Attachment
We are now at the fifth draft stage. We have a reasonably coherent piece of writing. You now start to become emotionally attached to this piece of writing, and it starts to represent you, and not your work. Remember, we don’t want that. This is just a piece of writing your supervisor is likely to pull apart because that is their job!
In any case, this is the day where you can legitimately start your polishing exercise. Polishing the idea, and polishing the text itself. Craft away. This is a joyous stage for those who have battled the urge to spend time perfecting - now is the time! Unleash your inner perfectionist monster and get going on the minutiae of polishing up sentences, words, tenses and crafting the whole piece into something you genuinely would not mind other people seeing. This is your time!
TODAY I WILL…
Read the paper, making check marks against imperfections;
Write for 2 hours minimum working my way down my checks of imperfections;
I WIL NOT…
Fiddle endlessly with the introduction whilst neglecting the rest of the text. Remember - work all the way to the end, and polish equally. Do your polish in one draft.