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How to Tame Your PhD
In this short book Dr. Inger Mewburn, founder and editor of The Thesis Whisperer blog, shares her secrets for becoming a more productive researcher and writer. Inger finished her award-winning PhD in three years - despite having a small child, husband and demanding academic job. This book is a selection of her blog posts on thesis writing, which have been re-edited and expanded. This book introduces you to Inger's most important success strategies for getting your PhD finished and acts a companion to The Thesis Whisperer blog.
150 pages, Paperback
First published September 20, 2012
48 people are currently reading
224 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
June 28, 2014
Book is okay. Ripe with spelling and grammar errors. "Some were in tears as they me they just couldn't carry on." You don't say. This is all the more ironic given the point that the author goes on about how well she writes and mentions all of the books on writing well that she has read. Clearly didn't pay close enough attention. The advice is generic at best and the kindle format looks really wonky.
October 12, 2016
As many people here have pointed out, this isn't a book so much as a collection of (sometimes edited) blog posts from Inger Mewburn's fantastic blog, The Thesis Whisperer. I've been following this blog for about three or four years now and it is consistently excellent with advice for academic research work and was useful to me for both my Masters and now that I'm starting my PhD. I think the fact that it's blog posts isn't really a problem for this book - Mewburn is upfront about what it is; the blog has become very large so it's quite nice to a have a selection of key posts at your fingertips without having to try to remember where you read them, the selected posts are relevant, interesting and easy to read, and finally the Kindle pricepoint is pretty reasonable for all this (although I think if you don't have some sort of device to read this on as an ebook, I probably wouldn't recommend it in hard copy given the content is all available online and the physical book is fairly pricey for what it is - I'd say go forth and bookmark your favourite articles instead).
Where it falls down, though, is with proofreading. This may seem like a petty criticism because overall Mewburn's writing is good and there's nothing there that renders the text unintelligible, but in a book that's essentially about writing, it's a bit disappointing, as well as being a little disturbing as you're reading along. The main problem is with missing words rather than typos. I've never noticed this as a particular problem on the blog, so I'm not sure what's happened there, but it would be great to get an update with the problems corrected.
Overall: useful, easy to read, but probably not worth forking out for a physical copy
Where it falls down, though, is with proofreading. This may seem like a petty criticism because overall Mewburn's writing is good and there's nothing there that renders the text unintelligible, but in a book that's essentially about writing, it's a bit disappointing, as well as being a little disturbing as you're reading along. The main problem is with missing words rather than typos. I've never noticed this as a particular problem on the blog, so I'm not sure what's happened there, but it would be great to get an update with the problems corrected.
Overall: useful, easy to read, but probably not worth forking out for a physical copy
April 9, 2020
Brief and to the point, helpful in terms of dealing with the writing process and associated #phdemotions.
February 21, 2018
I picked this up because I liked Inger's blog and wasn't really sure how to navigate it. Would have loved a paper format because it's one of those books that will help you if you skim through the pages every once in a while.
This taught me quite a bit, about attitude towards Thesis Wiring and my PhD in general, how to go about emotions. It focused a lot on the thesis writing so it felt like it was probably not meant for someone that just started out, the initial problems with the orientation and new way of life as a researcher.
It also directed me to a bunch of other reading material and what made me happiest was a few papers were cited, THAT I HAD READ EARLIER! so cool!
Anyway. Good book. Why no print?
This taught me quite a bit, about attitude towards Thesis Wiring and my PhD in general, how to go about emotions. It focused a lot on the thesis writing so it felt like it was probably not meant for someone that just started out, the initial problems with the orientation and new way of life as a researcher.
It also directed me to a bunch of other reading material and what made me happiest was a few papers were cited, THAT I HAD READ EARLIER! so cool!
Anyway. Good book. Why no print?
February 18, 2019
Delayed reading this one, but I guess this timing couldn't be better. Highly recommend for Academics at whatever stage you are in Bachelor, Master or PhD, I think it's perfect for all the levels and has some good comfort in it...
I especially liked the idea to start a blog that could help you acquire a writing habit. I have tried 2 years ago and I think it helps if at least to know your writing habits. For me it generally is sticking to the night owl label, but I tried hard to shift it... Vainly..
Although blogging I could say is at the bottom of writing pyramid (if of course we exclude tweets and so on...), it really helps get over the blank page and fight the psychosis of the white sheet...
I loved it small and synthetic. ❤️
I especially liked the idea to start a blog that could help you acquire a writing habit. I have tried 2 years ago and I think it helps if at least to know your writing habits. For me it generally is sticking to the night owl label, but I tried hard to shift it... Vainly..
