Research Supervisor Session.
eflecting On My First 1-2-1.
On the morning of Friday the 13th of June, I had my first one-to-one session with my research supervisor, Gia. This was our first chance to properly discuss the initial draft we’d submitted - a rough 1,000 words outlining our proposed structure and the potential focus of the paper. I really enjoyed writing that first draft, and it feels like I’ve landed on a strong topic at the centre of it, one that ties back to my art practice. That said, as Gia and I discussed, I’m not completely married to the idea. If my research takes a slightly different turn over the summer, I’m happy to follow that flow.
What I’m trying to avoid is becoming so rigid and fixed on one topic that I end up missing another line of inquiry - or even skipping over a book chapter because it doesn’t seem 100% relevant, only to realise later it held a gem that could have changed the direction of my work entirely.
With writing, I always find it easier to get as much down on paper as possible to start with. That gives me the freedom to edit, pare back, or add new things later. It’s far less daunting when you’ve already got a few hundred, or a thousand, words to play with, rather than starting from a blank page.
The session with Gia gave me a grounded sense of confidence in my own writing, helping to unpick some of the anxieties I’ve carried from my school experience. Our conversation also gave me a real feeling of freedom and permission to explore as much as I want, without limiting myself too soon. Even if something doesn’t end up in this research paper, it might still be valuable later on, either in my broader thinking or in my art practice.
I sometimes think of my brain like a rabbit warren: a million trains of thought all running at once, sparking new ideas as they hit different points or cross over with one another. I’ve always thrived in situations where there’s an unspoken freedom to experiment, with autonomy over my own thinking and learning.
Gia has been brilliant, really motivating and helping to make me feel even more enthusiastic about the process. I feel like I’m making good progress and actually enjoying the writing side of the course, which is something that I haven’t always felt in the past with other courses.
My main worry now is keeping up this same momentum and energy over the summer holidays. We’re off until the end of September, and the next due date feels uncomfortably close to when we return. My plan, in a very loose sense of the word, is to stick to the same schedule I’ve been keeping during term time, to maintain some sense of progress in my writing and research, as well as in my art practice. There’s also a long list of things I want to read, and what feels like very little time to read them all.
For now, I’m going to try and focus on baby steps - chipping away at my slowly growing pile of books and making steady progress with my writing over the summer. I’m also going to be mindful of continuing with my art practice, so I don’t get completely pulled into the research paper alone.
