Hi, #AcademicTwitter! I just finished reading "How to Write a Lot" by Paul J. Silvia, PhD, and found it had a lot of tips that might be handy to others in the academic Twitterverse. So here you go: WRITING TIPS, A THREAD
@AcademicChatter @GradWriteSlack #AcademicChatter #phdchat
@AcademicChatter @GradWriteSlack #AcademicChatter #phdchat
1. Set aside a specific time to write. Try starting with 4 hours a week of writing time - you'll be amazed at how much you get done!
2. Writing is not just the typing of words - Silvia says “any action that is instrumental in completing a writing project counts as writing”, so get your journal-reading or number-crunching done in that time you’ve set aside for writing.
3. Use a whole writing session for developing/clarifying your writing goals. Make sure the goals are concrete!
4. Prioritize your writing. For grad students:
a) Projects with deadlines (like for classes and seminars)
b) Curricular writing (i.e. your thesis)
c) Professional publications
d) Any other writing projects
a) Projects with deadlines (like for classes and seminars)
b) Curricular writing (i.e. your thesis)
c) Professional publications
d) Any other writing projects
5. Monitor and collect data on your writing, so you can keep track of your progress. This can be metrics like how much you wrote, whether you met your goal, and so on.
6. Find accountability by making/joining a writing group! 3 components of a successful group:
a) Set concrete short-term goals and monitoring progress
b) Stick to writing goals
c) Reinforce good writing habits and intervene when someone is consistently not meeting their goals
a) Set concrete short-term goals and monitoring progress
b) Stick to writing goals
c) Reinforce good writing habits and intervene when someone is consistently not meeting their goals
(aside: in-person groups are great, but if that's not an option or you don't like talking to other humans face-to-face, there is @GradWriteSlack!)
7. Avoid trying to sound like an intellectual. There are technical terms you may need, sure, but where you can avoid needlessly using jargon and acronyms, do so.
8. Semicolons and dashes are not your enemies!
9. Write first, revise later. First drafts will never be perfect, so don’t expect them to be. Silvia says “your first drafts should sound like they were hastily translated from Icelandic by a nonnative speaker”.
10. Outlining is writing! (so write outlines!)
11. On journal articles: write expecting to be rejected. Journal acceptance rates are low, and researchers who publish a lot (even the most prolific ones) also get a lot of rejections.
12. Again, because it bears repeating: don’t wait to write until you feel like it - make a schedule!!
A book on academic writing may sound like it's boring to some, but I actually found this one really amusing and funny - and it's short, about 130 small pages! I hope you find these tips helpful, but I would also recommend reading the book yourself. 🙂