Although blogging I could say is at the bottom of writing pyramid (if of course we exclude tweets and so on...), it really helps get over the blank page and fight the psychosis of the white sheet...
I loved it small and synthetic. ❤️
June 14, 2014
This book is a compilation of texts from The Thesis Whisperer website, and is a must-read for anyone in grad school. I am a big fan of Inger Mewburn and I very frequently read her blog. Her advice has largely influenced and helped my path though the PhD candidature and I strongly recommend it.
December 24, 2018
Just like Inger's blog "The Thesis Whisperer", this is a godsend for any PhD student out there. It's a compilation of (modified) posts from the blog, but this doesn't lower the book's quality one bit since these are the kinds of thoughts that you can benefit from rereading many times and from which you will get something useful and inspiring every time. Inger's writing style is comical, empathetic with just the right dose of personal anecdotes and scientific baking to balance everything out nicely for the reader. I know that this book and the one's referenced inside will be something that I will turn to throughout my doctoral work. Thank you Inger for all your great work!
November 2, 2017
This book is a selection of articles from the blog "The Thesis Whisperer", which have been expanded and edited. The book provides tips and guidance for various parts of the PhD, with a special focus on the thesis. I'm a PhD student in Computer Science & Engineering, and I found some of her thesis writing tips not suited to me (she's talking to students in the social sciences), but overall the advice she gave was useful. The reason I've given this book just 3 stars is because over the course of my PhD, I've seen a lot of the advice she's given here, already. So, while useful, it's not really new.
June 30, 2020
Quick Read for Finishing the Dissertation
The book gives great tips for finishing the dissertation. The advice is targeted and specific to some of the many challenges doctoral candidates may face in finishing their PhDs. The author also provides great references to books that can serve as additional resources in completing the dissertation. I wish the book were a little longer. It’s possible that the author has other books that speak more about each phase of dissertation writing. This book reads more like pocket handbook or quick resource guide. Overall, I think it’s a good read and worth the investment.
The book gives great tips for finishing the dissertation. The advice is targeted and specific to some of the many challenges doctoral candidates may face in finishing their PhDs. The author also provides great references to books that can serve as additional resources in completing the dissertation. I wish the book were a little longer. It’s possible that the author has other books that speak more about each phase of dissertation writing. This book reads more like pocket handbook or quick resource guide. Overall, I think it’s a good read and worth the investment.
September 7, 2017
I throughly enjoyed reading this book, however I somehow got the feeling that the editing was somewhat sloppy. Some headings were on one page without any text, the text following on the next page. I guess, it wasn't really meant to be a paperback book. Still: greatly recommended, but maybe heading to the website itself makes more sense.
March 15, 2019
Useful tips, in spite of the typos
I liked the informal writing style, but I was also let down by the typos. However, the tips and useful resources that the author suggested outweighed the typos. Overall, it was an easy, quick, and very helpful read.
I liked the informal writing style, but I was also let down by the typos. However, the tips and useful resources that the author suggested outweighed the typos. Overall, it was an easy, quick, and very helpful read.
January 6, 2021
This is one of the books that I will keep through my PhD. Many useful informations and techniques that I can follow. Most of the chapters are the thoughts in my mind that were clearly put into words. :)
April 18, 2021
I've never read her blog, so to me was a great surprise. I just wish I read it earlier. It contains some very good advice and it is a great starting point if you are interesting in the topic, whether becuase you have to or not.
October 10, 2022
I've not read the blog before, so this was a worthwhile afternoon read while I wasn't feeling particularly motivated towards my research.
Assuming the newer version corrected all the typos then it will be worth 4/5.
Assuming the newer version corrected all the typos then it will be worth 4/5.
November 22, 2017
Some useful info, but it really needed to be proofread.
April 6, 2018
very insightful
I like the straighforward approach that the author uses. It really help me grounded and motivated at the same time.
I like the straighforward approach that the author uses. It really help me grounded and motivated at the same time.
June 25, 2018
Good
Easy to implement. I'm enjoying reading this book front page till the end. Great job for the author! Looking forward to another book
Easy to implement. I'm enjoying reading this book front page till the end. Great job for the author! Looking forward to another book
August 17, 2018
A small volume - but oh so useful. This book is a compilation of the author's blog posts. Succinct, easy to read. Highly recommended.
August 21, 2018
Great for thesis motivation when you just don't feel like you're getting anywhere.
