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Best Dissertation Writing Books

By Med Kharbach, PhD | Published: June 18, 2023 | Updated: June 6, 2024

Dissertation writing books are the topic of our blog post today!

Embarking on a dissertation is a pivotal moment in any scholar’s academic journey, marking the culmination of years of study and research. It’s a daunting task, often filled with challenges that test even the most diligent of students. Recognizing the complexity and significance of this endeavor, I’ve compiled a list of essential books to aid you in your dissertation journey.

These dissertation writing books, carefully selected based on their practicality and insightful guidance, are invaluable resources for any PhD candidate. Whether you’re struggling with formulating your research question, navigating the intricacies of your methodology, or simply seeking to refine your writing skills, these books offer a wealth of knowledge and tips from seasoned academics.

In this post, we will delve into each of these books, exploring how they can ease the burden of dissertation writing and guide you towards successful completion of your academic milestone.

Related: Best Grant Writing Books

Dissertation Writing Books

Here are our top picks for dissertation writing books:

1. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations , by Kate L. Turabian et al.

Turabian’s guide is a thorough exploration of the research and writing process, tackling each step with precision. The book expertly navigates Chicago’s two source citation styles and covers various facets of editorial style, including quotations and visual material.

Additionally, the manual offers practical solutions to overcoming the common fear of embarking on significant writing projects. An essential resource for anyone engaged in academic writing.

2. How to Write a Thesis , by Umberto Eco 

Eco presents an invigorating approach to crafting a thesis. Divided into six integral sections, the book covers all facets of the thesis-writing process. It delves into defining and understanding the purpose of a thesis, selecting a compelling topic, conducting detailed research, crafting a work plan, the actual process of writing, and finally, refining the final draft. Eco’s lucid style and practical advice make this book a valuable guide for any student.

3. Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day , by Joan Bolker

Joan Bolker’s insightful book offers a much-needed support system for dissertation writers. A co-founder of the Harvard Writing Center, Bolker presents valuable tips and encouragement for graduate students to keep them focused and productive. She emphasizes the joy of devoting oneself to a truly engaging project and teaches strategies to overcome fear and improve writing style.

Related: Books on How to Write a Literature Review

4. How to Finish Your Dissertation in Six Months , by Scott Rank

Rank’s guide provides practical strategies to write a dissertation within a relatively short timeframe. The book shares an effective daily habit, tips on making consistent writing inevitable, managing incomplete research, leveraging advisor meetings, and seeking active help from friends. A game-changer for those struggling with time constraints in their doctoral journey.

5. The Dissertation Warrior , by Guy E. White 

White’s book aims to inspire and guide doctoral students on their transformative journey. He addresses various aspects of dissertation writing and personal growth, focusing on efficient time management, aligning research and writing efforts, drafting an impactful introduction, and constructing a comprehensive literature review. A valuable guide that connects academic perseverance with personal development.

6. Authoring a PhD Thesis , by Patrick Dunleavy 

Dunleavy’s comprehensive guidebook offers practical advice on formulating creative ideas, structuring them logically, drafting and revising text, and successfully completing a dissertation. It covers important aspects of the doctoral journey, such as facing examinations and getting work published. An essential resource for PhD candidates looking to effectively manage their work and intellectual challenges.

7. Getting the Best of Your Dissertation , by Dave Harris

Harris draws from multiple disciplines to provide a series of perspectives aimed at making your dissertation process more efficient and satisfying. The book delves into integrating dissertation work into your life, developing a productive writing practice, managing relationships with professors, designing research, and more. A comprehensive guide for achieving greater value from your doctoral journey.

8. Writing the Winning Thesis or Dissertation , by Randy L. Joyner, William A. Rouse, Allan A. Glatthorn 

This book is a well-rounded resource for scholars seeking guidance in every phase of their research journey. The book provides insights on utilizing new technologies, effective planning, engaging writing style, defense preparation, and more. The updated fourth edition includes current case studies, which demonstrate the effectiveness of the teachings contained within.

9. How to Write a Lot: A Practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing , by Paul J. Silvia

Silvia provides strategies to dismantle common excuses and bad habits that hinder writing. His approach encompasses various academic disciplines and offers practical steps to motivate academics to be more prolific writers. The book discusses how to write, submit, and revise academic work, promoting a balanced work-life while achieving writing goals. The second edition includes an additional chapter on writing grant and fellowship proposals.

10. Writing for Social Scientists , by Howard S. Becker 

Becker’s guide is a refreshing take on academic writing, emphasizing the importance of simply starting to write and then revise. It uncovers the eccentricities of academic writing, such as unnecessary wordiness and the passive voice, and provides practical solutions to overcome them. This is a must-read for writers aiming to improve their style and efficiency in academic writing.

11. The Elements of an Effective Dissertation and Thesis , by Raymond L. Calabrese

Calabrese offers a systematic guide to writing an impressive doctoral dissertation or a master’s thesis. The book breaks down the elements of the dissertation, providing detailed descriptions, definitions, and examples. The approach accommodates both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, helping students understand what content to include and where it fits best.

12. Dissertation Without Tears , by Natalya Androsova

In this empowering guide, Androsova tackles the pressure and guilt associated with dissertation writing. The book offers tips to find joy and fulfillment in the writing process, stressing the importance of self-compassion. It debunks 58 myths about dissertation writing and replaces them with a healthy mindset that facilitates a smooth journey to the finish line.

13. Demystifying Dissertation Writing , by Peg Boyle Single 

Single’s guide offers a straightforward and systematic process to dissertation writing. The book aims to enhance writing fluency and productivity, offering guidance on topic selection, planning, scheduling, and actual writing. It is especially beneficial for those who feel they aren’t receiving enough guidance and for those seeking to increase their writing productivity.

14. How to tame your PhD , by Inger Mewburn 

Dr. Mewburn, founder of The Thesis Whisperer blog, shares practical strategies for efficient research and writing based on her own doctoral journey. The book consists of re-edited and expanded blog posts offering a wealth of advice on completing a PhD effectively. It is a companion guide that demystifies the PhD process and guides readers towards successful completion.

15. The Dissertation Journey , by Carol Roberts, Laura Hyatt

This guide is a comprehensive resource for developing and writing a quality dissertation. It provides updated coverage of conducting a literature review, harnessing technology for research, and using progress tracking tools. The guide is filled with sample forms, resource lists, and other user-friendly elements, making the dissertation journey smoother and more manageable.

Final thoughts

In conclusion, the PhD journey is an arduous yet transformative path that demands not only intellectual rigor but also emotional resilience. The experience, as I have personally navigated through its trials, offers profound personal growth and a deeper understanding of one’s field of study.

Facing the adversity of my mother’s illness amidst my PhD was a defining challenge, but it underscored the importance of a strong support system and the resilience needed to persevere. The selection of books I have shared in this post, each offering unique insights and practical advice on dissertation writing, represents a valuable resource for anyone embarking on or currently navigating this demanding academic endeavor.

These dissertation writing books, covering a wide range of topics from research methodology to time management and writing skills, can serve as essential tools to guide, inspire, and support PhD candidates through their journey, making the daunting task of dissertation writing more manageable and ultimately leading to successful completion and personal fulfillment.

Related Posts

Meet Med Kharbach, PhD

Dr. Med Kharbach is an influential voice in the global educational landscape, with an extensive background in educational studies and a decade-long experience as a K-12 teacher. Holding a Ph.D. from Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, Canada, he brings a unique perspective to the educational world by integrating his profound academic knowledge with his hands-on teaching experience. Dr. Kharbach's academic pursuits encompass curriculum studies, discourse analysis, language learning/teaching, language and identity, emerging literacies, educational technology, and research methodologies. His work has been presented at numerous national and international conferences and published in various esteemed academic journals.

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How To Write A Dissertation Or Thesis

8 straightforward steps to craft an a-grade dissertation.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) Expert Reviewed By: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | June 2020

Writing a dissertation or thesis is not a simple task. It takes time, energy and a lot of will power to get you across the finish line. It’s not easy – but it doesn’t necessarily need to be a painful process. If you understand the big-picture process of how to write a dissertation or thesis, your research journey will be a lot smoother.  

In this post, I’m going to outline the big-picture process of how to write a high-quality dissertation or thesis, without losing your mind along the way. If you’re just starting your research, this post is perfect for you. Alternatively, if you’ve already submitted your proposal, this article which covers how to structure a dissertation might be more helpful.

How To Write A Dissertation: 8 Steps

• Clearly understand what a dissertation (or thesis) is
• Find a unique and valuable research topic
• Craft a convincing research proposal
• Write up a strong introduction chapter
• Review the existing literature and compile a literature review
• Design a rigorous research strategy and undertake your own research
• Present the findings of your research
• Draw a conclusion and discuss the implications

Step 1: Understand exactly what a dissertation is

This probably sounds like a no-brainer, but all too often, students come to us for help with their research and the underlying issue is that they don’t fully understand what a dissertation (or thesis) actually is.

So, what is a dissertation?

At its simplest, a dissertation or thesis is a formal piece of research , reflecting the standard research process . But what is the standard research process, you ask? The research process involves 4 key steps:

• Ask a very specific, well-articulated question (s) (your research topic)
• See what other researchers have said about it (if they’ve already answered it)
• If they haven’t answered it adequately, undertake your own data collection and analysis in a scientifically rigorous fashion
• Answer your original question(s), based on your analysis findings

In short, the research process is simply about asking and answering questions in a systematic fashion . This probably sounds pretty obvious, but people often think they’ve done “research”, when in fact what they have done is:

• Started with a vague, poorly articulated question
• Not taken the time to see what research has already been done regarding the question
• Collected data and opinions that support their gut and undertaken a flimsy analysis
• Drawn a shaky conclusion, based on that analysis

If you want to see the perfect example of this in action, look out for the next Facebook post where someone claims they’ve done “research”… All too often, people consider reading a few blog posts to constitute research. Its no surprise then that what they end up with is an opinion piece, not research. Okay, okay – I’ll climb off my soapbox now.

