Will write for food
Bit of a brazen post this, but I figured it’d be worth a shot. Some requests…
I’m currently planning to expand upon my Master’s research in the form of a PhD. There’s really not much work being carried out on the psychodynamics of sustainability… analysing our ecological psychosis… the schizophrenia of the group mind… call it what you will. Gregory Bateson’s pioneering work has largely been left to gather dust despite the incredible importance and relevance it holds for modern civilisation.
Certainly there have been some books written on the subject, often rather good ones too, but really not enough to do the subject justice. Also, they have a tendency to be somewhat inaccessible. Bateson’s own writing can be quite difficult to digest and while both Narby’s Intelligence in Nature and Kidner’s Nature and Psyche have much to offer the dedicated academic, they are unlikely to ever reach a large audience.
It’s my aim — and yes, it’s a lofty one, but why set the bar low? — to produce a PhD thesis that can be successful both academically and also from the standpoint of the educated but non-specialist reader. The subject deserves to be released from the confines of the ivory tower.
However, while I’m putting together my proposal and continuing my research now, it’ll be a year or so before I get officially underway. I’ve missed the various funding deadlines for this year and, well, there’s other stuff happening that preclude the kind of intensive, full-time dedication that starting a PhD might entail.
Therefore, I’m kind of twiddling my thumbs right now, which is why I’m writing this post. My readership is small but select and I’m hoping some of you might have a bit of advice to share. Obviously any input with regards to putting together a PhD proposal (in the broad field of philosophy) would be greatly appreciated. But in the meantime I’m also looking for one or two things…
Firstly, I’m a bit of a dab hand when it comes to building websites and web applications. It’s been my main source of income for a while but work has slowed down considerably of late so I’m looking to expand my client base. I have a web portfolio, with the rather grandiose title of Ring Forth Web Studio, which you might point people towards if you hear they need sites built (WordPress installations and ColdFusion programming in particular).
Secondly, I’d really love to know how to go about earning a crust (or even half a crust) out of freelance writing. Yes, I’m aware that’s the Holy Grail for every blogger but if, dear reader, you’ve worked out how to achieve it, I’d be eternally grateful for your advice. You can either leave a comment here, or contact me via email at ‘jim’ at ‘numero57’ dot ‘net’. There’s also a web form over at ringforth.com for getting in touch about web work.
I’m aware that this is something of a stab in the dark, but I figured it was worth a try. Thanks for reading. Normal service shall resume soon.
It’s my aim — and yes, it’s a lofty one, but why set the bar low? — to produce a PhD thesis that can be successful both academically and also from the standpoint of the educated but non-specialist reader.
This sounds very much like two projects rather than one. Do beware of falling between two stools – what makes a successful PhD thesis and what makes a successful pop philosophy book (or whatever the right term is) are likely to be extremely different. A PhD should be narrowly focussed, detailed, and exhaustingly referenced. A popular account needs to be much broader in scope, generally jollier and more accessible, and I would say contain much less original research.
April 12th, 2010 | 8:47pm
by Larry Teabag
I hear what you’re saying Larry. And there’s a good chance that it will indeed fragment into two projects at some point (though as far as the research is concerned, it’ll remain a single project for a while). On the other hand I don’t see any inherent reason why a detailed and exhaustively referenced piece of work can’t also be accessible and readable. My M.Phil thesis (which I know is a different beast to a PhD) has received universally positive feeback from those in the academic world who read it, and yet I nonetheless believe that it can be read by most educated people without too much trouble. I even managed to squeeze in a couple of jokes!
But yeah, you are probably right and it will probably end up as two different pieces of work but I wish to consciously keep them unified for as long as possible; not least to avoid dumbing down my theories too much for a mass audience.
April 12th, 2010 | 9:03pm
by Jim Bliss
For the first part: speaking as someone who’s turned his PhD thesis into a book which I’m damn sure the general reader would like if the general reader could only get hir general hands on it, I sympathise, but ultimately I agree with Larry. The business end of my thesis, containing the New Research, was chapter 6, which eventually turned into chapters 6, 7 and 8 – and even then chapter 8 would have been split in two on length grounds if there had been any way to do it. In the book the whole bloated three-chapter monstrosity is represented by chapter 5, which is 43 pages long. When I set out to write the thesis in the first place I basically wanted to tell a story, and the story is still there in the book; it’s a different (more readable!) journey across the same landscape. But writing it was a very different job from writing the thesis, with totally different challenges and successes. I’d keep the book in mind but concentrate on the thesis, when you’ve got even the vaguest idea what it’s going to be.
I’ll answer the second part on my blog – watch this space.
