Last week, I described how my thinking style influences & is influenced by my writing as I prepare to draft a paper for publication and how it differs from a friend's style. Coincidentally, I have come across a passage in Phillips and Pugh (1993) How to get a PhD, Open University Press that cites research by Lowenthal and Watson (1977) describing a similar distinction. (p. 58) In a study of 170 academic staff members, they identified two types of writers whom they termed serialists and holists. 'Serialists... see writing as a sequential process in which words are corrected as they are written and who plan their writing in detail before beginning to write. Holists... can only think as they write and compose a succession of complete drafts. In fact I think my style of writing for a publication overlaps between serialism and holism as I often plan my writing in detail before I write & I also write complete drafts. 

Best regards,

Sarah

PS I came across this quotation today. "A clever person solves a problem. A wise person avoids it." Albert Einstein. I like it as it communicates for me why starting from a problem in action research can be problematic and why starting from strength works - the main reason why I have shifted from using a living educational theory approach to an appreciative inquiry one in researching my learning and assisting teachers to research their learning. I was increasingly aware of getting hooked into solving 'problems' rather than thinking creatively and playfully. I find if I am 'stuck' when writing trying to solve why and work out what to do can engulf my creativity. If I step aside from looking at why a draft doesn't work and look for the sections that do work for me and do communicate what I want essentially want to write about, I redraft my paper with much more energy, motivation and attention. Spurred on by a feeling of achievement I am much more prepared to cut out or do a major rethink of sections that don't 'work'.