It did not occur to me in June 2018 that this project would, in fact, end.
Wait! ‘m not there yet. But I am getting close.
Chapter 4 is being worked on (or it would be, if I wasn’t procrastinating here). I have the feedback for the first-draft of this final chapter, and my supervisor and I have met to discuss the areas that tripped me up. Nothing too shocking or unexpected but, as ever, more reading is required! I’ll resubmit in two weeks, expecting minor tweaks after that.
Then I have an Introduction and a Conclusion to write.
I have anticipated this moment and kept accurate notes at the end of every chapter so that I could remember what I said. It is a matter of writing those notes up and trying to sound interesting without going over the top. I do suggest keeping a list of ‘Findings’ as you go. It is very helpful later on when you get to that stage in the project that you never thought you would get to.
‘What about referencing?’ I hear you say.
Again, I have anticipated this beast and disciplined myself to reference as I went. Even though it felt like cruel and unnecessary punishment, I put the effort in to get the referencing right the first time around. The last thing I want to be doing is trying to remember where I got certain ideas from months after the writing has cooled.
In all of this is my collection of poetry.
A final read has been undertaken by my supervisor with some small revisions suggested but the declaration that the collection is ‘close to being definitely completed’. It is. I can feel it. The poems are embracing their place in the narrative arc, pulling together to tell a story of trauma and recovery. They are, in themselves, the answer to my research question: How does poetry allow trauma to speak?
It’s time to start thinking about the ‘what next?’.
But, first, is the completion and submission of this research project. I’m too close to the end to lose focus now!
This Writer's Life 