April 12th, 2010 | 9:12pm
by Phil
[…] Jim asks: I’d really love to know how to go about earning a crust (or even half a crust) out of […]
April 12th, 2010 | 10:42pm
by Career opportunities « The gaping silence
I’d also think about what you might do with the PhD once you’ve finished. If you want to become an academic, take a hard serious look at whether anyone might hire you with that kind of background, and where those places might be. See what your chances are of getting hired (probably quite poor), think about where you’ll be in 3-5 years (kids? Wife?), and whether you will be able to move, or in a position to move from temporary position to temp position. I’ve seen far too many people finish a PhD and end up essentially unemployable, or underemployed. No fun.
I have no idea about freelance journalism, except that I have several friends
who make a poor to okay living from it. It seems like hard work, much of it quite boring.
If you can do it, consider working your way up the tech ladder and looking at contracting. Upgrade your skills a bit. I know several people in London who spent the 90s and 2000s doing 3-6 months on, 3-6 months off and earned enough to have a pretty decent lifestyle for the entire year. Unix admins, DB admins and Perl programmers seem to have the most luck doing this.
April 13th, 2010 | 8:39pm
by Cian
Thanks for taking the time to comment Phil, and for the post over at your place. It certainly appears that the consensus of opinion is to keep the book and the thesis quite separate. As I said in my response to Larry, I want to cover the same ground in both, so at least they’ll share the bulk of the research. In fact I’ve been tinkering with this for the past couple of years (as it’s really an extension of my M.Phil) so my research is well underway already and I’m pretty certain of what it is I’m trying to say. Which isn’t to say there’s not plenty more to do, of course.
And thanks for your advice too, Cian. To be honest, and at the risk of sounding terribly self-aggrandising, the main reason I’m going down this road is because I think the work is genuinely important. Right now, the question of whether or not the PhD helps or hinders my employment prospects is somewhat secondary. I’m aware that I may not always have the luxury of thinking in those terms, and am equally aware that I run the risk of sounding like an idealistic teenager. All the same, I genuinely believe that the world needs more people writing authoritatively on this subject.
Sustainability is a vital issue for us all and although there’s certainly plenty of people working in the field there’s (a) always room for more, and (b) unsettlingly few addressing the issue from the perspective I’ve latched onto. Which is not to suggest that my approach is The Right approach, just that the more angles we view this issue from the better our collective understanding will be.
My work is more about what it offers the world rather than what it offers me. But at the same time, I obviously want to keep food on the table and a roof over my head while I’m doing it.
Thanks also to those who have contacted me by email to offer advice (Tim and Ali). Any input is greatly appreciated.
April 13th, 2010 | 9:51pm
by Jim Bliss
Sustainability is a vital issue for us all and although there’s certainly plenty of people working in the field there’s (a) always room for more, and (b) unsettlingly few addressing the issue from the perspective I’ve latched onto.
Well think of it this way. What does working in the field mean in practice? NGOs, advisory bodies, policy research, private psycho-thingy? Ideally, assuming you’d finished your PhD, what would you like to be doing? Where would you like to be working, for who, what kind of projects (forget realism/practicalities. A lot can change over three/four years, and you’d be surprised at the kinds of doors that can open if you do a PhD)? Would you be content dropping the subject after a PhD? If not, how would you build upon your thesis work? Practically, theoretically, through teaching, training?
And once you have a few ideas, think about how you could tie your research to that. Maybe you could combine it with internships, voluteering, or even paid work of some kind. Or do research in places/areas that interest you. If nothing else it might give you something to focus on as you struggle to finish your thesis… 🙂
April 14th, 2010 | 11:47am
by Cian
Lots of very good questions there, Cian. It’s definitely not something I’d feel content dropping after the PhD (well, unless I have a significant change of heart between now and then). My — still hazy — vision of where I’d go with it tends to include a lot of writing and some teaching. There’s the thesis and the mainstream version of the thesis to complete. I also want to try and get my ideas into novel form… there’s obviously a fine line to be run with that; communicating serious ideas without compromising the enjoyment of the reader; but it can be done.
On the teaching end of things, universities currently offer very little in the specific area that I want to cover (there’s some stuff that comes close, but so much of it feels like it’s missing the point to me). There’s some work being done in Germany, but almost nothing in the English language. I’d like to think that degrees from a decent university in either philosophy or ecology could benefit from offering an elective unit called something like “The psychodynamics of sustainability”.
As for working in policy research or on advisory bodies… that would certainly be exciting, and perhaps with hard work and diligence over the next few years such options might become available. Right now I fear I’m still a little bit outside the mainstream to get my voice heard in such circles. Though as the world changes, and I push harder, that could certainly change too.
April 14th, 2010 | 12:18pm
by Jim Bliss