Tag Archives: academic writing

a note on acronyms

So have you seen that paper they mentioned in the meeting today? TL;dr TL? More like TMA;dr Eh? Exactly LOL. So there you have the issue with acronyms in a nutshell. As long as both parties understand the acronym and … Continue reading

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line editing – learning from editors

If you are writing a book, it is highly likely that the publisher will send your manuscript to an editor. Most academic publishers these days do not engage editors who do a lot of developmental and structural work. So it … Continue reading

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five focusing questions to kick off some writing

So you’re about to write a paper. Or a chapter. You’ve gathered together all of the stuff you think you need – analysed data, a short list of references to cite, some early jottings. Now you begin to think about … Continue reading

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revising – mark up your text to achieve focus

There’s so much to say about revising. Even though I’ve just published a book on revising – shameless plug – I still have things I want to say about it.   The key message in the book is that revising effectively … Continue reading

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cutting and pasting early text into the thesis – part 2.

So you are writing your thesis about the research that you have done. And what you write now is is likely to be a little different from the expanded proposal you wrote to confirm your candidature. And a little different … Continue reading

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getting to grips with PSA – Pre Submission Angst

Not everyone feels the same way about getting their thesis done. Some people can’t wait to submit. They are sick of it. They’re over it. The sooner they can get the text to something that their supervisor says is OK, … Continue reading

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writing on the fly

New year, new me. Well probably not. But 2023 me has been in a new place, working away from home and from the office. And I’ve been reflecting on what I want and need in order to write. I’m quite … Continue reading

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on alt writing

I was recently asked why I didn’t write more about other forms of writing. Why I so often wrote and blogged about the “gold standard”. Did I not think other ways of writing were important? Well yes I do, but … Continue reading

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the end of AcWriMo – now what?

It’s the end of the officially designated month of academic writing. I must confess to being a bit dissatisfied with what I’ve done. I do seem to have written a lot. But it’s been more like – some of this … Continue reading

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not writing as usual #AcWriMo

A lot of writing advice focuses on how to be more productive. Write more. Write fast. Write often. Write regularly. Write better. Do we really need this? Well, probably. Writing is important for getting a job, getting a promotion, getting … Continue reading

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