The key takeaway here is that a dissertation (or thesis) is a formal piece of research, reflecting the research process. It’s not an opinion piece , nor a place to push your agenda or try to convince someone of your position. Writing a good dissertation involves asking a question and taking a systematic, rigorous approach to answering it.

If you understand this and are comfortable leaving your opinions or preconceived ideas at the door, you’re already off to a good start!

Step 2: Find a unique, valuable research topic

As we saw, the first step of the research process is to ask a specific, well-articulated question. In other words, you need to find a research topic that asks a specific question or set of questions (these are called research questions ). Sounds easy enough, right? All you’ve got to do is identify a question or two and you’ve got a winning research topic. Well, not quite…

A good dissertation or thesis topic has a few important attributes. Specifically, a solid research topic should be:

Let’s take a closer look at these:

Attribute #1: Clear

Your research topic needs to be crystal clear about what you’re planning to research, what you want to know, and within what context. There shouldn’t be any ambiguity or vagueness about what you’ll research.

Here’s an example of a clearly articulated research topic:

An analysis of consumer-based factors influencing organisational trust in British low-cost online equity brokerage firms.

As you can see in the example, its crystal clear what will be analysed (factors impacting organisational trust), amongst who (consumers) and in what context (British low-cost equity brokerage firms, based online).

Need a helping hand?

Attribute #2:   Unique

Your research should be asking a question(s) that hasn’t been asked before, or that hasn’t been asked in a specific context (for example, in a specific country or industry).

For example, sticking organisational trust topic above, it’s quite likely that organisational trust factors in the UK have been investigated before, but the context (online low-cost equity brokerages) could make this research unique. Therefore, the context makes this research original.

One caveat when using context as the basis for originality – you need to have a good reason to suspect that your findings in this context might be different from the existing research – otherwise, there’s no reason to warrant researching it.

Attribute #3: Important

Simply asking a unique or original question is not enough – the question needs to create value. In other words, successfully answering your research questions should provide some value to the field of research or the industry. You can’t research something just to satisfy your curiosity. It needs to make some form of contribution either to research or industry.

For example, researching the factors influencing consumer trust would create value by enabling businesses to tailor their operations and marketing to leverage factors that promote trust. In other words, it would have a clear benefit to industry.

So, how do you go about finding a unique and valuable research topic? We explain that in detail in this video post – How To Find A Research Topic . Yeah, we’ve got you covered 😊

Step 3: Write a convincing research proposal

Once you’ve pinned down a high-quality research topic, the next step is to convince your university to let you research it. No matter how awesome you think your topic is, it still needs to get the rubber stamp before you can move forward with your research. The research proposal is the tool you’ll use for this job.

So, what’s in a research proposal?

The main “job” of a research proposal is to convince your university, advisor or committee that your research topic is worthy of approval. But convince them of what? Well, this varies from university to university, but generally, they want to see that:

• You have a clearly articulated, unique and important topic (this might sound familiar…)
• You’ve done some initial reading of the existing literature relevant to your topic (i.e. a literature review)
• You have a provisional plan in terms of how you will collect data and analyse it (i.e. a methodology)

At the proposal stage, it’s (generally) not expected that you’ve extensively reviewed the existing literature , but you will need to show that you’ve done enough reading to identify a clear gap for original (unique) research. Similarly, they generally don’t expect that you have a rock-solid research methodology mapped out, but you should have an idea of whether you’ll be undertaking qualitative or quantitative analysis , and how you’ll collect your data (we’ll discuss this in more detail later).

Long story short – don’t stress about having every detail of your research meticulously thought out at the proposal stage – this will develop as you progress through your research. However, you do need to show that you’ve “done your homework” and that your research is worthy of approval .

So, how do you go about crafting a high-quality, convincing proposal? We cover that in detail in this video post – How To Write A Top-Class Research Proposal . We’ve also got a video walkthrough of two proposal examples here .

Step 4: Craft a strong introduction chapter

Once your proposal’s been approved, its time to get writing your actual dissertation or thesis! The good news is that if you put the time into crafting a high-quality proposal, you’ve already got a head start on your first three chapters – introduction, literature review and methodology – as you can use your proposal as the basis for these.

Handy sidenote – our free dissertation & thesis template is a great way to speed up your dissertation writing journey.

What’s the introduction chapter all about?

The purpose of the introduction chapter is to set the scene for your research (dare I say, to introduce it…) so that the reader understands what you’ll be researching and why it’s important. In other words, it covers the same ground as the research proposal in that it justifies your research topic.

What goes into the introduction chapter?

This can vary slightly between universities and degrees, but generally, the introduction chapter will include the following:

• A brief background to the study, explaining the overall area of research
• A problem statement , explaining what the problem is with the current state of research (in other words, where the knowledge gap exists)
• Your research questions – in other words, the specific questions your study will seek to answer (based on the knowledge gap)
• The significance of your study – in other words, why it’s important and how its findings will be useful in the world

As you can see, this all about explaining the “what” and the “why” of your research (as opposed to the “how”). So, your introduction chapter is basically the salesman of your study, “selling” your research to the first-time reader and (hopefully) getting them interested to read more.

How do I write the introduction chapter, you ask? We cover that in detail in this post .

Step 5: Undertake an in-depth literature review

As I mentioned earlier, you’ll need to do some initial review of the literature in Steps 2 and 3 to find your research gap and craft a convincing research proposal – but that’s just scratching the surface. Once you reach the literature review stage of your dissertation or thesis, you need to dig a lot deeper into the existing research and write up a comprehensive literature review chapter.

What’s the literature review all about?

There are two main stages in the literature review process:

Literature Review Step 1: Reading up

The first stage is for you to deep dive into the existing literature (journal articles, textbook chapters, industry reports, etc) to gain an in-depth understanding of the current state of research regarding your topic. While you don’t need to read every single article, you do need to ensure that you cover all literature that is related to your core research questions, and create a comprehensive catalogue of that literature , which you’ll use in the next step.

Reading and digesting all the relevant literature is a time consuming and intellectually demanding process. Many students underestimate just how much work goes into this step, so make sure that you allocate a good amount of time for this when planning out your research. Thankfully, there are ways to fast track the process – be sure to check out this article covering how to read journal articles quickly .

Literature Review Step 2: Writing up

Once you’ve worked through the literature and digested it all, you’ll need to write up your literature review chapter. Many students make the mistake of thinking that the literature review chapter is simply a summary of what other researchers have said. While this is partly true, a literature review is much more than just a summary. To pull off a good literature review chapter, you’ll need to achieve at least 3 things:

• You need to synthesise the existing research , not just summarise it. In other words, you need to show how different pieces of theory fit together, what’s agreed on by researchers, what’s not.
• You need to highlight a research gap that your research is going to fill. In other words, you’ve got to outline the problem so that your research topic can provide a solution.
• You need to use the existing research to inform your methodology and approach to your own research design. For example, you might use questions or Likert scales from previous studies in your your own survey design .

As you can see, a good literature review is more than just a summary of the published research. It’s the foundation on which your own research is built, so it deserves a lot of love and attention. Take the time to craft a comprehensive literature review with a suitable structure .

But, how do I actually write the literature review chapter, you ask? We cover that in detail in this video post .

Step 6: Carry out your own research

Once you’ve completed your literature review and have a sound understanding of the existing research, its time to develop your own research (finally!). You’ll design this research specifically so that you can find the answers to your unique research question.

There are two steps here – designing your research strategy and executing on it:

1 – Design your research strategy

The first step is to design your research strategy and craft a methodology chapter . I won’t get into the technicalities of the methodology chapter here, but in simple terms, this chapter is about explaining the “how” of your research. If you recall, the introduction and literature review chapters discussed the “what” and the “why”, so it makes sense that the next point to cover is the “how” –that’s what the methodology chapter is all about.

In this section, you’ll need to make firm decisions about your research design. This includes things like:

• Your research philosophy (e.g. positivism or interpretivism )
• Your overall methodology (e.g. qualitative , quantitative or mixed methods)
• Your data collection strategy (e.g. interviews , focus groups, surveys)
• Your data analysis strategy (e.g. content analysis , correlation analysis, regression)

If these words have got your head spinning, don’t worry! We’ll explain these in plain language in other posts. It’s not essential that you understand the intricacies of research design (yet!). The key takeaway here is that you’ll need to make decisions about how you’ll design your own research, and you’ll need to describe (and justify) your decisions in your methodology chapter.

2 – Execute: Collect and analyse your data

Once you’ve worked out your research design, you’ll put it into action and start collecting your data. This might mean undertaking interviews, hosting an online survey or any other data collection method. Data collection can take quite a bit of time (especially if you host in-person interviews), so be sure to factor sufficient time into your project plan for this. Oftentimes, things don’t go 100% to plan (for example, you don’t get as many survey responses as you hoped for), so bake a little extra time into your budget here.

Once you’ve collected your data, you’ll need to do some data preparation before you can sink your teeth into the analysis. For example:

• If you carry out interviews or focus groups, you’ll need to transcribe your audio data to text (i.e. a Word document).
• If you collect quantitative survey data, you’ll need to clean up your data and get it into the right format for whichever analysis software you use (for example, SPSS, R or STATA).

Once you’ve completed your data prep, you’ll undertake your analysis, using the techniques that you described in your methodology. Depending on what you find in your analysis, you might also do some additional forms of analysis that you hadn’t planned for. For example, you might see something in the data that raises new questions or that requires clarification with further analysis.

The type(s) of analysis that you’ll use depend entirely on the nature of your research and your research questions. For example:

• If your research if exploratory in nature, you’ll often use qualitative analysis techniques .
• If your research is confirmatory in nature, you’ll often use quantitative analysis techniques
• If your research involves a mix of both, you might use a mixed methods approach

Again, if these words have got your head spinning, don’t worry! We’ll explain these concepts and techniques in other posts. The key takeaway is simply that there’s no “one size fits all” for research design and methodology – it all depends on your topic, your research questions and your data. So, don’t be surprised if your study colleagues take a completely different approach to yours.

Step 7: Present your findings

Once you’ve completed your analysis, it’s time to present your findings (finally!). In a dissertation or thesis, you’ll typically present your findings in two chapters – the results chapter and the discussion chapter .

What’s the difference between the results chapter and the discussion chapter?

While these two chapters are similar, the results chapter generally just presents the processed data neatly and clearly without interpretation, while the discussion chapter explains the story the data are telling  – in other words, it provides your interpretation of the results.

For example, if you were researching the factors that influence consumer trust, you might have used a quantitative approach to identify the relationship between potential factors (e.g. perceived integrity and competence of the organisation) and consumer trust. In this case:

• Your results chapter would just present the results of the statistical tests. For example, correlation results or differences between groups. In other words, the processed numbers.
• Your discussion chapter would explain what the numbers mean in relation to your research question(s). For example, Factor 1 has a weak relationship with consumer trust, while Factor 2 has a strong relationship.

Depending on the university and degree, these two chapters (results and discussion) are sometimes merged into one , so be sure to check with your institution what their preference is. Regardless of the chapter structure, this section is about presenting the findings of your research in a clear, easy to understand fashion.

Importantly, your discussion here needs to link back to your research questions (which you outlined in the introduction or literature review chapter). In other words, it needs to answer the key questions you asked (or at least attempt to answer them).

For example, if we look at the sample research topic:

In this case, the discussion section would clearly outline which factors seem to have a noteworthy influence on organisational trust. By doing so, they are answering the overarching question and fulfilling the purpose of the research .

For more information about the results chapter , check out this post for qualitative studies and this post for quantitative studies .

Step 8: The Final Step Draw a conclusion and discuss the implications

Last but not least, you’ll need to wrap up your research with the conclusion chapter . In this chapter, you’ll bring your research full circle by highlighting the key findings of your study and explaining what the implications of these findings are.

What exactly are key findings? The key findings are those findings which directly relate to your original research questions and overall research objectives (which you discussed in your introduction chapter). The implications, on the other hand, explain what your findings mean for industry, or for research in your area.

Sticking with the consumer trust topic example, the conclusion might look something like this:

Key findings

This study set out to identify which factors influence consumer-based trust in British low-cost online equity brokerage firms. The results suggest that the following factors have a large impact on consumer trust:

While the following factors have a very limited impact on consumer trust:

Notably, within the 25-30 age groups, Factors E had a noticeably larger impact, which may be explained by…

Implications

The findings having noteworthy implications for British low-cost online equity brokers. Specifically:

The large impact of Factors X and Y implies that brokers need to consider….

The limited impact of Factor E implies that brokers need to…

As you can see, the conclusion chapter is basically explaining the “what” (what your study found) and the “so what?” (what the findings mean for the industry or research). This brings the study full circle and closes off the document.

Let’s recap – how to write a dissertation or thesis

You’re still with me? Impressive! I know that this post was a long one, but hopefully you’ve learnt a thing or two about how to write a dissertation or thesis, and are now better equipped to start your own research.

To recap, the 8 steps to writing a quality dissertation (or thesis) are as follows:

• Understand what a dissertation (or thesis) is – a research project that follows the research process.
• Find a unique (original) and important research topic
• Craft a convincing dissertation or thesis research proposal
• Write a clear, compelling introduction chapter
• Undertake a thorough review of the existing research and write up a literature review
• Undertake your own research
• Present and interpret your findings

Once you’ve wrapped up the core chapters, all that’s typically left is the abstract , reference list and appendices. As always, be sure to check with your university if they have any additional requirements in terms of structure or content.  

Psst... there’s more!

This post was based on one of our popular Research Bootcamps . If you're working on a research project, you'll definitely want to check this out ...

20 Comments

thankfull >>>this is very useful

Thank you, it was really helpful

unquestionably, this amazing simplified way of teaching. Really , I couldn’t find in the literature words that fully explicit my great thanks to you. However, I could only say thanks a-lot.

Great to hear that – thanks for the feedback. Good luck writing your dissertation/thesis.

This is the most comprehensive explanation of how to write a dissertation. Many thanks for sharing it free of charge.

Very rich presentation. Thank you

Thanks Derek Jansen|GRADCOACH, I find it very useful guide to arrange my activities and proceed to research!

Thank you so much for such a marvelous teaching .I am so convinced that am going to write a comprehensive and a distinct masters dissertation

It is an amazing comprehensive explanation

This was straightforward. Thank you!

I can say that your explanations are simple and enlightening – understanding what you have done here is easy for me. Could you write more about the different types of research methods specific to the three methodologies: quan, qual and MM. I look forward to interacting with this website more in the future.

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions 🙂

Hello, your write ups is quite educative. However, l have challenges in going about my research questions which is below; *Building the enablers of organisational growth through effective governance and purposeful leadership.*

Very educating.

Just listening to the name of the dissertation makes the student nervous. As writing a top-quality dissertation is a difficult task as it is a lengthy topic, requires a lot of research and understanding and is usually around 10,000 to 15000 words. Sometimes due to studies, unbalanced workload or lack of research and writing skill students look for dissertation submission from professional writers.

Thank you 💕😊 very much. I was confused but your comprehensive explanation has cleared my doubts of ever presenting a good thesis. Thank you.

thank you so much, that was so useful

Hi. Where is the excel spread sheet ark?

could you please help me look at your thesis paper to enable me to do the portion that has to do with the specification

my topic is “the impact of domestic revenue mobilization.

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Writing Your Dissertation: The bestselling guide to planning, preparing and presenting first-class work Paperback – 1 April 2000

• Print length 132 pages
• Language English
• Publisher How To Books
• Publication date 1 April 2000
• Dimensions 13.59 x 0.84 x 21.51 cm
• ISBN-10 185703662X
• ISBN-13 978-1857036626
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Book description, from the publisher, about the author, product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ How To Books; 3rd edition (1 April 2000)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 132 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 185703662X
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1857036626
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 13.59 x 0.84 x 21.51 cm
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Customers find the book very well written, easy to comprehend, and a great resource to support planning and executing a coherent plan. They also describe the content as extremely helpful with an easy step-by-step guide.

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Customers find the book extremely helpful, perfect for dissertations, and well written. They also say the examples are excellent and promising.

"...to have to support planning and executing a coherent and well structured essay ." Read more

"...degree and knowledge of academic writing, I found this book incredibly useful ...." Read more

"...Has been a really great help in providing advice for general planning & organisation, as well as pointing in the right direction for methods/..." Read more

"...On my last lap to complete my law dissertation. Gives good pointers ...." Read more

Customers find the book easy to comprehend, methodical, and clear. They say it's a step-by-step guide to planning, researching, and writing a well-balanced dissertation. Readers also mention it'll help them organize and prepare for their dissertation.

"...sections, easy to follow and understand, and is a great resource to have to support planning and executing a coherent and well structured essay." Read more

"...It is methodical, used everyday language and explains clearly what to do and why.Definitely recommend." Read more

"...However, still has a great section on presentation & also data analysis section...." Read more

"... Easy to follow and read and a bible in terms of the subject." Read more

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Resources for Dissertation Writing

• Getting Started
• Proposals and Prospectuses
• Literature Reviews
• Humanities and the Arts Resources
• Social/Behavioural Sciences Resources
• Sciences Resources
• Business Resources
• Formatting and Submitting Your Dissertation
• Tips: Making Progress, Staying Well, and More!

UBC Library Research Commons

About This Section of the Guide

In this section, UBC Research Commons staff have compiled a number of books available through UBC Library that might help you in your dissertation writing. In addition to the general books on this page, there are also pages with books related to writing in the Humanities and the Arts , the Social and Behavioural Sciences , the Sciences , and Business . For disciplines that fall under more than one of these broad areas, such as education or social work, we've included the books in all the broad disciplines that seem to be most appropriate.

If there's a book you've used that doesn't appear on any of these pages, please e-mail us and let us know!

General Dissertation Writing Books and E-Books

Older Books and E-Books

These books may be somewhat dated now, but can still provide useful tips for writing theses and dissertations.

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• Starting the research process

How to Choose a Dissertation Topic | 8 Steps to Follow

Published on November 11, 2022 by Shona McCombes and Tegan George. Revised on November 20, 2023.

Choosing your dissertation topic is the first step in making sure your research goes as smoothly as possible. When choosing a topic, it’s important to consider:

• Your institution and department’s requirements
• Your areas of knowledge and interest
• The scientific, social, or practical relevance
• The availability of data and resources
• The timeframe of your dissertation
• The relevance of your topic

You can follow these steps to begin narrowing down your ideas.

Table of contents

Step 1: check the requirements, step 2: choose a broad field of research, step 3: look for books and articles, step 4: find a niche, step 5: consider the type of research, step 6: determine the relevance, step 7: make sure it’s plausible, step 8: get your topic approved, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about dissertation topics.

The very first step is to check your program’s requirements. This determines the scope of what it is possible for you to research.

• Is there a minimum and maximum word count?
• When is the deadline?
• Should the research have an academic or a professional orientation?
• Are there any methodological conditions? Do you have to conduct fieldwork, or use specific types of sources?

Some programs have stricter requirements than others. You might be given nothing more than a word count and a deadline, or you might have a restricted list of topics and approaches to choose from. If in doubt about what is expected of you, always ask your supervisor or department coordinator.

Start by thinking about your areas of interest within the subject you’re studying. Examples of broad ideas include:

• Twentieth-century literature
• Economic history
• Health policy

To get a more specific sense of the current state of research on your potential topic, skim through a few recent issues of the top journals in your field. Be sure to check out their most-cited articles in particular. For inspiration, you can also search Google Scholar , subject-specific databases , and your university library’s resources.

As you read, note down any specific ideas that interest you and make a shortlist of possible topics. If you’ve written other papers, such as a 3rd-year paper or a conference paper, consider how those topics can be broadened into a dissertation.

After doing some initial reading, it’s time to start narrowing down options for your potential topic. This can be a gradual process, and should get more and more specific as you go. For example, from the ideas above, you might narrow it down like this:

• Twentieth-century literature   Twentieth-century Irish literature   Post-war Irish poetry
• Economic history   European economic history   German labor union history
• Health policy   Reproductive health policy   Reproductive rights in South America

All of these topics are still broad enough that you’ll find a huge amount of books and articles about them. Try to find a specific niche where you can make your mark, such as: something not many people have researched yet, a question that’s still being debated, or a very current practical issue.

At this stage, make sure you have a few backup ideas — there’s still time to change your focus. If your topic doesn’t make it through the next few steps, you can try a different one. Later, you will narrow your focus down even more in your problem statement and research questions .

There are many different types of research , so at this stage, it’s a good idea to start thinking about what kind of approach you’ll take to your topic. Will you mainly focus on:

• Collecting original data (e.g., experimental or field research)?
• Analyzing existing data (e.g., national statistics, public records, or archives)?
• Interpreting cultural objects (e.g., novels, films, or paintings)?
• Comparing scholarly approaches (e.g., theories, methods, or interpretations)?

Many dissertations will combine more than one of these. Sometimes the type of research is obvious: if your topic is post-war Irish poetry, you will probably mainly be interpreting poems. But in other cases, there are several possible approaches. If your topic is reproductive rights in South America, you could analyze public policy documents and media coverage, or you could gather original data through interviews and surveys .

You don’t have to finalize your research design and methods yet, but the type of research will influence which aspects of the topic it’s possible to address, so it’s wise to consider this as you narrow down your ideas.

It’s important that your topic is interesting to you, but you’ll also have to make sure it’s academically, socially or practically relevant to your field.

• Academic relevance means that the research can fill a gap in knowledge or contribute to a scholarly debate in your field.
• Social relevance means that the research can advance our understanding of society and inform social change.
• Practical relevance means that the research can be applied to solve concrete problems or improve real-life processes.

The easiest way to make sure your research is relevant is to choose a topic that is clearly connected to current issues or debates, either in society at large or in your academic discipline. The relevance must be clearly stated when you define your research problem .

Before you make a final decision on your topic, consider again the length of your dissertation, the timeframe in which you have to complete it, and the practicalities of conducting the research.

Will you have enough time to read all the most important academic literature on this topic? If there’s too much information to tackle, consider narrowing your focus even more.

Will you be able to find enough sources or gather enough data to fulfil the requirements of the dissertation? If you think you might struggle to find information, consider broadening or shifting your focus.

Do you have to go to a specific location to gather data on the topic? Make sure that you have enough funding and practical access.

Last but not least, will the topic hold your interest for the length of the research process? To stay motivated, it’s important to choose something you’re enthusiastic about!

Most programmes will require you to submit a brief description of your topic, called a research prospectus or proposal .

Remember, if you discover that your topic is not as strong as you thought it was, it’s usually acceptable to change your mind and switch focus early in the dissertation process. Just make sure you have enough time to start on a new topic, and always check with your supervisor or department.

If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Methodology

• Sampling methods
• Simple random sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Likert scales
• Reproducibility

 Statistics

• Null hypothesis
• Statistical power
• Probability distribution
• Effect size
• Poisson distribution

Research bias

• Optimism bias
• Cognitive bias
• Implicit bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Anchoring bias
• Explicit bias

Formulating a main research question can be a difficult task. Overall, your question should contribute to solving the problem that you have defined in your problem statement .

However, it should also fulfill criteria in three main areas:

• Researchability
• Feasibility and specificity
• Relevance and originality

All research questions should be:

• Focused on a single problem or issue
• Researchable using primary and/or secondary sources
• Feasible to answer within the timeframe and practical constraints
• Specific enough to answer thoroughly
• Complex enough to develop the answer over the space of a paper or thesis
• Relevant to your field of study and/or society more broadly

You can assess information and arguments critically by asking certain questions about the source. You can use the CRAAP test , focusing on the currency , relevance , authority , accuracy , and purpose of a source of information.

Ask questions such as:

• Who is the author? Are they an expert?
• Why did the author publish it? What is their motivation?
• How do they make their argument? Is it backed up by evidence?

A dissertation prospectus or proposal describes what or who you plan to research for your dissertation. It delves into why, when, where, and how you will do your research, as well as helps you choose a type of research to pursue. You should also determine whether you plan to pursue qualitative or quantitative methods and what your research design will look like.

It should outline all of the decisions you have taken about your project, from your dissertation topic to your hypotheses and research objectives , ready to be approved by your supervisor or committee.

Note that some departments require a defense component, where you present your prospectus to your committee orally.

The best way to remember the difference between a research plan and a research proposal is that they have fundamentally different audiences. A research plan helps you, the researcher, organize your thoughts. On the other hand, a dissertation proposal or research proposal aims to convince others (e.g., a supervisor, a funding body, or a dissertation committee) that your research topic is relevant and worthy of being conducted.

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10 Books on How to Write a Dissertation

In this article you have a list with the best dissertation books that might help you write a research paper that will impress your audience.

Academic writing has always been a struggle for students. However, with the emergence of academic writing websites, things are easy. Of all types of academic writing, a dissertation seems to be a massive struggle for all. Studies show that almost 50% of Ph.D. students fail to finish their thesis or dissertation.

So, how to overcome the odds and craft a perfect dissertation? Well, no magic trick can help you reach the finish line. While you can rely on a dissertation help service provider, it is crucial to learn the correct ways to write a dissertation to craft a perfect one. Major papers presented as the final project for a master's degree are normally called thesis ; and major papers presenting the student's research towards a doctoral degree are called theses or dissertations . While some students are well-versed in writing methods, others struggle to make ends meet. Therefore, it is wise to find the right resources to learn how to write a dissertation . Keeping that in mind, the following are some of the best dissertation books that can help you write a perfect paper.

10 Thesis Books To Help With Your Dissertation

1. a manual for writers of research papers, theses, and dissertations, by kate l. turabian.

The book will guide you through the various aspects of dissertation writing and help you understand the best ways to handle each step properly. You will get a complete guide to Chicago's two source citation styles and various aspects of editorial style. Further, you will get practical solutions to problems without fear of overcoming such significant writing projects. Students can get the best assistance and learn how to handle such crucial tasks when they go through this book.

2. Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day, by Joan Bolker

There are lots of books on how to write a dissertation, but this particular book is considered to be the best support system for dissertation writers. Joan Bolker is a co-founder of the Harvard Writing Center and is well-versed in the correct writing methods. The book will take you through some valuable tips and act as a source of encouragement for graduate students. It will help you focus on the work and work on the task properly. You would understand how dissertations can be engaging and know the tips and tricks to improve your writing style.

3. How to Finish Your Dissertation in Six Months, by Scott Rank

Dissertation writing is not a one-day affair. Students need to plan things well to complete the tasks on time. In this how to write a thesis book, Scott Rank's book aims to do the same. You will learn the best ways to plan writing a dissertation. The book sheds light on the effective ways to write a dissertation and how making it a daily habit can help students submit it within the stipulated time. Further, you will learn the essence of consistent writing, handling incomplete research, leveraging advisor meetings, and looking for help from friends. The book is very helpful for those struggling to manage their time and are unable to complete their dissertations.

4. The Dissertation Warrior, by Guy E. White

Most of the theses books, like this one, aim to help students understand the various aspects of dissertation writing. From efficient time management to aligning research and writing efforts, the book has everything to help you overcome the odds. The book has tips to help students draft a good introduction to grab readers' attention. You will also get to know the correct ways to write a comprehensive literature review. The book covers all the sections of a dissertation and helps you craft a perfect one.

5. Getting the Best of Your Dissertation, by Dave Harris

The author uses ideas from multiple disciplines to help you understand the art of dissertation writing from various perspectives. It will introduce you to a new way of looking at dissertations by integrating dissertation work into your life. It will help you with the ways and importance of developing a productive writing practice, managing relationships with professors, designing research methods, and more. The book will add value to your dissertation writing journey and help you submit a well-written dissertation.

6. Writing the Winning Thesis or Dissertation, by Randy L. Joyner, William A. Rouse, Allan A. Glatthorn

If you are looking for all-rounded assistance with dissertation writing, this book can be the best for all. This how to write a dissertation book explores the significance of using technology, effective planning, engaging writing style, defence preparation, and other aspects. The present edition also has a few case studies demonstrating the effectiveness of teachings. You will learn a lot about dissertation writing and be well-equipped to handle the projects.

7. The Elements of an Effective Dissertation and Thesis, by Raymond L. Calabrese

Students often get confused with the various elements of dissertations. The book takes into account all the elements and helps students understand the meaning of each. You will understand the meaning of each element of a dissertation and learn how to handle them while writing a dissertation. The book also sheds light on quantitative and qualitative techniques for research. You will learn what to include and exclude once you read the book.

8. Dissertation without Tears, by Natalya Androsova

The book has the right solutions to the most crucial problems associated with dissertation writing. The book explores the best ways to enjoy dissertation writing and stresses the importance of self-compassion. You will be able to learn about 58 myths about dissertation writing and understand if they were right or wrong. The book will help you learn all about the dissertation writing process and have a smooth run. This book has the right elements to help students overcome the fears of dissertation writing.

9. Demystifying Dissertation Writing, by Peg Boyle Single

If you want to learn a systematic process for writing your dissertation, this thesis writing book is best for you. The objective of the book is to help students be more fluent in writing and productivity. You will also get a complete guide on topic selection, planning, scheduling, and actual writing. The book gives the right guidance to people who are struggling to enhance their writing productivity.

10. The Dissertation Journey, by Carol Roberts, Laura Hyatt

'How to write a dissertation?' Students have struggled to find a perfect answer to this question. The book, 'The Dissertation Journey,' is where you can find a perfect answer. It covers all the aspects of conducting a literature review, harnessing technology for research, and using progressing tracking tools. You will get a lot of sample forms, resource lists, and various user-friendly elements that will make the entire dissertation writing journey easy for you.

How to Write a Dissertation

Writing a dissertation involves presenting original research, critical analysis, and in-depth exploration of a specific topic. In a few phrases, you might highlight:

• Research Focus: Introduce the central topic or problem your dissertation addresses.
• Objectives: Outline the goals and aims of your research, indicating what you intend to achieve.
• Methodology: Briefly explain the research methods and approaches you used to gather and analyze data.
• Contributions: Highlight the novel insights or contributions your research brings to the field.
• Literature Review: Summarize key existing research and theories related to your topic.
• Findings: Provide a glimpse of the significant results or outcomes of your research.
• Discussion: Briefly touch on the interpretation of findings and their implications.
• Conclusion: Sum up the main points and discuss the broader significance of your research.
• Recommendations: If applicable, suggest practical suggestions or future directions for research.
• References: List the sources and references that informed your research.

The Thesis Layout & Design

The thesis layout and the thesis book design are also two aspects that you have to consider. The information on a thesis cover can vary depending on the academic institution and its specific formatting guidelines. However, generally, a thesis cover will include the following information:

• Title & Subtitle (if applicable): The thesis title, which should succinctly describe the topic and focus of your research.
• Author's Name: Your full name, as the author of the thesis.
• Degree and Program: The type of degree you are pursuing (e.g., Master's, Doctorate) and the specific program or department you are affiliated with.
• Institution's Name and Logo: The name and logo of your university or academic institution.
• Date: The date of submission or the date of your thesis defense.
• Supervisor(s) and Advisor(s): The name(s) of the professor(s) or academic advisor(s) who supervised your thesis research.

It's important to follow your institution's specific guidelines for formatting and including information on the thesis cover. Make sure to verify the required elements with your academic advisor or the relevant department.

The thesis book cover design must look professional and it usually has a minimalist look. The color of the dissertation cover page can vary depending on the specific guidelines of your university or academic institution. There isn't a standard color that applies universally to all dissertation cover pages. Different universities might have different requirements or recommendations regarding the color of the cover page. In many cases, dissertation cover pages are required to be in a formal and professional style, which often means using a subdued or neutral color, such as black, navy blue, dark gray, dark red, brown or white. These colors convey a sense of seriousness and formality. However, it's important to consult your university's official guidelines or ask your advisor to confirm the specific requirements for the color of the cover page for your dissertation. Inside the thesis book layout you can include images, graphs, statistics, screenshots, infographics, etc. Images in research paper are really important in better explaining the written text through visuals. The size of a dissertation cover page can vary depending on the specific guidelines of your university or institution. However, a common size for academic documents like dissertations is the standard US Letter size, which is 8.5 x 11 inches (21.6 x 27.9 cm). Another thesis paper size that is usually used in Europe is the standard A4 format (21 x 29.7 cm). Here is a thesis book example if you want to take a quick look to see what is inside of a dissertation.

In Conclusion

Many of these thesis books are available on Amazon and their prices range from $20 to $50. Some of the thesis writing books are available in physical format printed on paper, while others are available in digital format on Kindle. Dissertation writing has always been a struggle for students. As the paper is a crucial one for your degree, it is important to find and learn the best ways to handle it. While there are various services offering help with dissertation writing, you need to learn how to write one. The research paper books listed above will help you learn how to write one perfectly. Pick the one you feel is best for you and explore the correct dissertation writing methods.

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5 must-reads for doctoral students

January 11, 2016

The decision to pursue a doctoral degree can be exciting and scary at the same time.

Good preparation will ease the path to writing a great dissertation. Reading some expert guide books will expand your knowledge and pave the way for the rigorous work ahead.

Capella University faculty, doctoral students, and alumni recommend these five books for doctoral students in any discipline.

1. How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading  by Mortimer J. Adler

“One book fundamental to my doctoral education that my mentor had my entire cohort read, and which I still recommend to this day, is  How To Read a Book , which discusses different reading practices and different strategies for processing and retaining information from a variety of texts.” – Michael Franklin, PhD, Senior Dissertation Advisor, Capella School of Public Service and Education.

Originally published in 1940, and with half a million copies in print,  How to Read a Book  is the most successful guide to reading comprehension and a Capella favorite. The book introduces the various levels of reading and how to achieve them—including elementary reading, systematic skimming, inspectional reading, and speed-reading.

Adler also includes instructions on different techniques that work best for reading particular genres, such as practical books, imaginative literature, plays, poetry, history, science and mathematics, philosophy, and social science works.

2. Dissertations and Theses from Start to Finish  by John D. Cone, PhD and Sharon L. Foster, PhD

This book discusses the practical, logistical, and emotional stages of research and writing. The authors encourage students to dive deeper into defining topics, selecting faculty advisers, scheduling time to accommodate the project, and conducting research.

In clear language, the authors offer their advice, answer questions, and break down the overwhelming task of long-form writing into a series of steps.

3. Writing Your Dissertation in 15 Minutes a Day  by Joan Balker

This book is recommended for its tips on compartmentalizing a large project into actionable items, which can be helpful when working on a project as mammoth as a dissertation. Balker connects with the failure and frustration of writing (as she failed her first attempt at her doctorate), and gives encouragement to students who encounter the fear of a blank page.

She reminds dissertation writers that there are many people who face the same writing struggles and offers strong, practical advice to every graduate student.  Writing Your Dissertation in 15 Minutes a Day  can be applied to any stage of the writing process.

4. From Topic to Defense: Writing a Quality Social Science Dissertation in 18 Months or Less  by Ayn Embar-Seddon O’Reilly, Michael K Golebiewski, and Ellen Peterson Mink

As the authors of this book state, “Earning a doctorate degree requires commitment, perseverance, and personal sacrifice—placing some things in our lives on hold. It is, by no means, easy—and there really is nothing that can make it ‘easy.’”

This book provides support for the most common stumbling blocks students encounter on their road to finishing a dissertation. With a focus on a quick turnaround time for dissertations, this book also outlines the importance of preparation and is a good fit for any graduate student looking for support and guidance during his or her dissertation process.

From Topic to Defense  can be used to prepare for the challenges of starting a doctoral program with helpful tools for time management, structure, and diagnostics.

5. What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast: A Short Guide to Making Over Your Mornings—and Life  by Laura Vanderkam

According to author and time management expert Laura Vanderkam, mornings are key to taking control of schedules, and if used wisely, can be the foundation for habits that allow for happier, more productive lives.

This practical guide will inspire doctoral students to rethink morning routines and jump-start the day before it’s even begun. Vanderkam draws on real-life anecdotes and research to show how the early hours of the day are so important.

Pursuing a doctoral degree is a big decision and long journey, but it also can be an exciting and positive experience. Learn more about Capella’s  online doctoral programs .

What's it like to be a doctoral student?

Learn more about the experience, explore each step of the journey, and read stories from students who have successfully earned their doctorate. 

Explore The Doctoral Journey >>

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Can I transfer credits into a doctoral program?

January 8, 2020

What are the steps in writing a dissertation?

December 11, 2019

The difference between a dissertation and doctoral capstone

November 25, 2019

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How to Turn Your Dissertation Into a Book: A Step-By-Step Guide for New Authors

Whether you are just starting graduate school, writing your dissertation, or the proud recipient of a recent Ph.D., you may be thinking about turning your dissertation into a published book. There are many reasons why this might be a good idea. In some fields, a published scholarly book is a preferred method for presenting a comprehensive view of pivotal research. A book gives you the space to discuss details, complications, connections, and ramifications in a way that is not possible in a journal article. In these fields, a well-reviewed book gives you instant credibility when applying for faculty positions, tenure, and related positions. A published book also has a much longer shelf life than an unpublished dissertation, and will occupy a respected place on your CV or resume for years to come.

In other fields, good dissertations are expected to produce one or more published journal articles, and many tenured faculty at top research institutions never publish a book. In these fields, publishing a book may still be an asset for those pursuing a traditional academic career, and can be a great way to transition into other careers such as science communication, education, or public policy. So if turning your dissertation into a book is something you are considering, here are some steps to get started.

Step 1: Identify your audience

Publishers are businesses that make money by selling books. This is true of "trade" publishers that sell books for the general public, and "academic" publishers that sell books primarily for students and scholars. Therefore, in order for a publisher to consider publishing your book, there must be a sufficiently large audience to buy your book. This audience will strongly influence how you organize and write your book, and may cause your book to be massively different from your dissertation. After all, the purpose of a dissertation is to show that you are knowledgeable about your field of study, and have made a significant contribution to it. In contrast, the purpose of a book is to serve a need for the reader.

Some dissertation topics may work well as required reading for college and university courses. In that case, you need to identify the types of courses that would be appropriate (e.g. courses in sociology that cover gender identity), and develop an understanding of how many students take such courses. For example, you might find that almost all colleges in the California State system have a sociology department. At California State AnyTown, there are 20,000 undergraduate students, and 400 students a year take a sociology course that focuses on gender identity. Other dissertation topics might appeal to people in specific professions (e.g. people who work with children who suffer concussions), and you might look at the number of people in relevant professional organizations (e.g. associations for coaches or pediatric nurses). At the other end of the spectrum, you might imagine a book that appeals to a fairly wide audience (e.g. a book that addresses recent events linked to gender identity, or a broader discussion of concussion in youth sports). For these books, the intended audience may be harder to define, so you can estimate its size in the next step.

Step 2: Identify competing books

Once you have identified a potential audience, you need to familiarize yourself with the books they are reading. Your book will be competing with these books, so you need to determine how your book will fill a gap for this audience. Here you have the opportunity—and the obligation—to read widely in your intended niche. If this opportunity doesn't excite you, do not try to write a book for this niche. The process of writing a good book is laborious and time consuming, so if you are not interested in exploring similar books for what works and what doesn't, you will not enjoy writing your own book for this category.

As you identify and read competing books, you should pay attention to the topics that they cover, and how the author writes about these topics. Consider whether the text is instructive or narrative, what details are included, how the text is organized, and whether visual aids such as photographs, diagrams, or tables are included. Also find out when the book was published, how long it is, how much it sells for, and how many copies have been sold (or at least what its Amazon sales rank is).

You may find books that are very similar to your book, or that are different in significant ways (such as the specific topic) but that have characteristics you want to emulate (e.g. a good strategy for presenting technically challenging research to a broad audience). As you gain a good understanding of related books, you'll need to develop a list of 3-10 books that will compete with your book. You will use this list to support two points:

• Books similar to your book have been successful with your intended audiences; and
• Your book fills an unmet need for this audience, so they will buy it.

That unmet need might be a more recent book that incorporates new knowledge, or a book that takes a different approach to a question that has already been addressed.

This survey of related books will also help you plan your book. If you find that multiple books already exist for your intended topic, you may need to shift your emphasis so that your book offers something new. If you find that there are few successful competing books, it may be that your intended audience is too small, and that you need to shift your emphasis to fit into a more productive niche.

Step 3: Create an outline for your book

Once you have an intended audience, an excellent understanding of successful books in the same category, and an idea for how you can fill a need in that category, you can start planning your book in detail. Put together an outline, starting with the major topic for each chapter, and thinking about how the overall theme will progress through the entire book. Even for a purely academic book, there must be an overall arch to your story.

While it may be tempting to slip into the same mindset that you used for planning and writing your dissertation, remember that the purpose of your book is to serve a need for the reader. So rather than focusing on your specific research contributions (which is essential for a dissertation), focus on what the reader needs to know. To facilitate this mindset, it may be useful to put away your dissertation for a bit (assuming that it is already complete) and focus on other projects. Then revisit your dissertation topic when you have fresh eyes and a better understanding of what would be useful for your intended audience.

As you flesh out the details for each chapter, set a target word count and think about any images or tables that should be included. Keep in mind that book publishers must pay for every page, image, and footnote to be edited, prepared, and printed. Books that are only available electronically still have most of these per-page expenses. Therefore, use successful books in your category as a guide for how long your book should be, and how many images should be included. Color images also add significantly to the production costs .

As you are preparing your outline, you will likely reach a point where you are unsure if the details of your plan will work. Then it is time to write.

Step 4: Write a sample chapter

If you want a publisher or agent to consider your book, you will typically need to submit a sample chapter or two. You may be asked to submit your first chapter or your "best" chapter, so I recommend starting with your first chapter and making it excellent.

While there are many different approaches to successful writing, one common theme is that the first draft is usually terrible. So write the first draft of your first chapter and let it be terrible. Then read and revise, and repeat. As you are writing and revising, I recommend regularly taking time to read some of your competing titles. How do they deal with some of the challenges you are facing? Are their approaches successful or can you envision a better way?

As you write your first chapter or two, you may find that you need to revise your outline. Pay attention to what you can effectively cover for your audience in the space available.

Step 5: Identify appropriate publishers or agents

Once you have a strong plan and a sample chapter or two, you need to identify potential publishers. Start by looking at your list of competing titles, and learn about those publishers. Also talk to colleagues who have published books, and ask if they would be willing to put you in contact with their publisher or agent. The process can be quite complicated, and for a comprehensive guide I recommend The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published by Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry. Many publishers also post guidelines for potential authors on their websites. For most publishers, you will need to show that you understand your audience and competing books, and provide a detailed book outline and convincing sample chapter.

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Whether you're thinking about pursuing an advanced degree in education or are already in such a program, one thing you will need to be prepared for...

Writing a winning thesis or dissertation: guidance for an education graduate student.

Posted on July 31, 2024 on Graduate School , Seahawk Nation

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Whether you’re thinking about pursuing an advanced degree in education or are already in such a program, one thing you will need to be prepared for is writing a thesis or dissertation. In most graduate-level education programs, a thesis or dissertation is the culmination of years of challenging work, serving as your own independent research that marks the final step before earning your graduate degree.

If writing a dissertation or thesis sounds like a daunting task, it does not have to be. With a little preparation and some best practices in mind, you can approach writing a thesis or dissertation with confidence.

Understanding the Thesis and Dissertation Process

Before writing a thesis or dissertation, it’s important to understand their general scope and purpose, along with some key differences between a thesis and a dissertation. After all, while there are some similarities between the two, a dissertation and a thesis are not the same thing.

Defining the Scope and Purpose

The primary purpose of a thesis or dissertation in an education graduate program is for students to demonstrate what they have learned in their respective programs while applying their own research, theory, analysis and synthesis. Ultimately, the author of a thesis or dissertation should successfully contribute something new to the existing topic. In dissertations specifically, students may also be required to articulate, discuss and defend their research orally in front of professors or other faculty members. This oral defense is not required for a master’s thesis.

Differences Between Thesis and Dissertation

When it comes to writing a thesis or a dissertation, the terms “dissertation” and “thesis” are sometimes used interchangeably. That said, it is crucial to understand that these are two different things. Generally, a dissertation is primarily focused on filling a gap in existing literature or extending upon current research regarding a specific topic. The goal is to analyze literature to the point of saturation and determine where there is a need for further research. In a dissertation, a doctoral student will then explain where the problem exists given current research and develop a research study to explore or evaluate the problem, thus filling the gap and contributing meaningfully to the field.

On the other hand, a thesis is more of a presentation of information that’s already out there with no obligation to conduct additional research.

Choosing the Right Topic

One of the most important aspects of drafting a great thesis or dissertation begins with choosing the right topic. Here, it is paramount to select a topic that not only interests you but is relevant to your future professional goals and aspirations. After all, there’s a good chance you may use your thesis or dissertation as a basis for future work or further research.

Considering Current Research Trends

In selecting a topic, you will also want to consider current research trends in your field. What is trending in the realm of education and what could you contribute to existing research? There are research gaps or questions that remain unanswered about certain educational topics that could be addressed through your research.

Research and Proposal Development

In most graduate programs, you will need to write and present a research proposal before you can really get started on your thesis or dissertation. Most research proposals are reviewed and approved by a professor or other faculty.

Conducting a Literature Review

A literature review is to discover the research available on your research topic. This review should detail each source you plan to use in your own research with plenty of detail. More specifically, a literature review is a comprehensive summary of the current literature on a given topic that demonstrates the need for additional research to be conducted. Literature reviews comprise a major portion of a proposal, including a summary of each source as it relates to the need for additional research.

Finding Reliable Sources

Quality is vital when it comes to selecting literature for your research or literature review. Ideally, your literature review should include plenty of recent and reputable sources that come from academic journals, books, articles and even other dissertations.

Developing a Research Proposal

Once you have a better understanding for what is already out there, you can craft a research proposal that discusses your specific research topic, the current problem, the purpose behind your research, the methodology you plan to use and the relevant literature that further defends a need for your topic to be investigated.

Methodology Selection

An important part of your research proposal will be your methodology selection, which will explain exactly how you plan to go about your research. For example, will your research be qualitative, quantitative or a mix of both and why? How will the methodology you choose answer your research questions?

Writing and Structuring Your Thesis or Dissertation

After your research proposal is approved, you will have the green light to begin working on your thesis or dissertation. You will receive feedback or thesis guidance from the faculty member who reviewed your proposal. It is important to reflect on the feedback and make revisions as needed.

Creating an Outline

One of the most helpful things you can do as you get started with your dissertation or thesis is to create an outline. This allows you to develop the most critical aspects of your final project that include your thesis, your main points and other key details to ensure that they flow logically.

For reference, an outline for a dissertation will typically include the following:

• Introduction of existing research
• Review of literature
• Conceptual framework
• Methodology
• Results or findings
• Interpretations, conclusions or recommendations for future research

Structuring Arguments

In creating an outline, include designated sections for each of your main points with specific research, statistics, or other data to support it. This will ensure that your arguments are made clearly and that your thought process is clear.

Writing Tips and Strategies

Even if writing is not necessarily your strong suit, you will need to be able to put together a cohesive document for your thesis or dissertation. There are some basic strategies worth keeping in mind to help you get started.

First, it can be helpful to write your introduction and conclusion paragraphs last once you have completed all your research. While it might seem counterintuitive to do it this way, it can help set the tone for the rest of your writing. Likewise, this strategy ensures that you include your main points while preparing your readers for the information to come.

Additionally, meet with your advisor or faculty sponsor regularly to gain valuable feedback and keep your project on track.

Data Collection and Analysis

Whether you are writing a thesis or dissertation, you will need to do a fair amount of your own qualitative or quantitative research. It’s important to understand the various data collection methods available to you, plus the best practices for analyzing and interpreting data.

Choosing Data Collection Methods

There are two main types of data collection:

• Quantitative data  - Refers to hard data that is numerical in nature, such as statistics and percentages.
• Qualitative data  - Refers to information that is non-numerical, such as interviews and focus groups.
• Mixed methods – Refer to a combination of both quantitative and qualitative data.

Analyzing and Interpreting Data

Once you have all the data you need to write your thesis or dissertation, the challenging part is often analyzing and interpreting the data to apply to your own research. The most important thing to keep in mind when looking at hard data is how it relates back to your research and specific research questions.

When working with quantitative data, it can also be helpful to look for specific trends and correlations that you can share in your research.

Reviewing and Editing Your Work

Once you have completed the first draft of your thesis or dissertation, the process of reviewing, revising and editing your work before submission is important to ensure that the document is free of errors and that it effectively communicates your main points to the reader.

Peer Review and Feedback

One of the best ways to improve upon the first draft of your dissertation or thesis is through peer review and feedback. By having others read your draft and provide feedback, you can gain some valuable insights into how your arguments are being interpreted. Even if the person you ask to read your draft is not familiar with the subject matter, they can still provide useful feedback on the organization of the information, structure and grammar/spelling.

Proofreading and Final Edits

It may take several rounds of revisions before your dissertation or thesis is approved. Even when you feel like the entire thing is ready to submit, it is important to complete another round of proofreading and editing to be sure that the entire document is polished and in the best shape possible. This includes not just running a basic spell check but taking the time to read your paper word for word.

Formatting Guidelines

In most education programs, you will be instructed to use the  American Psychological Association (APA) style when writing and formatting your thesis or dissertation. It is important to follow all formatting guidelines here, especially as they relate to citations or references.

Preparing for the Defense

In many doctorate programs and some graduate programs, students will also be expected to defend their dissertations in front of other scholars, usually professors or other faculty from the department. This process can be daunting, even for those who know their research well and have crafted thoughtful dissertations.

Crafting Your Presentation

In preparing for a dissertation defense, it is imperative to craft a presentation that covers the basics of your dissertation topic, how you researched it and what your findings were. Following your presentation, you can expect to be asked questions by those in attendance about your topic and other aspects of your research.

Practicing Your Defense

The best way to prepare for a dissertation defense is to practice as much as possible. This way, you will be prepared for the kinds of questions that may be asked, and you will feel a little more confident when completing your defense.

Mock Sessions

Mock defense sessions can be especially helpful for practicing your presentation and answering questions from a real crowd. Do not hesitate to ask your fellow students or even some trusted professors to practice with you to provide feedback or ask questions.

Handling Questions

One of the most difficult aspects of defending a dissertation is often answering questions from the audience. One important tip to keep in mind here is to prepare some answers in advance to some of the questions you think might be asked during your dissertation defense. This way, you will be completely prepared to knock these out of the park.

Ready to Pursue an Advanced Degree?

As you can see, there is a lot that goes into writing a dissertation or thesis as part of your graduate education program. With this dissertation guidance in mind, you will be prepared to craft and even defend your thesis or dissertation with success.

Still looking for the right graduate education program to suit your interests and professional goals? Keiser University is proud to offer a number of advanced degrees in education, including our  Master of Science in Education, Teaching and Learning  program. If you’re interested in earning your doctorate degree, we also offer a  Doctor of Education  and a  Doctor of Philosophy in Educational Leadership .

Learn more about any of the graduate programs offered at Keiser University by  contacting a graduate admissions counselor today, or get started with your online application  for enrollment.

Jessica Kircher

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How to read terry pratchett's discworld books in order (chronologically & by publication date).

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Every Chronicles Of Narnia Book, Ranked

A court of thorns & roses set up the perfect prequel through 2 underused characters, expect the rings of power season 2 to double down on a controversial sauron rewrite.

• With 41 novels in Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, exploring the diverse subseries offers a rewarding journey into this comic fantasy world.
• Novels can be read thematically or in publication order, both methods providing a rich experience spanning wizards, witches, and more fantastical beings.
• Readers have the flexibility to choose their own reading order within Discworld's series, with different subseries offering unique perspectives on Pratchett's intricate universe.

It can be a challenge breaking into Terry Pratchett's sprawling Discworld universe, but there are ways through it that make more sense than others. There are 41 novels in Terry Pratchett's comic fantasy book series , along with various standalones and guides, and it is a world well worth exploring. Among some of the best fantasy books in the English language, Discworld was Pratchett's life's work, published between 1983 and 2015 over 32 years. Pratchett's commitment to world-building was laudable, setting many novels in the same universe despite not all following the same story.

Pratchett was a hero in more ways than one, chronicling his struggle with Alzheimer's in documentaries for the BBC and donating significant sums to Alzheimer's Research UK before passing away in 2015 at 66. Pratchett left his literary realm as his legacy, with Steven Ross graphic novels, Discworld computer and board games, and Terry Pratchett TV adaptations all included. Before diving into Discworld , it pays to examine what order the books were written in and how they are sorted thematically, to determine where best to begin.

C.S. Lewis put lots of time and care into each installment of the Narnia series, but not every book in the universe is equally compelling or strong.

Terry Pratchett's Discworld Books In Publication Order

There are 41 discworld novels.

The humorous fantasy series began with 1983's The Colour of Magic and ended with 2015's The Shepherd's Crown , which was published posthumously. The series often parodied or satirized other work within the fantasy or sci-fi genres , and was set in a flat world balanced on the backs of four elephants, which were standing on a giant turtle. There was Discworld romantasy , police procedural novels, and witch and vampire books, among others, demonstrating the wide range of topics covered in the series.

A stickler for Terry Pratchett may want to read the Discworld books in publication order.

Discworld was episodic, with each novel working perfectly well in and of itself. Despite this, the novels are generally grouped thematically , although there is a lot of overlap. While the novels can be read thematically, a stickler for Terry Pratchett may want to read the Discworld books in publication order. Readers will be rewarded with a huge scope of characters and locations. Wizards, gnomes, werewolves, and trolls were just some of the superhuman races that populated Pratchett's Discworld.

• The Colour of Magic (1983)
• The Light Fantastic (1986)
• Equal Rites (1987)
• Mort (1987)
• Sourcery (1988)
• Wyrd Sisters (1988)
• Pyramids (1989)
• Guards! Guards! (1989)
• Eric (1990)
• Moving Pictures (1990)
• Reaper Man (1991)
• Witches Abroad (1991)
• Small Gods (1992)
• Lords and Ladies (1992)
• Men at Arms (1993)
• Soul Music (1994)
• Interesting Times (1994)
• Maskerade (1995)
• Feet of Clay (1996)
• Hogfather (1996)
• Jingo (1997)
• The Last Continent (1998)
• Carpe Jugulum (1998)
• The Fifth Elephant (1999)
• The Truth (2000)
• Thief of Time (2001)
• The Last Hero (2001)
• The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents (2001)
• Night Watch (2002)
• The Wee Free Men (2003)
• Monstrous Regiment (2003)
• A Hat Full of Sky (2004)
• Going Postal (2004)
• Thud! (2005)
• Wintersmith (2006)
• Making Money (2007)
• Unseen Academicals (2009)
• I Shall Wear Midnight (2010)
• Snuff (2011)
• Raising Steam (2013)
• The Shepherd's Crown (2015)

How To Read Discworld In Chronological Order

The books were published chronologically.

Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels were written and published in chronological order. There is a rough continuity to the series, with some books making more reference to previous books than others. As such, there is enrichment to be gleaned from reading the books in chronological order . The books stand on their own just as well as parts of the whole, so each book could be viewed as a sequel to the one before it, but doesn't have to be. There are no prequels. To read the books in chronological order, just read them in order of their publication date.

Terry Pratchett was the best-selling author in the UK in the 1990s.

Some novels within Discworld share similar storylines, settings, characters, and genres, which are said to fall into their own subseries. There are multiple subseries in Discworld which all vary significantly. Discworld was the literary sandpit that Terry Pratchett played in for most of his career, so this diversity of material makes a lot of sense. Novels in the same subseries weren't published in chronological order, one after the other. Grouping and reading the books this way helps tackle Discworld in more bite-size chunks and helps in the event of preferring specific topics within Pratchett's fantasy comedy world.

Every Subseries In Terry Pratchett's Discworld Universe (& The Standalones)

There are six discworld subseries.

Rincewind is the wizard protagonist of this subseries, which initiated Discworld in 1983 with The Colour of Magic. This bumbling wizard acted as a tourist guide for Twofold in Ankh-Morpork, the biggest city in Discworld, but he couldn't stop them both from getting into all kinds of trouble. The wizarding wonder of this subseries spanned heroes and magic , laying a solid foundation for the varied novels to come.

One of the important subsets of Terry Pratchett's Discworld , this mini-series covered the witches of Lancre . The Wyrd sisters riffed off the witches in Macbeth , although taking magic far less seriously. These clever, funny witches used " headology " as a part of their practice, an intriguing type of psychology. Granny Weatherwax was an iconic character in this subseries and voiced many of Pratchett's thoughts on what it means to be an aging character in fantasy.

The grim reaper did fatherhood in this hilarious and insightful group of books exploring the human condition. Featuring rock bands, Christmas, and the grim reaper farming, it is a solid entry to the Discworld series or a jem to arrive at a few books in. This series exemplified the difficulty of adapting Discworld when a producer was told to " lose the death angle " by US backers.

Perhaps the most popular Discworld subseries overall, the City Watch subset contains a novel that many Pratchett fans cite as their favorite Discworld novel, Guards! Guards! . Set in Ankh-Morpork, this series was a police procedural, displaying the various misadventures of one Sam Vimes. These redemptive novels were moving and sardonic , exploring the inner workings of the Watch —the controversial The Watch TV adaptation was loosely based on these novels.

Industrial Revolution

These novels are grouped together as they all followed a different piece of technology as it was introduced to Discworld. However, the novels within the subseries have different characters who have cameos throughout the entirety of Discworld. A challenging sequence of novels to categorize, the Industrial Revolution miniseries featured a lot of overlap with other subseries . Conman Moist Van Lipwig is a memorable asset of these books, restoring the Ankh-Morpork Post Office in Going Postal .

Tiffany Aching

The only subseries targeted toward young adults in Discworld , the Tiffany Aching books followed trainee witch Tiffany Aching. These books are heavily linked to the Witches novels and would be better read after them. Terry Pratchett's daughter, Rihanna Pratchett, co-authored the tie-in book Tiffany Aching's Guide to Being a Witch, which is a great accompaniment for this magical story.

Standalones

Pyramids and Small Gods are two books largely considered standalones in the Discworld universe, although some consider them to be their own subseries of sorts. They are both based on ancient civilizations but also have completely different plots and characters. Many swear by Small Gods as the best Discworld novel and the best gateway novel to the world. The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents is another standalone and a YA book that is hugely relevant to people of all ages.

The Best Order To Read The Discworld Books In

There is no right order.

Ultimately, there is no one right order in which to read Terry Pratchett's Discworld . Since each book stands alone, it is actually delightfully easy to dive into Discworld, and the order of reading has little consequence on the experience. But with a little guidance, a personal optimum can be achieved . For instance, most people will find the Tiffany Aching series a far more rewarding read after consuming the Witches books first. And if the thought of reading a series of 41 books is off-putting, less committed readers can approach Discworld via subseries.

Crime thriller fans can approach City Watch for an introduction to this lengthy fantasy series that brooks no rival, whereas high fantasy nerds may do well to get started with the Rincewind subseries. The Witches series has a distinctly feminist tone, so it is well worth reaching for this if that sounds like an enlightening endeavor. Those looking for a short, short burst of Discworld to measure their taste for Pratchett's distinctive tone should probably start with Small Gods , or the third or fourth book in the series as a whole - the ones where Pratchett really got into the swing of Discworld , according to him.

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The Sydney Morning Herald

Who reads children’s books best kids or adults, by jane sullivan, save articles for later.

Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time.

When it comes to writing for children, grown-ups don’t always know best. Lauren Crozier discovered this when a literary agent strongly advised her not to write about magical animals. That shamed her and discouraged her from writing what came naturally to her, until she finally wrote a story featuring a magical owl.

