science/physical science students, and most social science students, have never sole taught a class before they get an assistant professor job. At least, it's not that common n my field, which straddles the social and natural sciences.)

-Always look for money. Money is awesome. If you can fund yourself you can do what you want, within reason. Your university will be thrilled, your adviser will be happy, and you can put it on your CV. It's win-win-win! Don't put yourself out of the running before anyone else has a chance to. Apply even if you think you won't get it or the odds are against you (they always are), as long as you are eligible. Apply often. Apply even if it's only $500. (That's conference travel!) Money begets money. The more awards you get, the more awards you will get. They will get bigger over time. If you are in the sciences and social sciences, you should get practice writing at least one grant. You don't have to write the whole thing, but at least get in on the process so that you can see how it's done. Grant-writing is very valuable both in and outside of graduate school.

-Revise your CV every so often. Then look and decide what you want to add to it. Then go get that thing, so you can add it.

-The career office at big universities is often not just for undergrads. I was surprised to learn that my career center offers help on CV organization and the academic job search, as well as alternative/non-academic career searches for doctoral students. In fact, there are two people whose sole purpose it is to help PhD students find nonacademic careers, and they both have PhDs. This will vary by university - some universities will have very little for grad students. Find out before you write the office off.

-It's never too early to go to seminars/workshops like "the academic job search inside and out", "creating the perfect CV," "getting the job," etc. NEVER. Often the leader will share tips that are more aimed towards early graduate students, or tidbits that are kind of too late for more advanced students to take care of. This will also help you keep a pulse on what's hot in your field. It'll help you know what lines you need to add to your CV. And they're interesting.

Other:

-Decide ahead of time what you are NOT willing to sacrifice on the altar of academia. Then stick to it.
I'm serious. If you decide that you do NOT want to sacrifice your relationship, don't. If it's your geographical mobility, don't. I mean, be realistic, and realize that there will always be trade-offs. But you have to think about what's important to you for your quality of life, and realize that there is always more to you than graduate school.

-If you don't want to be a professor, do not feel guilty about this. At all. Zero. However, you will have to do things differently than most doctoral students. Your adviser will probably never have worked outside of the academy (although this may vary depending on the field) so he may or may not be able to help you. But you have a special mission to seek out the kinds of experiences that will help you find a non-academic job. Test the waters with your adviser before you tell him this. My adviser was quite amenable to it, but that's because I told him that my goal was to still do research and policy work in my field just not at a university, AND because it's quite common in my field for doctoral students to do non-academic work. If you're in a field where it's not common (or where your professors refuse to believe it's common, or it's not supposed to be common)…well, you may be a little more on your own.

-Every so often, you will need to reflect on the reasons you came to graduate school. Sometimes, just sit and think quietly. Why are you doing this to yourself? Do you love your field? Do you need this degree to do what you want to do? Usually the answer is yes and yes, and usually you'll keep on trucking. But sometimes when the chips are down you will need to reevaluate why you put yourself through this in the first place.

-To my great dismay, depression is quite common in doctoral students. Graduate work can be isolating and stressful. Luckily your health insurance usually includes counseling sessions. TAKE THEM if you need them. Do not be ashamed. You may be surprised with who else is getting them. (I found out that everyone in my cohort, including me, was getting mental health counseling at a certain point.) Exercise can help, as can taking that mental health day once a week and just chilling. Don't be surprised if you get the blues…

-…but be self-aware and able to recognize when the depression is clouding your ability to function. Doctoral programs have a 50% attrition rate, and this is rarely because that 50% is less intelligent than, less motivated than, less driven than, or less ambitious than the other 50% that stays. Often they realize that they are ridiculously unhappy in the field, or that they don't need the degree anymore, or that they'd rather focus on other things in life, or their interests have changed. All of this is okay!

-You will, at some point, be like "eff this, I'm leaving." I think almost every doctoral student has thought about dropping out and just kicking this all to the curb. You need to listen to yourself, and find out whether it is idle thought (nothing to worry about, very normal) or whether you are truly unhappy to the point that you need to leave. Counseling can help you figure this out.

-Don't be afraid to take a semester or a year off if you need to. That's what leaves of absence are for.

Lastly, and positively…

…graduate school is great! Seriously, when else will you ever have the time to study what you want for hours on end, talk to just as interested others about it, and live in an intellectual community of scholars and intellectuals? And occasionally wake up at 11 am and go to the bank at 2 pm? Sometimes you will want to pull out all of your hair but most of the time, you will feel fulfilled and wonderfully encouraged and edified. So enjoy this time!

Yes, if you want to use the chunks of time you have productively, you have to prepare. You can use the shorter chunks you have to prepare for the longer chunks.
One thing I had to convince myself of was to just write. Sentences are just a collection of words; paragraphs are made up of sentences. Even if you have a 30 minute span of time, how much can you write? Even if you can only write one paragraph, that's one less paragraph you have to go to your goal. Persisting in writing even small amounts is so important - set aside some time to write almost every day, even if it's only a short period. Set yourself realistic goals. I used Scrivener to write my dissertation in pieces, and Scrivener does easy word counts at the bottom of each section. Give yourself a couple of diagnostic sections to see how much you can realistically write in X period of time (realizing that there's a difference between theoretical writing, like a literature review, and things like methods). Then assign yourself goals at the beginning of each session. So maybe your goal for a 30 minute session is about 100 words. Believe it or not...that's about one-third to a bit less than one-half a double-spaced page (Times New Roman, 12 pt-font, depends on the length of the words).
I outlined my entire dissertation from the beginning...and broke the entire thing up into 2-3 page chunks. Once I did that, the task seemed FAR more surmountable. (I also picked that tip up from a book.) I worked backwards from when I wanted to be finished and assigned myself specific sections to be working on on specific weeks/days, with deadlines. I communicated this timeline to my advisor for some external accountability (he didn't give a fig when I finished, lol, but it felt more accountable to me). Of course, this timeline and outline shifted and changed over time, but it at least gave me a roadmap and an overarching goal.
I also realized that some of the writing rituals I committed myself to were actually, in truth, procrastination techniques. Figure out what you absolutely have to do to get started writing - I mean, the bare minimum that you can go with. Try writing exercises in different areas, without ideal conditions. How do you do? See, you didn't die. Since you have to change workspaces often, one thing you may want to do is pack a bag with the bare essentials you need to write. Try to purchase or download books/articles electronically and enter them into a reference manager, so you can be as mobile as possible. I wrote a significant chunk of my dissertation at a coffee shop around the corner from my apartment, just for variety. (I wrote probably like less than 5% of it in the graduate student workspace.)
One of the most valuable things I learned was from the book Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day, by Joan Bolker. (The title is not meant to be taken literally.) She talks about "parking on the downhill slope" - which means when you stop, make it easy for yourself to get going again. Set aside 5-10 minutes at the end of each writing session to write yourself some messy notes about what you're thinking right then, where you were planning to go with a thought, what article you need to read or reference, or whatever else is helpful to help yourself get going. That way, next time you sit down to write, you don't have to waste 20 minutes trying to remember what the hell you were writing about last time.
When it comes to data analysis and processing - document, document, document! Comment all through those syntax files! Literally, every time you run an analysis, write a short comment about what you were doing with that line of code. If you use a GUI system (like SPSS) just start a notes file in a program like Evernote or OneNote and comment what you're doing. That's the way to "park on the downhill slope" with data analysis. That way, next time you start up you can just glance at your notes/comments and remember where you where and what you were doing. I also took the time (~5 min at the end of each analysis section) to write to myself about what I was planning to try/do next, so that when future me sat down I didn't waste time trying to figure out what the hell I was doing and what this code was for!
Another tip I used a lot is to save editing/revising for dedicated editing/revising days/sessions. If you're a procrastinator or a perfectionist, the temptation might be strong to edit/revise as you write, or to start editing/revising at the beginning of your session. If you do that, you'll look up 2 hours later and realize you've not written anything new. I put a banner above my workspace that say "JUST WRITE" to remind me to stop constantly editing and to just write. Even if I felt like I was vomiting out nonsense, a lot of the time I was able to take that "trash" and edit/revise it to something better later, when I had dedicated editing time. (Honestly, I wrote a significant portion of my dissertation with a glass of wine nearby. The buzz from the wine helped inhibit my natural perfectionistic tendencies and I was able to write more. Now, I often had to do revisions in the mornings but at least I had some words on the paper!)
Recommended books:
How to Write a Lot by Paul Silva (someone else recommended it; it's awesome)
Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day, by Joan Bolker (again, not meant to be taken literally, but there are lots of practical tips)
Complete Your Dissertation or Thesis in Two Semesters or Less (their timelines are, IMO, unrealistic. But the tips and skills are useful)
Destination Dissertation: A Traveler's Guide to a Done Dissertation, by Sonja K. Foss and William Waters (They have this recommended activity that involves slips of papers. I thought the method was stupid, but I basically did the activity electronically and that was decently helpful.)
The Craft of Research, by Booth, Colomb, Williams, Bizup, & Fitzgerald. Now in its 4th edition. Excellent resource!
 

back on topic;
I'm currently reading 'How to Write a Lot' by Paul J. Silvia - it's a bit over 100 pages, so it's not a long read. You can get it on Amazon. It was recommended by quite some faculty I've worked with over the years (you may ask if someone has a copy). Although I personally don't have a lot of problems with writing a lot, it is helpful in many other ways and gives valuable tips on how to 'plan' writing and so on.
Writing time is not just actual writing. You want to also spend time 'planning' your writing. you wanna spend some time on the outline and order of your arguments, set goals on what you wanna do on a day, etc. I do have a 'writing schedule' for a given month/week usually. For me, creating an outline first also helps me with remembering what I'm actually doing. I usually block out 3x 4 hours in a given week to work on writing (usually the afternoons I don't have class/other responsibilities; although it's also occasionally mornings - but I make sure I have at least 8 hrs per week fully focussed on writing) to write. I've also done 2 hours after lunch each day, but my current schedule doesn't allow me to do so. Sometimes I don't need this much time, but then I'll just use it to read things I'm interested in that are maybe not directly relevant to a paper I'm working on, but could be helfpul in the future. When I'm having writing sessions, people that work with me know that I will not be checking my email regularly during those hours (i.e., the 8 hrs that I'm devoted to writing) - if at all, but there are other ways to contac tme for important things. 
I usually start by going quickly over what I wrote the previous session, weeding out any 'very wonky' sentences in the process and it helps me to remember what I was working on, although this step is not always needed. Then I just start writing. Sometimes I may just write the general outline of the paper; I add references later because I know what info I want to include. I often add more information and so on later, but I write a general body with all the arguments and the like first and put things like (xxxx) as a reference if I'm not sure who and what (sometimes I remember). I personally find it easier to just flow on like that than constantly move back and forth between checking references and writing - also because I already know my outline. When the general body of the intro is finished, I will usually start adding references and more information if I come across missing information (I find it personally easier to just 'add' an extra sentence with relevant info). I can also spend a session working on a lit review and taking notes on relevant information in a doc and use that for writing my outline later on. I also usually pre-write my methods and results , so I don't forget any analyses and just sorta fill in the blanks and outcomes (i.e., As can be seen in Table x , there was a *** between variable X and variable Y, *stats*/ Blabla was assessed using Scale X (alpha/Mean/SD)). After doing that I move on to the discussion because you need the results for that. But I do dot down some things I want to mention or go over while writing other sections. I generally work with keywords or short sentences to remind myself what the outline is/should be. Note that this order is not fixed. Some people also prefer to write methods and results first, and the intro later. It also depends on whether I'm collaborating with someone and so on - that's why planning and having an outline is so helpful.
Because I have regular writing time, I also do not really have rituals to get into writing except getting a big coffee. My ritual is literally just closing all my other browsers (except EndNote maybe), make sure I have coffee, put on my headphones (I usually just listen to some jazz radio station on youtube - that's the other browser I'll have open) and just go. I usually will have a pop-up for my uni-email account, although I sometimes disable that too if I really want to focus on something difficult. Because your ritual takes about an hour, you may figure a way to use time from the ritual for actual writing - I'm not saying all, but just slowly get faster in the writing itself. If you plan your writing in advance (such as what you want to do, have an outline, etc.) it may save you some time later on. I also know people who keep a writing log (spend the last 5- 10 min of their session writing down what they did and goals for the next day), similar to how people keep a datalog where you summarize what you did with your data (you want to do that too).
As for writing anything 'good' - I wouldn't necessarily focus too much on the output itself. Sometimes I can spend a whole session just writing a poorly, but it is easier to edit something than just write it from scratch. If you plan your text well (like flow, order of arguments, etc.), I think it will also make it easier to write something 'good'. Don't be discouraged by the fact that you may spend quite some time outlining your paper, because it will help you in the end for sure! Writing is not the actual amount of words you wrote down in a given time; it involves a lot more.
 
As for other tips;
- try to figure out what good times for writing are for you. I'm not very functional the first 1 - 2 hrs in the office, so I try to use that time for other tasks such as replying to emails, downloading papers, reading easy things, and meetings if possible. I do find the first 1-2 hrs good for editing too, so if I have a morning writing session, I usually use it for editing and data analyses (i.e., fill in the blanks in my methods/results).
- Let other people know you have certain time scheduled for writing and don't care about what they think of that. 
- Make realistic and attainable goals and stick to that. It could be goals as 'write an outline of the intro', 'write 500 words', 'finish analysis X', etc. You'll figure out over time what is attainable for you.
- Be cautious not to just spent your writing time 'worrying' about writing, deadlines, etc. Actually use it to do things.

