54. By Any Means Necessary

In writing a dissertation, there are a number of maxims you come across that are supposed to either motivate or inform your progress. "The best dissertation is a done dissertation." "Give em what they want and get out." Etcetera and so forth. It's all good advice, and it all boils down to one main idea: Get it done.

With that in mind, I've enrolled in a Dissertation Proposal Write-In. It's 5 days, 4-6 hours a day, nothing but writing, and they provide food. To get in, you have to write a check for 50 bucks (a lot of money for a grad student). If you complete the program, you get your check back. If not, they cash it. Interesting concept.

You say you want to write. Cool... Here's your desk... Write. Oh... And if you don't, you owe us 50 bucks.

What if it always worked this way? If instead of someone offering you a job or a fellowship to write something, they charged you $100/month to write nothing. I feel like I'd be a lot more productive. I could have a fellowship, I don't, and I'm not at all bothered, because I don't feel the money I don't have. But if I had to write someone a check for the amount of money I gave up in not getting a fellowship, that would hurt.

So this is what it's come to. I will have my most productive writing week to date, or I will pay the University of Chicago $50 for nothing. If that's what it takes...