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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU if you had 600 words to write tonight...

57 replies

seenna · 12/01/2019 19:32

Would you be screwed and find that number daunting? I am able to commit the entire evening/night to this essay but am getting anxious. Typically I like to give myself only 500 words a day to write but I fancied extending my Christmas break a little bit longer. I've written 400 today so far. Really kicking myself for not starting earlier!

OP posts:
Original poster
seenna · 12/01/2019 19:43

Thanks, everyone. Going to try and find some studies!

OP posts:
Pachyderm1 · 12/01/2019 19:46

I wrote 2340 words of my undergraduate dissertation on the day it was due, but I am an extreme procrastinator. You can do it! Break it into chunks and you will be grand.

WonderTweek · 12/01/2019 19:47

I'd recommend putting some instrumental music on in the background and getting yourself into the zone. If it's just a draft you shouldn't worry too much about wording, you can always sleep on it and fix it in the morning.

(I always listened to Tommy Emmanuel when I had to write essays or do revision. Acoustic guitar does it for me. 😊)

ShowOfHands · 12/01/2019 19:51

Wouldn't take me more than 15mins, assuming I knew the topic well and had a plan.

abcriskringle · 12/01/2019 20:00

I always find the most difficult thing is cutting words down at the end to fit the word limit! 600 words is more than do-able of an evening. Good luck!

Gomyownway · 12/01/2019 20:02

600 words would take me about an hour.

DitzyPrints · 14/01/2019 18:28

Did you do it op? I managed to get a 1000 done in 2.5 hours this morning which never happens so pleasantly surprised myself!

WhoPooped · 14/01/2019 18:42

600 words is about 1 page. Surely you could write that in an hour or so?
I did 3 x 1000 words essays in a day and half last week

Treaclepie19 · 14/01/2019 18:52

I did 1000 earlier in the hour between my shower and collecting my son from school.
Did you do it?

WillowPeach · 14/01/2019 19:15

Of course! 600 words is nothing and don’t worry about getting it perfect the first time. Get your ideas down and then worry about making it flow/words sounding good etc.

Speaking from experience, I still can’t believe I survived a 15,000 word dissertation in only 1 month (my own stupid fault for leaving it so late).

You only have 200 to go, that’s so diddy. Do it do it do it Grin

SugarNyx · 14/01/2019 19:28

I work in PR and you just described about an hour of my day. Get off mumsnet and get going 😂

Crustaceans · 14/01/2019 19:30

600 words is about 3 or 4 paragraphs. Maybe think of it that way.

ThePants999 · 14/01/2019 20:04

At uni I had to write 4,000 words a week...

Original poster
seenna · 14/01/2019 20:04

Hey everyone,

So the night I posted this I did NOT get 600 done (prob 150) despite working on it for 4/5 hours. I was really overthinking things and confusing myself!

But I made up for it yesterday- I wrote a whopping 2000 words in 1 day (possibly a record for me). Not my finest work but probably good enough for a merit. Submitted it with 2 minutes remaining.

OP posts:
Original poster
seenna · 14/01/2019 20:05

DitzyPrints- good on ya! Is the assignment now complete?

I have an assessment centre on Wednesday so I'm now focusing on that! Fingers crossed (I'm shitting myself).

OP posts:
medusa83 · 14/01/2019 20:07

Don't be a perfectionist with the first draft. Write your ideas down- even as bullet points and then go through tidying them up into sensible sentences!

sulflower · 14/01/2019 20:10

Don't be a perfectionist with the first draft. Write your ideas down- even as bullet points and then go through tidying them up into sensible sentences!

Exactly how I worked through essays, bullet points then expanded on them. Same with my dissertation, Started with headings with bullet points under each one then kept expanding.

loubluee · 14/01/2019 20:17

I remember submitting an essay 4 minutes before deadline as I’d spent the previous 4 hours reading other students essays to make sure they hadn’t made mistakes! It was my second degree and their first, and our second essay. When they scored early 40’s on their first and I high 80’s on mine, they all assumed I would be a good person to ask to check. (And yes I know I could have said no but that isn’t my nature, I like to help where I can).
Well done though!! You done really well.

Original poster
seenna · 14/01/2019 20:29

I've never been able to a first draft and then just revise it later. I think it's a control thing.

OP posts:
theWarOnPeace · 14/01/2019 20:44

seenna I had a certain way of studying that I couldn’t let go of for ages, I would also really struggle to write anything in rough drafts, and to note-take properly. I had to force myself in the end, and just the practice of forcing yourself to jot it all down in a stream of consciousness and then re-jig later is so beneficial to your studies, believe me. You get so mentally worn out perfecting it as you go along that, as you said, you got very little done in that space of time. That’s not a criticism, but really it’s not an efficient use of your time, plus you may have received higher marks if your brain wasn’t fried by the end of it! I find either doing a rough draft, printing out and writing over it, or using the smart pen thingy on the screen over Word helps me get my bearings with text that I’ve not perfected as I’ve typed.

HotSauceCommittee · 14/01/2019 20:46

Write anything, write like no one is looking, let it pour out. It’s a start and then you can go back and edit.

emzw12 · 14/01/2019 20:51

Meh I just wrote 6000 words in one assignment and 3000 words in another assignment while in hospital for 10 days. You'll be fine!

brizzledrizzle · 14/01/2019 20:53

You can do this, get off MN, get your notes together and you'll have it done in less than an hour.

MsAwesomeDragon · 14/01/2019 20:54

600 words is fine. Get started!!!

I've got about 1000 words to write tonight, in the form of school reports. I'll get going in a minute and be done in a couple of hours. You do the same thing and just get it done.

sackrifice · 14/01/2019 20:55

I wrote two assignments in one evening to finish a qual off once. 3000 for one and 4000 for another. Proof read on the weekend, bibliography on the sunday night and both were in by midnight. Pure relief.