When I discussed the outline of the paper with Paul, the professor of Economic Narrative, he gave me very useful advice on writing.
- The most useful advice was: let me start writing from the part I want to write the most, not from the introduction, but from the core content of the text. Specifically in this article, it starts with how the public narrative is formed, then introduces China’s macroeconomic narrative, then writes the conclusion, and finally writes the introduction. If I had heard this advice earlier, I would have spent one hour less writing the introduction from scratch, and this introduction has been changed back and forth due to the subsequent writing ideas. My actual experience is that it is very easy to write from the part I want to write the most, because this part is the starting point of the entire text, and it is also the part that took the longest time to think about, and it is also likely to be the place with the clearest ideas. Write this part first, and the rest of the text will be clearer.
- In addition, Paul has been emphasizing that you must proofread, not just for grammar, but to see whether the expression is fluent, whether the key points are clear, and whether there are any ambiguities. The most effective way is to read it out loud, read it many times by yourself, and even consider playing it out loud to yourself, so that it is easier to hear where there are problems. In addition, I feel that if I have time, I should even set aside more time to let more people help me read, and getting feedback from readers is more direct and effective.
- One point that Paul repeatedly emphasized to me is that the first draft will definitely be garbage, and you must accept this calmly. The first draft will definitely exceed the word count, the expression will be upside down, and the key points will definitely be very unclear, but it doesn’t matter; you must write the part you want to write the most. Having a garbage first version is more important than anything else.
To be honest, I think the inspiration this professor gave me may be worth at least half of my tuition this semester. This logic is very effective in any writing, not just academic writing.
