Have you read any of these research guides? Useful critiques?

[davidipse]

Dear people;

 

I spent the morning leafing through Amazon, so to speak, researching research books. I'll be attending a doctorate program in English coming fall and would like to make my work there as efficient as I can, so as not to take an overly long time to finish the degree.

 

So far, based on Amazon reviews and some skimming, the following are the books that I feel will be most worth reading on this subject. Most are writing guides and others address other aspects of research. If anyone has read any of these, or has suggestions about others, I'd be very grateful if you would share your thoughts (I don't want to read them all, and one has more trust in this forum than in Amazon reviews, unsurprisingly.)

 

Research/Graduate Study:

 

1) Graduate Study for the 21st Century: How to Build an Academic Career in the Humanities - Semenza

 

2) Writing Your Dissertation in 15 Minutes a Day - Bolker

 

3) The Craft of Research (3d ed) - Booth, Colomb, Williams (also recommended by a prof.)

 

4) Literary Research Guide - Harner

 

Academic Writing Guides:

 

5) How to Write a Lot: A Practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing - Silvia

 

6) They Say, I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing - Graff

 

General Writing Guides:

 

7) Writing with Style: Conversations on the Art of Writing - Timble

 

8) On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction - Zinser

 

 

 

Thanks!

 

 

[Eigen]

I have and have read both Bolker and Silva's books, and they are commonly recommended. 

 

I'll post some other recommendations from my shelf later, when I have time. 

[davidipse]

Bummmp!

 

Eigen, I'm dying to know the contents of your bookshelf.... : )

Edited February 4, 2014 by davidipse

[Eigen]

Thanks for the reminder. Been ut of town the last few days. I'll get you some titles tomorrow.

[davidipse]

Thanks!

 

I just figure if any of these books, given how humanities-centric they appear to be, get a seal of approval from a Chemistry person, then they MUST have something going on.

 

Helpful quote from the Bolken book:

 

"Choose a work style that suits who you are, not who you’d like to be; do not try to create both a dissertation and a new working style at the same time."

[Eigen]

The literature review : six steps to success- Lawrence A. Machi

• Good General book.

The literature review : a step-by-step guide for students- Diana Ridley

• More basic, one I've given to undergraduates working for me/just getting started with academic writing/research.

At the helm : a laboratory navigator- Kathy Barker

• Less writing & more STEM research, but really useful. It's one of my go-to gifts for friends just starting lab research.

Writing Your Journal Article in Twelve Weeks: A Guide to Academic Publishing Success- Wendy Laura Belcher

• Great advice for putting together journal articles.

A PhD Is Not Enough!: A Guide to Survival in Science- Peter J. Feibelman

• Great advice for anyone in STEM.

I'll add more as I think of them. 

 

 

[danieleWrites]

I use They Say/I Say as a textbook in comp 1 class these days. It's really too simplistic for a grad student in a lot of ways. If you're one of those people that need help writing to begin with, that would be a good book. It has some really handy templates for transitions, signal phrases, and so on. But if you're that uncomfortable with writing itself, take a class instead.

Zinnser is a good book on writing clean prose. I prefer Joseph M. Williams' Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace since it's aimed more at academic writing while Zinnser is more about commercial writing. Buy the MLA style guide (or better, join MLA and they'll send you one with your membership). If there is a point of contention on writing rules, that's the only rule book that matters. Yeah, the OWL at Purdue has the MLA formatting guides, but the book is better. After that, this website rocks as basic grammar rule book: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/index.htm

Anyway, writing texts come in two basic flavors: rule books and rhetorics. Don't buy a rule book, other than your field's style manual, unless you hate using websites as a rule book.

On a complete side note, you might find Willims' article "The Phenomenology of Error" very interesting.

As for doing research itself, the MLA handbooks has some helpful hints. The problem is that research in an English department is different than most places. First of all, English houses literature and comp/rhet. They do research completely different.

Look for books that discuss how to do literary criticism. Read PMLA and journals in your particular specialty.

[davidipse]

 

The literature review : six steps to success- Lawrence A. Machi

• Good General book.

The literature review : a step-by-step guide for students- Diana Ridley

• More basic, one I've given to undergraduates working for me/just getting started with academic writing/research.

At the helm : a laboratory navigator- Kathy Barker

• Less writing & more STEM research, but really useful. It's one of my go-to gifts for friends just starting lab research.

Writing Your Journal Article in Twelve Weeks: A Guide to Academic Publishing Success- Wendy Laura Belcher

• Great advice for putting together journal articles.

A PhD Is Not Enough!: A Guide to Survival in Science- Peter J. Feibelman

• Great advice for anyone in STEM.

I'll add more as I think of them. 

 

 

 

 

Thanks, Eigen. I'll definitely read at least the Belcher; it's the 3rd time someone's recommended it to me. 

 

Though I study literature, I'm actually intrigued by those STEM titles—just to know how things work out in a lab.

[davidipse]

I use They Say/I Say as a textbook in comp 1 class these days. It's really too simplistic for a grad student in a lot of ways. If you're one of those people that need help writing to begin with, that would be a good book. It has some really handy templates for transitions, signal phrases, and so on. But if you're that uncomfortable with writing itself, take a class instead.

Zinnser is a good book on writing clean prose. I prefer Joseph M. Williams' Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace since it's aimed more at academic writing while Zinnser is more about commercial writing. Buy the MLA style guide (or better, join MLA and they'll send you one with your membership). If there is a point of contention on writing rules, that's the only rule book that matters. Yeah, the OWL at Purdue has the MLA formatting guides, but the book is better. After that, this website rocks as basic grammar rule book: http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/index.htm

Anyway, writing texts come in two basic flavors: rule books and rhetorics. Don't buy a rule book, other than your field's style manual, unless you hate using websites as a rule book.

On a complete side note, you might find Willims' article "The Phenomenology of Error" very interesting.

As for doing research itself, the MLA handbooks has some helpful hints. The problem is that research in an English department is different than most places. First of all, English houses literature and comp/rhet. They do research completely different.

Look for books that discuss how to do literary criticism. Read PMLA and journals in your particular specialty.

 

Thanks for the recs. I'm an alright writer, if there's a way of putting that without sounding like a jerk, but I still found the portions of They Say, I Say that I read pleasant and useful. I like that kind of categorizing tendency. I get all the hype in literary studies about bursting bubbles and pushing boundaries and breaking boxes, but, still, something about lists and taxonomies—however arbitrary, ultimately, they're bound to be—just warms the proverbial cockles. This is part of why I loved reading Skunk and White.

 

One of my ambitions as an aspiring critic—(jerk factor redoubles)—is to marry a kind of, why not, journalistic prose to an academic one. I love how some critics pull this off.

 

On another note, that Williams paper—LOL! I'm completely convinced (though I still like Skunk and White). I'm getting his book.

 

Also, this article's helped me a lot: 

 

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/07/23/zombie-nouns/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

Edited February 6, 2014 by davidipse

[TakeruK]

I have good things to say about "Marketing for Scientists: How to Shine in Tough Times" by Marc Kuchner (http://www.amazon.com/Marketing-Scientists-Shine-Tough-Times/dp/1597269948)

 

The premise is interesting--an astronomer has a side career as a country music singer and applies what he learns about marketing as a country singer to use in the sciences. From his experience in academia, it helps give insight on how things work from points of view that a grad student might not have experienced yet. Also, there are good tips on send the message you want to your audience!

[Crucial BBQ]

Perhaps it is because I am a student of science that I say this, but shouldn't these types of books/reference guides have been read/used during undergrad?  

[TakeruK]

Perhaps it is because I am a student of science that I say this, but shouldn't these types of books/reference guides have been read/used during undergrad?  

 

I think these guides--the good ones at least--should be useful to all academics at all levels. In the example book I mentioned above (Marketing For Scientists: How to Shine in Tough Times), there is a lot of useful information at the senior undergrad/graduate level, when we are first giving conference talks/posters on our own research, but also helpful tips for senior graduate / new postdoc level on how to apply for the big grants, and in the author's opinion, helpful stuff for more senior faculty to remind them what graduate students are seeking ("know your audience"). 

 

More generally, I felt like as a BSc student, I was not yet advanced enough to really develop my own voice/style in research. I was mostly just doing what my supervisors told me to do. I am not sure if I am the norm, or an underdeveloped exception, but it was not until grad school that I started to become more independent and started thinking about myself as my own researcher, not just an extension of my PI's group. So, I would think that these resources are useful at many different levels although I would not be surprised that some of these books would be better suited for certain phases of our careers.

[Eigen]

Perhaps it is because I am a student of science that I say this, but shouldn't these types of books/reference guides have been read/used during undergrad?  

 

Tagging on to what TakeruK said, a large portion of the books I suggested are targeted at faculty and professionals, not students of any level. 

 

The Kathy Barker book in particular is written to new PIs on lab management, for instance, while "Professors as Writers" is definitely targeted at, and recommended by, professors. 

[semicolon2013]

I just read the Semenza book, and would recommend it.  A few of his suggestions might be slightly outdated, and some will not work for everyone (ie he assumes you will be getting an MA and then a PhD rather than starting the PhD right away), but overall the book was very useful and relevant and I think I will be returning to reread sections as I move through grad school. I especially appreciated the sample materials included at the end of the book.

 

I have also read "On Writing Well" but I did not find it extremely useful, since it is not specific to academic writing and that's really what I want to master. I think it would be more useful for a pre-undergrad student or someone working to master basic prose writing.

 

Edit: by pre-undergrad I mean an undergrad. Someone gave that book to me before college and so that's my association with it.

Edited February 28, 2014 by semicolon2013

[juilletmercredi]

I'm currently working my way through the Semenza book (I'm not in the humanities, but I have my reasons) and I think it's a pretty useful book although I disagree with part of what he says.  But that's probably because I am not a humanist.  BTW, for scientists/social scientists the equivalent is Getting What You Came For by Robert L. Peters.  I love this book.

I have the Bolker book and it's really, really useful.  I definitely recommend it, and I recommend reading it before you get to the dissertation phase.  The project management skills are just useful for any large project.

I've also read Booth et al. and it's useful, but it kind of assumes you know basically nothing about putting together a research paper so I found myself skimming it mostly.  It's still pretty useful, though.  Hmm, maybe I'll assign portions of it for my students this summer.

I've read the Silvia book and I like that one a lot.  Very accessible and practica suggestions.

I think I might have started that Zinser book but never finished it.

 

Eigen, thanks for the Ridley book recommendation - I think maybe I'll investigate it for the possibility of trying to help my summer students (they have to write a lit review and some of them don't seem to understand what it is.)