Mind Your Writing

How to be a Professional Academic Writer

Christian Wymann

• Publisher: Verlag Barbara Budrich
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9783847415930
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education Counseling

Um erfolgreich schreiben und publizieren zu können, müssen wissenschaftlich Schreibende sich über ihre Kompetenzen und ihre Rolle as Schreibende im Klaren sein. Sie müssen Grundsatzfragen über ihr Schreiben beantworten können, damit sie bewusste und strategische Entscheidungen treffen können. Nur so werden sie zu Schreibprofis, die ihren Beruf erfolgreich ausüben.

[11] 1. Why do you write?

Why, oh why! It sounds like a heretical question nobody asks themselves or others for fear of the writers’ inquisition. For many writers, though, this question could prove crucial. If you ask yourself this question from time to time, you will discover more about your motivation. Motivation is key when it comes to being happy with what you’re doing, and with being successful. Insufficient motivation will lead you in many directions, but ultimately not to where you’re meant to go. And even if you do end up in the right place, the process of getting there may have been a nightmare.

Remind yourself of something we all consider once in a while: life is short and anything can happen to end it. I know that sounds harsh; it’s nevertheless true for us all. And because life is so short, it’s a waste of your time and energy to spend it doing things that you don’t want to do. Hence the question: Why would you want to spend time and energy sitting in front of a computer screen or a piece of paper to write? Are there no other things that you prefer to be doing? I can think of many and yet I sit down regularly and write about things I know and have learned.

My motivation to write has changed many times since I became able to hold a pencil. From “I have to because my teacher says so” in primary school, to “I have to in order to get a decent grade” in high school, to “I have to and somehow also want to because I want to succeed in my studies” at university, to “I want to get a PhD” and eventually: [12] “I want to because I like the challenge and I want to communicate things that others can learn from.” If I can’t write on a regular basis – due to lack of a new topic to write about, illness, my kids sucking up my time and energy – I’m missing out on something and can become grumpy at times. Especially after having completed a book project without having something else to write, I suffer from Post Publication Depression. Thinking back to the times when writing felt like hell, this change in motivation motivates me even more.

So, again, why do you write? Is it for a degree, for reputation, because you have to (due to some extrinsic motivators), because it’s your life’s essence and without it you would shrivel up and die, or some other reason? No matter what motivates you or how your motivation changes over time, from project to project, you should be clear about it.

Your motivation may have two layers: a fundamental one that does not change for longer periods of time, on the one hand (my fundamental motivation has held true for the last six years), and a project-dependent motivation on the other. The latter will not likely conflict with your fundamental motivation, but may shift your focus.

Here’s an example of the second kind of motivation: one project motivates you because it offers an opportunity to communicate with influential experts in your field. Another feels like an obligation (your superior asked you to do it), although you see the potential for some kind of institutional kudos for it. Yet another project annoys you because it’s on a topic that you’re no longer actively researching or working on. You may be doing a colleague a favor and want to get it over with in order to spend more time on more motivating projects.

[13] Knowing your motivation for a new project and knowing if it goes against your core motivation puts you in a good position to stay true to your academic self (it sounds cheesy, I know), and to reject the project or modify it to the degree that fits your motivation.

[15] 2. What do you think your writing can do?

Does this question sound awkward or trivial? Then it’s definitely something that you need to consider at least once in your career as an academic writer. As far as I understand, many (novice) writers don’t have an adequate answer.

First, let’s ask this question in a completely different context: what do you think carpentry does? Yes, carpentry produces furniture, windows, doors and many other everyday things made out of wood and other materials (at least that’s what I understand as the son of a former carpenter). Of course, every carpenter would give you a more elaborate answer, but that’s what it boils down to.

First answer

So, what does writing do? What can your academic writing do? It certainly can’t produce the chairs and tables you’re putting your bottom and laptop on. What it does produce is nevertheless equally useful. Writing produces communication. I know that’s a self-evident statement, as you’re reading the very words that I have written, communicating my ideas to you. But do you apply this knowledge to your writing? Herein, I think, lies the crux.

Students and novice writers (as well as the old guard) need reminding that their writing should communicate [16] information to others, the writer’s audience. What many university curricula fail to include is teaching students to do just that. That’s why I want to make sure you know the answer to this ‘trivial’ question. With the wrong answer or concept, your writing might go awry – and you would never know why.

Writing in academia functions as a means of communication in order to address specific audiences about themes, problems, question, theses, hypotheses or insights. You not only want to talk to them at conferences and meetings, but through your elaborated and ‘disciplined’ writing. By writing you enter a conversation about a research topic with your own contributions. Failing to address your audience appropriately means you’re not playing the game of academic communication according to its rules. If you wrote only for yourself and tried to publish your text, you would fail. You have to make sure that you’re writing for others and taking your potential reading audience into account.