October 28, 2024
There are some solid gems here but the version I got is very poorly edited - typos and missing and repetitive words throughout.
December 15, 2017
Given that I find the Thesis Whisperer blog quite interesting, I also enjoyed this book. It is actually by far the most highlighted book on my Kindle.
However, calling it a book might be a bit of a stretch. It is merely a collection of blog posts, which I knew before buying it, but I was disappointed to see that the posts were almost copied verbatim, containing various grammatical and layout errors. I would definitely find this acceptable on a blog, produced in the writer's free time with minimal time for editing, but not so much in a paid-for book that should at least have been proofread.
However, calling it a book might be a bit of a stretch. It is merely a collection of blog posts, which I knew before buying it, but I was disappointed to see that the posts were almost copied verbatim, containing various grammatical and layout errors. I would definitely find this acceptable on a blog, produced in the writer's free time with minimal time for editing, but not so much in a paid-for book that should at least have been proofread.
February 10, 2015
This book gives some useful advice for graduate students.
PROS
The language of the book is very colloquial and easy to read. The person writing has experience as both a doctoral student, and also as an adviser to doctoral students. The chapters are short (in fact the whole book is) and easily processed.
CONS
The book is just a mere compilation of material that is readily available in the web, particularly in the author's blog http://thesiswhisperer.com Also, a significant number of chapters are presentations of surveys in Twitter that include a plethora of usernames and become hard to follow.
CONCLUSION
The book is such a short reading that it is worth your time. You will find nice strategies and anecdotes from the author and it is generally enjoyable. Nevertheless, if you are looking for a solid approach to thesis writing, this is not the place to go. In other words, read it yes, but do not expect to have all your questions answered...
PROS
The language of the book is very colloquial and easy to read. The person writing has experience as both a doctoral student, and also as an adviser to doctoral students. The chapters are short (in fact the whole book is) and easily processed.
CONS
The book is just a mere compilation of material that is readily available in the web, particularly in the author's blog http://thesiswhisperer.com Also, a significant number of chapters are presentations of surveys in Twitter that include a plethora of usernames and become hard to follow.
CONCLUSION
The book is such a short reading that it is worth your time. You will find nice strategies and anecdotes from the author and it is generally enjoyable. Nevertheless, if you are looking for a solid approach to thesis writing, this is not the place to go. In other words, read it yes, but do not expect to have all your questions answered...
February 23, 2016
This book could be a good read for non-fiction book authors as well. The author Inger Mewburn has read books on how to write (like “On Writing”) and incorporated it in her process and written about it in this book.
Favorite quotes:
“I think most people only have about two really good, creative writing hours in a day. Two hours in which new 'substantive' ideas will make their way onto the page. This is when you must generate the writing that will be rewritten.”
“The notorious sci-fi writer Harlan Ellison said that a writer should throw out the first million words. His claim was that it's only after you have written this much that you start to get good.”
Favorite quotes:
“I think most people only have about two really good, creative writing hours in a day. Two hours in which new 'substantive' ideas will make their way onto the page. This is when you must generate the writing that will be rewritten.”
“The notorious sci-fi writer Harlan Ellison said that a writer should throw out the first million words. His claim was that it's only after you have written this much that you start to get good.”
March 2, 2016
Probably more like 2.5 stars. Some useful general advice and encouragement, but a lot of typos and grammar errors that made it difficult to read at times. Considering most of these were adapted from a blog and centered around writing, this was both amusing and deterring. But I am excited to check out many of the books on writing suggested in this book.
January 6, 2016
I owe what little sanity I've had during my PhD to Inger. The book provides clear advice that will give any beginning PhD student a head-start in the right direction. I really liked how the book addresses practical things you can do as well as discusses the emotional side of doing a PhD; namely, loneliness and isolation. The great thing about the book is that it is a short read as well.
January 15, 2016
Short and sweet - is sometimes satisfying. I have a good memory of reading and enjoying this little book on managing a PhD.
From my experience, unless you love research, you should not start a PhD. I regret having started mine.
From my experience, unless you love research, you should not start a PhD. I regret having started mine.
January 4, 2015
I want to cry when I read this book ,because I get totally the same problem/feeling described in this book and the author give very good suggestion.
Read
May 15, 2019Amusingly enough, I read this in a hammock by a pond. It's a quick accessible read with good, if not surprising, advice, handily collected in one place.
June 23, 2015
I love Inger & her blog sooo much! Yes, it's a compilation of some of her posts on The Thesis Whisperer but I don't mind really! The advice is still relevant
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews