I am in the middle of editing my PhD thesis of over 80.000 words. Last year I published my first novel of 77.000 words. These two works are the most extended pieces I have written so far. So today, I will break down the similarities and differences I have noticed in the process of writing them.
Genres
The obvious difference is that my PhD thesis is non-fiction while my novel is fiction. In my PhD, every single sentence (unless it's clearly stated that it's my personal opinion or thoughts on the subject matter) must be fact-checked. And moreover, it should have a citation. It is not enough to write about the geomorphology of the caldera, for instance, you should also state where you got that information from, and that source should be legit. Many people cannot understand why it takes so long to write a thesis. Half of it is the fact-checking and defending your arguments. The other half of it is wallowing in self-doubt and in the fear that you might have gotten something wrong.
Of course, fact-checking is also part of writing fiction (you have to get medical/law/scientific/whatever-you're-writing-about right). You can't have a character falling off a cliff and then being totally fine in the next chapter, considering this character is an everyday person and not a witch/superhero/whatever-else. But the research is quite minimal compared to the PhD research (duh) and you are allowed to make up stuff. Making stuff up is prohibited and extremely frowned upon in a PhD.
Writing style
This brings me to the second obvious difference: a PhD is written in an academic style, while a novel is creative. There are some writing rules that apply to all genres. Academic writing is formal writing, but that does not mean it is dull writing. Active verbs are preferred to passive, just like in fiction. Redundant adverbs must be omitted. And every chapter should have a purpose. Some academics allow the use of "I", as long as it's not overused, but even when you're writing in the first person, you should always err on the side of formal. Whenever you're unsure, just go with formal. You can't go wrong with formal.
On the other hand, creative writing, is, um, creative. As long as you use correct grammar and punctuation, you are free to experiment with new ways of storytelling. It doesn't have to be in chronological order. It doesn't have to abide by very strict rules (although there are rules in literature and arts, you can't just go nuts). But in a novel, you are free to write the ending first and then work up the events leading to that ending. While in a PhD thesis, you are strictly forbidden to write the conclusions first, and then work up the data and theories that led you to that conclusion.
Discipline
Discipline, I have found, is the one thing that has helped me move forward in every difficult project I have undertaken. Without it, I don't think I would have finished my novel during the busiest period of my life so far. And without it, writing my thesis would have taken much longer. There were days when I didn't want to write my novel, but I hit my word count anyway. And there were days when I didn't want to work on my thesis anymore but I did it anyway. Just like other people go to their office, day in and day out, whether they want to or not, I sat and worked on my project either way. Because at the end of the day, it was my project, and no one could do it for me. Discipline, contrary to popular belief, is part of self-love, but it requires routine. If you stick to your schedule during working hours and rest during leisure hours, there is minimal risk for burnout and your future self will thank you.
Writing goals
Writing goals are important both in fiction and non-fiction. They should be small enough to keep you motivated to write without causing burnout, and big enough to manage progress. Writing 100 words a day is probably too small a goal, while writing 5000 words a day is too big. What worked best for me was setting a goal of 750 words a day. That was enough to keep flow without dragging the last couple of hundred words. Of course, this might not work for everyone, and depending on how much time you have available, you may write 400 words, 3 pages, or for a straight hour. In my PhD, when I had to work on graphs and bibliography and anything that doesn't count as pure "writing" it helped me to set a time limit instead of a wordcount limit.
Self-doubt
Writing produces self-doubt. Sometimes writing stems from self-doubt. I have never met an author too confident in their work, and have also never met a PhD too confident in theirs either. Some confidence is achieved along with the milestones accomplished, but you can never be sure if what you're writing is worth reading. This is something I work on everyday, but at 29 I still haven't found the courage to speak about my writing. And only recently I realized how I would go out of my way to avoid talking about both my PhD and my books to other people. Is there something wrong with me or is this combination of writer-PhD deadly? Am I broken?
All writing takes a long time
Easy reading is difficult writing. And if I may add: easy reading is a hell lot of editing. Producing a good book (a PhD thesis counts as a very complicated book project) takes a lot of time. Even if you're a fast writer and could get the word count down in just a couple of months, the editing process is hell. Personally, I enjoy the editing process. I see it as working out. In the moment, working out might seem like a chore, but in the long run, you get stronger and healthier. Just like that, with editing, each session might be painful, but at the end, you will have a very much decent manuscript. And a pretty decent manuscript is so much worth the hell you put yourself into. And if there's one thing I would like to put out there in case you're new to writing (whether it be fiction or non-fiction): it pays to be ruthless with your editing. To paraphrase Stephen King, "write for yourself, edit for the reader". Your final manuscript is a product. Your final manuscript has nothing to do with you. Respect your reader by providing your best work. And remember to judge the manuscript only, not yourself.
Progress over perfection
A PhD, a novel, and every great project out there takes time. They take years to complete. And thus, progress is more important than perfection. If you aim for perfection, chances are you are never going to get there. There is always something you could change, something you could improve, and so your work will never be perfect. My personal preference is 75-80% perfect. If I'm at 80% of what I would call perfect, I'm okay with that. I'm ready to share it with the world. Of course, as I grow as a writer, my perception of perfect changes, the bar is set higher each time and as a result, 75% of a perfect manuscript last year is not the same as 75% perfect manuscript this year. But before you get to that 75-80% perfect, you have to have completed the manuscript. So allow yourself to make progress, slow or fast, allow yourself to write a shitty first draft, and then worry about how to get it to its best version.
Sometimes when I run through my manuscripts I feel like different people have written them, even though they both came from me. Although these are two very different kinds of writing experiences, I have to admit that writing my PhD and writing my novel are kind of intertwined within me. There were times when I wrote more creatively in my thesis, whenever it was acceptable, and there where times when learning how to do research helped me in my novel (and my later writing projects). These two parts of me are not separate aspects of me. They have mingled and leeched into each other, and I hope that writing stories helped me write my PhD, and I hope that doing a PhD helped me become a better writer.
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