The book, The Best Witch in Paris , won the 2023 Text Prize for writing for children and it’s had great reviews. Which raises a more general question: who knows best about books for children, adults or kids?

Amelia Mellor had trouble selling her books to publishers. Credit: Justin McManus

Kill Your Darlings recently ran a survey of writers for children in its “What I Wish I’d Known About” series. While Crozier wished she hadn’t taken that agent’s advice about magical animals, others said they wished they’d known about the exacting standards publishers demand.

Megan Hess, author of the Claris the Mouse series, wishes she’d known just how important every single word is in a picture book. All her books are exactly 18 double pages long, and every story has to fit perfectly in that format. Tony Wilson, author of the Selwood Boys series, didn’t know that picture book manuscripts should have 32 pages and about 500 words.

Amelia Mellor, author of the award-winning The Grandest Bookshop in the World , wishes she’d known how to sell books for children. She’d written two previous novels that won unpublished manuscript awards and kids adored them. But they were rejected 45 times because they didn’t conform to established genres, age groups or topics of interest.

Adults and kids readers agreed on Tristan Bancks’ book. Credit: Louise Kennerley

The Children’s Book Council of Australia has a bet each way in its Book of the Year awards, chosen by a panel of adult judges and also by the Shadow Judges, more than 240 groups of schoolchildren who read the shortlisted books and vote for their own winners.

This year, adults and kids agreed on two books. They both named Scar Town by Tristan Bancks as the winner in the Younger Readers category; and Australia: Country of Colour by Jess Racklyeft as a top book in the non-fiction Eve Pownall category (it was a winner for the kids and an Honour Book for the adults). Otherwise, young and old diverged in their choices.

It’s interesting to see how they differed. The winner in the Older Readers category was Karen Comer’s debut Grace Notes , by all accounts a beautifully written verse novel about a violinist and a street artist connecting during Melbourne’s pandemic lockdown. But the kids went for Suzy Zail’s Inkflower , about a girl whose dying father is a Holocaust survivor, and the secrets she’s trying to keep.

What can we deduce from this? That writing for children is an area where you must please both your young readers and the publishing gatekeepers and judges – and you mustn’t be afraid of dark themes. Clearly Tristan Bancks has pushed all the right buttons with his bestselling books, and he’s very focused on encouraging reluctant or unconfident kids into the joys of reading.

But different writers have different priorities. Beloved writer and illustrator Shaun Tan says he wishes he’d known that writing for children is not really writing for children: “It’s about writing for everyone, telling universal stories … that are so good they can even be read by children but without sacrificing any complexity or ambiguity”.

Mind you, you don’t have to know anything. Anna Zobel said her first book, Little Gem , “sort of sprang forth organically … I had no sense of writing for a particular audience, no educational intention and no understanding of the market; I was writing for pleasure”. Maybe writing what comes naturally is the best way after all.

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Getting the Best of Your Dissertation: Practical Perspectives for Effective Research Paperback – August 17, 2015

• Print length 172 pages
• Language English
• Publication date August 17, 2015
• Dimensions 6 x 0.39 x 9 inches
• ISBN-10 0996451609
• ISBN-13 978-0996451604
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About the author, product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thought Clearing (August 17, 2015)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 172 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0996451609
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0996451604
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.3 ounces
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.39 x 9 inches
• #2,749 in Research Reference Books
• #5,580 in Study Skills (Books)
• #7,965 in Writing Skill Reference (Books)

About the author

Dave harris.

Dave Harris is a seasoned writing coach who has helped authors in such fields as anthropology, history, business, psychology, and education, develop productive writing practices leading to the completion of dissertations and publication of scholarly articles and books.

He is the author of two books for dissertation writers: _Literature Review and Research Design_ (Routledge, 2019), and _Getting the Best of Your Dissertation_ (Thought Clearing, 2015).

With Jean-Pierre Protzen, he is co-author of _The Universe of Design_ (Routledge, 2010), a book on design theory.

Find him on the web at www.thoughtclearing.com.

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Helen Phillips' 6 favorite books about robotic companions

The novelist recommends works by Kazuo Ishiguro, Jessamine Chan, and more

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'Klara and the Sun' by Kazuo Ishiguro (2021)

'the school for good mothers' by jessamine chan (2021), 'little eyes' by samanta schweblin (2018), 'the artist in the machine' by arthur i. miller (2019), 'artificial intelligence: an illustrated history' by clifford a. pickover (2019), 'reclaiming conversation: the power of talk in a digital age' by sherry turkle (2015).

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Helen Phillips is the author of " The Need ," a singular 2019 thriller longlisted for the National Book Award. In her new novel, " Hum ," an artificial intelligence expert made obsolete by AI takes her family on a three-night escape to an urban botanical garden.

Klara is a solar-powered android bought to provide companionship to a wealthy, isolated teenager. As Klara becomes ever more embedded in the family, her role grows murkier. This story explores the potential use and misuse of robots. All the while, Klara narrates with great sensitivity. Buy it here .

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After Frida is witnessed during a momentary but significant lapse in her judgment as a new mother, she is declared an unfit parent. She can redeem herself and regain custody of her daughter only by proving to the state that she can successfully mother a robot child. Maternal love and anxiety are inextricably intertwined in this brilliant debut. Buy it here .

In this novel, originally published in Spanish, "kentukis" are cute little robotic pets. But they are also surveillance devices that enable strangers around the world to enter the homes and lives of each kentuki's owner. Through this conceit, Schweblin investigates the ways that our technologies can both link us together and sever us from one another. Buy it here .

Miller's exquisitely researched book makes a case for the positive potential of human-AI collaboration. What if, rather than rendering humans obsolete, artificial intelligence enables us to create ever more sublime works of art? Buy it here .

Pickover's illustrated history explores, in one-page entries, humans' fascination with artificial intelligence, starting in 1300 B.C. and continuing through the present day. With entries such as "da Vinci's Robot Knight," "ELIZA Psychotherapist," and "AI Death Predictor," the book provides a wide-ranging and riveting evocation of AI over time. Buy it here .

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This insightful book examines the ways the technologies that surround us can interfere with empathy. Turkle shows that it is alarmingly easy for humans to forge what feel like meaningful bonds with robots/AI, but such relationships lack the depth and complexity — and resultant intimacy — of human connections. Buy it here .

This article was first published in the latest issue of The Week magazine. If you want to read more like it, you can try six risk-free issues of the magazine here .

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6 New Books We Recommend This Week

Suggested reading from critics and editors at The New York Times.

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Our recommended books this week include four new novels that, taken together, offer a pretty good snapshot of the cultural zeitgeist: a polyamorous breakup story, a surreal post-pandemic fever dream, a book about the deep, cloistered pleasures of academic study and a novel that applies the “Romeo and Juliet” template to the federal siege of a doomsday cult like the one that rocked Waco, Texas, three decades ago. (That book is Bret Anthony Johnston’s “We Burn Daylight,” and it contains this kindling-dry line from the cult leader, after the local sheriff asks how he would respond to a visit from the taxman: “I’d assure him any money changing hands here is a donation to our church. Then I’d ask him if he’d prefer to shoot or pray.”)

In nonfiction, we recommend Jean-Martin Bauer’s firsthand account of efforts to eradicate global food shortages and Yuan Yang’s group portrait of four young women navigating social change in contemporary China. Happy reading. — Gregory Cowles

THE NEW BREADLINE: Hunger and Hope in the Twenty-First Century Jean-Martin Bauer

An illuminating account of the author’s 20 years working with the World Food Program, this book provides a close-up look at efforts to vanquish global hunger.

“What makes ‘The New Breadline’ so compelling are not the big debates it touches on but the small details Bauer shares from a realm that usually operates out of the public eye.”

From Alec MacGillis’s review

Knopf | $30

WE BURN DAYLIGHT Bret Anthony Johnston

“Romeo and Juliet” meets the 1993 Waco, Texas, siege in Johnston’s new novel, which follows two teenage lovers on opposite sides of an increasingly dire confrontation. One is connected to a heavily armed doomsday cult, while the other is the son of the sheriff investigating it.

“The music of it all is just so damn seductive. … A darkly dazzling pilgrimage of violent delights, and violent ends.”

From John Wray’s review

Random House | $29

STATE OF PARADISE Laura Van den Berg

Van den Berg’s latest is a fever dream of a novel ostensibly about a narrator’s search for her missing sister, but more broadly about the borders of reality and the surreal nature of our post-pandemic life.

“Moody and hallucinatory, the novel asks: How do we distinguish reality from its opposite — whatever that might be?”

From Ruth Franklin’s review

Farrar, Straus & Giroux | $27

PRACTICE Rosalind Brown

Starring an undergraduate student at Oxford, Brown’s debut novel is exquisitely attuned to the thrill and boredom of academic life; it is hard to think of another novel that describes so precisely what happens when an ardent young person sits down to read and learn and write.

“Conveys the hesitancy, extravagance and naiveté of a young mind discovering what writing can do.”

From Brian Dillon’s review

Farrar, Straus & Giroux | $26

PRIVATE REVOLUTIONS: Four Women Face China’s New Social Order Yuan Yang

For six years, the journalist Yuan Yang followed four very different young women as they navigated what she calls China’s “new social order” — a country changing dramatically to an industrial superpower. The result is a moving work of reportage, whose scale toggles between global to personal.

“A powerful snapshot of four young Chinese women attempting to assert control over the direction of their lives, escape the narrow confines of their patriarchal rural roots and make it in the big city.”

From Michelle T. King’s review

Viking | $30

MISRECOGNITION Madison Newbound

The protagonist of Newbound’s witty debut novel returns to her hometown nursing a catatonic sorrow after her brutal breakup with a couple — a male artist and a female gallerist — who were her employers before they were also her lovers and roommates.

“‘Misrecognition’ is sharp and funny, but never cruel or condescending, when skewering quarter-life crises, contemporary sexual mores and internet addiction. … A quietly commanding debut by a writer of intense precision and restraint.”

From Justin Taylor’s review

Simon & Schuster | $27.99