You see, the question isn’t that trivial after all. It’s, in fact, the backbone of science. If you want to participate in science, you have to communicate your research in some form and play according to the rules. Texts in the form of journal articles, books, book chapters and more represent the primary media of academic communication. Those who claim to have done research but didn’t or couldn’t communicate it properly won’t be seen as part of the scientific conversation. Be a pro, know what your writing can do, as well as why and how.

[17] A second answer

The first answer is likely something that many writers would eventually conclude. A second answer, however, will be equally relevant to you. Writing not only communicates information to others, it also helps you to record, work with and reflect information to yourself. Phrases such as “writing to learn” or “writing as research”/“research as writing” imply as much. Throughout the entire writing process, which we will look at in the next chapter, you’re using writing as a means for different ends. It’s a multifaceted tool that externalizes your thoughts, and allows you to forget and then return to the information.

Writing thus not only produces communication in the form of texts, but also represents the medium through which thoughts become communication for different purposes.

[19] 3. What does the term writing process mean to you?

You have heard the term writing process many times, I assume. Maybe you even used it when talking about what happens when you write – at least, I hope that that’s the case. Many of my clients know more or less what their writing process looks like. However, few of them would say that they consciously choose one way or another to navigate the process. That’s why I want you to think about it now; it could make a difference for the rest of your writing career.

Menace, joy or neither?

Before we dive into the details of the process, let’s answer the following questions: What are your thoughts in general about the writing process? Do you fear the process; see it as a menace? Or do you enjoy it and welcome the learning opportunities that it offers? Or are you indifferent and just want to get it over with? Do you have the same thoughts and feelings about each writing project or do they differ depending on the type of project? If so, what makes the difference?

Whatever you think or feel about the writing process, identifying it matters. It’s similar to the question of motivation: if you know how you feel and think about the upcoming process, you will be better prepared to deal [20] with problems that may arise which are caused by your thoughts and feelings.

Understanding the process and its components

What does the writing process imply or encompass for you? What are its components, phases or steps, however you want to name them? In order to answer these questions, it helps if you draw your typical writing process as schematically as possible. A flowchart or a comparable sketch on paper will do the trick. (Alternatively, you can draw the last writing process you went through.)

As I can’t see what you have drawn or whether you have simply doodled around a coffee stain on the sheet of paper next to you, I want to tell you what the writing process ideally includes.

• In the orientation and preparation phase you can figure out what you need to do. Either you will define the writing project yourself or you have received a writing task from someone else. In both cases, you need to make sure that you’re set to do the right thing. This means that you need information such as a deadline, an idea of whom you’re writing for (your audience), the length of the text, formal requirements, citation style and more. In this phase, you will plan the process ahead of time (hopefully), explore the research topic, problem or question for the first time, search for literature, and, if required, work on a proposal to be approved before you really start.

• [21] In the research phase you will need to do all sorts of research. Depending on the topic, your proficiency and the goal of the text, you can either read a bunch of books and papers or immerse yourself in the world of empirical research of some sort or another (doing interviews or surveys, crunching numbers and analyzing them statistically, etc.).

• In the structuring phase, you will need to determine how your text will be structured. The structure will depend on the discipline/research field or the requirements of a publication outlet or institution. As is widely known, people in the humanities need to come up with their own text structures; scientists mostly follow the same old tried-and-true IMRaD structure. If you belong to the lucky latter ones, don’t celebrate too early. You will still need to figure out how each of the parts of your paper will be structured internally.

• The phase many writers dread: the writing phase. In this one you will write a first draft. It sounds simple, I know, but lots of people find it painful.

• The revision phase allows you to work on your first draft. You will revise and rewrite parts, chapters or the entire text one, two, three times or more.

• A phase that many people forget about or neglect, but shouldn’t leave out, is the feedback phase. That’s when your colleagues and other peers tell you whether your text works the way it’s supposed to and what, in their opinion, you should change, avoid, think about, etc. This phase might be as painful as the writing phase, because it’s here that you will discover how much work you still need to do.

• [22] In the proofreading and formatting phase, you will do some more work on the final version of your text. This includes all the small stuff like checking grammar, typos, layout, improving the graphics and tables, checking the citations and so on.

• At the end, only one phase remains: the submission phase. Before you submit (or resubmit) your text, you will go through the requirements again, make sure that you’re sending the document to the right address, and check everything else that needs to be done, before you push the SEND-button (not many letter boxes involved anymore, I guess), and then start cheering.

I didn’t include all the other things that will happen when your text has been accepted. However, I think most of what happens between submission and publication could be squeezed into one of the phases mentioned so far.

Maybe you noticed that I didn’t number these phases. I tried not ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Imprint
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
• 1. Why do you write?
• 2. What do you think your writing can do?
• 3. What does the term writing process mean to you?
• 4. What’s your writing strategy?
• 5. How do you approach writing projects?
• 6. How much time do you need to write?
• 7. What’s your writing style?
• 8. What does text feedback mean to you?
• 9. What blocks your writing?
• 10. What are the Dos and Don’ts of academic writing for you?
• Now it’s your turn
• Acknowledgements
• References
• Index