Glad this is helpful! Yeah, Emory's comp lit department is neither particularly comparative (unless you happen to work on French) nor particularly focused on literature...it's really more a continental thought department. Both Duke and JHU sound ideal for your interests. I did my undergrad at JHU, in fact...and that's where I got my psychoanalysis and deconstruction. Both are certainly still alive in Gilman Hall.
Great question. Short answer is one usually thinks of comparative literature as comparing a few literary works in two or three languages, usually connected by genre, influence, theme, the authors knowing each other...etc. (Funny enough, I don't know many colleagues who actually do stuff like this, but it remains the basic model nevertheless.) World literature as a literary-critical project is more interested in zooming all the way out and looking at global circulations of literatures, larger-scale flows and higher-level patterns. I'd check out the writings by people like Franco Moretti, Pascale Casanova, and David Damrosch (who is at Harvard) to get a sense. If you haven't heard of the term don't worry about it too much, though. During my applications the only school that asked about it during interview was Yale...told them I hadn't thought about it that much and got accepted anyway. (Maybe they're feeling the pressure to do more Harvardy things? Who knows.) I wouldn't think Harvard is a good fit for you even without the language issue - they don't do a lot of theory there, at least compared to the places you're thinking about.

One more tip: advanced readers are rare but they do exist. Depending on the language, Dunwoody Press (which was dead for a long time and is now reviving its old glory) published many such readers for laughably less-taught languages. Since many of these books are out of print, it is worthwhile to search on WorldCat or your university library catalog. If you are already quite acquainted with the grammar, even a reader whose auxiliary language is other than English (the Soviets were good in publishing readers) can be useful for you -- you just need graded, well-chosen texts for your practice. Searching for old textbooks is also a gem because it helps you ease into reading primary sources. It is funny, perhaps, but reading what an American/British learner of German read to study German in the 19th century is actually quite useful in the post-beginner stage.

I might have the necessary expertise in that. A good way is to find an older textbook of the "grammar and reader" genre, which will take you through graded reading and translation exercises to functional reading proficiency. Then, by reading, you'll acquire speed, vocabulary, and skill in reading this language.

I second what TsaranfProphet said. I'll only add that if you can, find a book that comes with answer keys for the exercises. Not all of them do. Having an answer key makes a huge difference for self study. It also helps quite a bit to have someone who's proficient in the language you will be studying, whether a faculty, a grad student, a friend, etc. so that if you get stuck on anything and the textbook/answer key provide no insight, you have someone to turn to. Answer keys are invaluable, but there are limits to what they are suitable for.

Once I got to intermediate proficiency, reading newspapers in my research languages first thing in the morning was very helpful.

