...that there are other people coming to the end of their first year who haven't written anything yet!!!

what subject are you in, sixkitten?

the only thing i've written so far is a compulsory end-of-first-year report kind of thing (5000 words). kind of a literature review and outlook on future plans.

i'm sure there are good reasons why you haven't written anything. you must have read a lot or done some serious research work or something. you know, you can't do it all at once, don't let it freak you that others have done more in one area than you!

I've just written bits of things. Bit of an intro, bit of a lit review and half a chapter. None are PhD level, more like extended notes. But from speaking to second and third years that's completely normal, there's no point writing for the sake of it. If you're not sure of what you want to say you'll really struggle, and then when you need to write you'll just remember that you couldn't and get demoralised. Wait till Christmas then just spend two or threee months getting everything you've found so far down and then separate it and work out where else you need to do research for.

I wrote one chapter (a lit review) within my first 6 months ... because my supervisor told me to do so.

Looking back, I understand why they made me do that. It's about overcoming your 'fears' of putting pen to paper, and - more importantly - committing yourself to the PhD by getting something solid down on paper.

By the way, I'm doing a social science based PhD, so if you are I would suggest ... start writing (even if it's a load of rubbish) sooner rather than later! Your writing style will develop the most you write (I'm now looking back at chapters I wrote early on in my PhD and think there's an enormous difference between them and later chapters ... but if my supervisor thinks they are ok than I'm happy enough to use them).

By this time next week we'll all expect a draft of your thesis then

I had to do a first year report which was about 11,000 words long and was a lit review, results to date and future plans..

I guess that parts of it will be used in my thesis along the way :o)

well it might be depending upon your research taht you are so slow....and when you will have enough data then you will boost up your speed...thats what i think...so need not to worry ....just keep it up

I'm social sciences

Have loads of notes and argument outlines - just nothing actually written!

SixKitten I am in exactly the same situation as you, end of 1st year social science PhD & have folders upon folders of notes...but nothing actually written up. I think BB is right, and however poor it might be at first, I'm going to start writing up now.

Hi SK -

I'm social sciences, near the end. You must write something! You won't advance at the required rate unless you start to detail your arguments in a scholarly way, and the sooner the better as whatever you write at first will invariably be cack (no offense). Don't confuse the urgency to get writing with the idiotic pressure to publish 'something' (i.e. any old carp), but you won't know what 'level' you're really at until you attack it!

I wrote 50,000 words in my first year, theoretical arguments and justifications - twas a lot of tosh (and I binned it) but I could see why and I very soon after hit 'PhD level' writing quite easily.

My advice is get writing, tis time for your originality to shine, and stay positive when some high-level scholarly criticism (i.e from your supervisor(s)) comes your way! What fun! Good luck

Thanks Matt! You're absolutely right - needed someone to tell me to just get on with it!

Wowzers, I'm not right often so get in !!

Good luck with it imo.

Think I'm going to print off your reply and stick in on my research desk to remind me to get some work done LOL

'I wrote 50,000 words in my first year, theoretical arguments and justifications' Hello Matt, can you expand on that? I dribble thoughts into Word but I find it so confusing going between my literature database full of quotes that my writing is very stilted. How did you fluidly write that much even if you didn't rate it?

I've written a journal article and been trying to write up my literature but I still feel in a jumble at the end of my first year. Mostly due to this theoretical approach thing. See separate post. So I sympethise with you SK.

However much I like my research, I'm beginning to think I'm not academically precise enough to do a PhD

I don't think it's that unusual to have written very little by end of 1st year from my own experience and those around me - one guy in my office has literally written nothing at all and is barely past the initial proposal stage, doesn't even seem to know what his project is when I ask him, but he doesn't seem too worried, everyone goes at a different pace. I've written about 15,000 now (almost finished 1st year) Dunno how much of it I will keep but my supervisor seemed happy enough that it's a decent enough start even if it doesn't form much of the actual thesis.

I'm glad I started writing at easter, a lot was total crap and unfocused but that's part of the process, you have to sift through lots of crap to get the good bits that are worth keeping.
I'm finding the process of drafting and re-drafting really useful, so I'd echo the thoughts of previous posters and say - start writing ASAP - anything at all, even a crappy introduction, it's just getting over that inital fear of putting pen to paper. I think in my case I was afraid that once something was down on paper it was no longer mine and was open to criticism - no-one can criticise the ideas floating about your head, but once you commit them to paper they are open to criticism.
But I definitely felt better once I got over this, and much of the feedback has been constructive with tips on writing style, focus etc.

Good luck with the writing!