Congrats on the acceptance! That is so exciting, especially for it being a top choice! 
I know it is hard not getting to visit the city. (Currently dealing with the same issue actually.) The experience gives so much precious information that doesn't transmit well over the internet. As you mentioned, the internet can also be quite polarizing. I will do my very best to give a fair answer. While I am a native, I've lived in other places (including abroad), which has informed my opinion of Chicago to be less biased.
As an international student, you should feel at home. Chicago is so diverse! You can find food from anywhere, friends from anywhere, etc. It's truly a treasure.
Transportation - honestly some of the best you will find across the US. It's called the CTA and the trains are specifically called the "L" because it runs in a Loop. The red and blue line runs 24/7 and they cover a lot of the city. The other lines run roughly 4am to 1 or 2am. The blue line takes you to/from to O'Hare airport. They are very reliable and come often. Transferring lines is generally very simple, occasionally you might have to leave a station to cross the street to get to another station, not typical though. The buses are great too. A lot of people are scared of them because they're "more dangerous." But that is just not true. They have lots of different schedules though. You can check it out: https://www.transitchicago.com/
Safety - ugh, this is a tough one. It is a city, and like any city there is crime. There was a brief interlude where we were the murder capital of the US, but honestly, if you avoid certain areas, take precautions/be aware of your surroundings, don't do stupid stuff (like get blackout drunk and wander alone at night), etc. you'll be fine. If U Chicago is the school you're going to, stick to campus. The surrounding areas can be a little dangerous at times. We can get into this more if you like. It's truly no different than living in other major cities though in terms of safety. Owning pepper spray never hurts (you).
Scenery - some of the most beautiful architecture the US has to offer. Lots of gorgeous skyline views. However, there is a serious lack of nature. We have no mountains or even hills. There is Lake Michigan which is a major attraction in the summer (but also beautiful in winter). You can enjoy the beach or kayak on the Chicago River. There is a nice bike/run path along the lake (Lake Front Trail or LFT). There are some nice parks scattered throughout the city. Lincoln Park being the biggest, I think. Not sure what other scenery you are interested in, but let me know.
Weather - it has the lake effect so there will be more snow than other parts of Illinois in winter. It has big temperature swings. It's very cold in the winter (sub 0F a few days, not often) and very hot in the summer (highs in the 90's F a few days, not so often). We joke a lot about how sometimes we skip fall or spring because it goes from freezing to warm in a matter of days without easing into the seasonal change. Overall, the weather is very manageable all year round. Winters aren't that bad unless maybe you've never experienced winter before.
General notes - Chicago is the 3rd biggest city in the US, but one of the more affordable cities. NY and LA are notoriously expensive. You can find some cheap rent in certain neighborhoods. I lived in Rogers Park, and my rent was 750 for a 2 bdr. Groceries aren't absurdly pricey unless you shop at certain places like Whole Foods. You can find good prices at small family-owned grocery stores. It's a bike-able city, some areas less than others, though. There is plenty to do in Chicago in terms of activities/events. Lots of concert venues, museums, theaters, etc. Ice skating in the winter, Lollapalooza and the Taste of Chicago in the summer. Typical city stuff.
It's also a spread out city. It's shape is a big rectangle along the lake with an easy to navigate grid system. 
Please don't hesitate to ask follow up questions. I'm happy to help. ?

Don't mention ABC to the professor, and consider the comment of Liquirizia. 

I experience this sometimes as well, mostly with my creative writing. Sometimes the way in which I string words together feels so inadequate at expressing the depth of what I am trying to convey. Whenever I feel lost, I try a few different things. One of my favorite things to do is to go back to an author whose writing inspires me. That author, for me, is often Hugo von Hofmannsthal. Perhaps you can find an academic whose work you are very passionate about and reread one of your favorite papers or texts by them? Another thing I try is to change my surroundings. If I stay at my place to read, write, and work, I often have a harder time focusing. I'm going to a bookstore tomorrow with a French book I've been stuck on due to very unfamiliar vocab used in long, extended metaphors that leaves me feeling inadequate. I'm hoping that sitting a a cozy chair among all the books will help me focus and overcome the challenge without feeling too anxious. When it comes to writing, I sometimes change how I'm writing. I've written 10 page papers out on paper when I couldn't get myself to type them up (it was very helpful). Perhaps change the way you're going about writing, allow yourself to explore more, to break the conventions that are holding you back. You can always go back to edit and reform the paper afterwards. Finally, if those things don't help, I take a step away from the source of my anxiety. Going for a walk or going to the gym is very helpful to me.
Most importantly, though, is to remember that it's okay to feel overwhelmed. We all do at some point. What matters is remembering what made you passionate about your field to begin with and to know that you have important contributions to make.  

If you have been accepted to programs this year, you will likely be accepted next year. Clearly, you are a qualified applicant. Taking a year off won't harm you; it will only help you. In my opinion, the debt is not worth it. It's not like you're going into CS where you'll be making 6 figures after you graduate. A career in the humanities will not be fruitful in the beginning, if at all. My advice is to learn from this application cycle to create an even better dossier for the next cycle for PhD programs. It'll be easier next year anyway because you've already been through it. 
Taking a year off will also give you time to get work experience as well as extra money that can go towards your existing loans and be saved for retirement (start now). The work experience is more valuable than you might realize. As you mentioned, the PhD programs you wanted weren't accepting applications this cycle so it is better to wait to be in the right program than to be in the wrong program earlier. Grad school is not something to rush.
Yes, these programs are cash cows and what's worse is that the professors know it and will treat you as a second class citizen because your only purpose is to fund their PhD students. You want an enjoyable as possible experience in grad school. To achieve that, you want to be a prioritized student. You especially don't want to carry the burden of financial stress every day. If you're funded, you can at least sleep at night.
Finally, I wanted point out that you didn't need to hesitate on applying due to not having a thesis in your application. I'm sure it will make your applications next cycle even more competitive, but you could've been an excellent applicant without it this year for PhD programs. I applied without a special thesis and have gotten into multiple PhD programs this cycle. I only have a BA. I think you deserve to be more confident in yourself.