unfairletgo

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openup.
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ukCoverillustration–JohnMcFarlaneCoverdesignHybertDesignwww.
hybertdesign.
comTheHandbookofAcademicWritingRowenaMurrayandSarahMooreMurrayandMooreAFreshApproachAFreshApproachTheHandbookofAcademicWritingTheHandbookofAcademicWritingTheHandbookofAcademicWritingofferspracticaladvicetobusyacademicswhowant,andareoftenrequired,tointegratewritingintotheirworkinglives.
Itdefineswhatacademicwritingis,andtheprocessofgettingstartedthroughtocompletion,coveringtopicssuchas:GainingmomentumReviewingandrevisingSelf-disciplineWritingregularlyWriters'groupsandretreatsAcademicwritingisoneofthemostdemandingtasksthatallacademicsandresearchersface.
Insomedisciplinesthereisguidanceonwhatisneededtobeproductive,successfulwriters;butinotherdisciplinesthereisnotraining,supportormentoringofanykind.
Thisbookhelpsthoseinbothgroupsnotonlytoimprovetheirwritingskillsandstrategies,but,equallyimportantly,tofindsatisfactioninengaginginregularandproductivewriting.
Underpinnedbyadiverserangeofliterature,thisbookaddressesthedifferentdimensionsofwriting.
ThefreshapproachthatMurrayandMooreexploreinthisbookincludesdevelopingrhetoricalknowledge,focusingonwritingbehavioursandunderstandingwritingcontexts.
Thisbookwillhelpwritersinacademiccontextstodevelopaproductivewritingstrategy,notonlyforresearchmonitoringexercises,butalsoforthelongterm.
RowenaMurrayisaReaderintheDepartmentofEducationalandProfessionalStudiesattheUniversityofStrathclyde.
Sheregularlyfacilitatesarangeofinnovativeandinformativeprofessionalworkshopsandseminarsdesignedtohelpacademicstodevelopandenhancetheirwriting.
SheisalsotheauthorofHowtoSurviveyourViva(OpenUniversityPress2003),WritingforAcademicJournals(OpenUniversityPress2004)andHowtoWriteaThesis,2ndedition(OpenUniversityPress2006).
SarahMooreisDeanofTeachingandLearningattheUniversityofLimerickinIrelandandamemberofIreland'sHigherEducationAuthority.
Ateacherandresearcherintheareaoforganizationalbehaviouranddevelopment,shehasusedtheprinciplesofthisdisciplinetohelpdevelopeffectiveacademicpracticesandprocessesbothwithinandbeyondherowninstitution.
Shehasdesignedanddeliveredninededicatedwriters'retreatsforacademicswithinthelastfiveyears.
SarahisalsotheleadauthorofHowtobeaStudent(OpenUniversityPress2005).
Ifyouhavetroublefittingwritingintoanalreadybusyschedule,thenthisisthebookforyou!
TheHandbookofAcademicWritingAFreshApproachTheHandbookofAcademicWritingAFreshApproachRowenaMurrayandSarahMooreOpenUniversityPressMcGraw-HillEducationMcGraw-HillHouseShoppenhangersRoadMaidenheadBerkshireEnglandSL62QLemail:enquiries@openup.
co.
ukworldwideweb:www.
openup.
co.
ukandTwoPennPlaza,NewYork,NY10121-2289,USAFirstpublished2006CopyrightRowenaMurrayandSarahMoore2006Allrightsreserved.
Exceptforthequotationofshortpassagesforthepurposesofcriticismandreview,nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inanyform,orbyanymeans,electronic,mechanical,photocopying,recordingorotherwise,withoutthepriorpermissionofthepublisheroralicencefromtheCopyrightLicensingAgencyLimited.
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AcataloguerecordofthisbookisavailablefromtheBritishLibraryISBN-10:0335219330(pb)0335219349(hb)ISBN-13:9780335219339(pb)9780335219346(hb)LibraryofCongressCataloguing-in-PublicationDataCIPdataappliedforTypesetbyReneCatchLimited,Bungay,SuffolkPrintedinPolandbyOZGrafS.
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plForGerandMoragContentsAcknowledgementsviiiPrefaceixPartI1Deningandunderstandingacademicwriting32Advancingyourwriting:Starting,gainingmomentumandengagingcreativelyintheacademicwritingprocess203Retreating:Reviewing,revising,craftingandenhancingyourwriting364Disciplinarityinacademicwriting54PartII5Retreatingtoadvance:Planning,runningandparticipatinginwriters'retreatsforacademics736Awritingforpublicationprogramme907Writers'groups109PartIII8Redeningacademicwritingpractices1319Integratingwritingintoyourlife14310Usingwritingtoreconcileteaching–researchtensions15911Advancingandretreating:Theessentialdynamicofacademicwriting175Bibliography184Index191AcknowledgementsWewarmlythankallofthefollowingcolleaguesandfriends:MauraMurphy,SarahMacCurtain,AngelicaRisquez,NyielKuol,HelenaLenihan,MargeryStapleton,EoinReeves,EoinDevereux,LizDevereux,JillPearson,MikeMorley,NoreenHeraty,GaryWalsh,HarrietCotter,KarenYoung,TerryBarrett,GearldineO'NeillandAlisonFarrell.
Wearegratefultothosewhotooktimetodiscuss,readandcommentonourwriting-in-progress,includingDonaldGillies,BillJohnston,CarolineParker,ChristineSinclairandMoragThow.
Finally,particularthankstoalloftheparticipantsoftheUniversityofLimerickandUniversityofStrathclydewriters'groupsandwriters'retreatswho,since2001,havebeensharinganddevelopingtheiracademicwritinginwaysthathavecreatednewcommunitiesofpracticeatouruniversitiesandbeyond.
PrefaceIfyouareanacademic,thechancesarethatyourcareerdevelopmentisdenedbywhatyouwrite.
Thissimplefactisoftenthebasisofacynicismandhostilitywithintheacademicworld.
Despitetheinevitableproblemsassoci-atedwithhowwritingisevaluatedandrewardedacrossthedisciplines,aca-demicwritingcontinuestobeseenasthefulcrumonwhichmanyotheraspectsofscholarshipdepend.
Inlightofthis,itisextraordinarythattheprocessofacademicwritingcontinuestobeanunder-explored,unexaminedandpoorlyreected-uponprocess.
Ifitisaprocessthatliesattheverycentreofacademicperformanceandsuccessforbothacademicteachersandtheirstu-dents,thensurelyitsdynamicsandchallengesneedtobesubjectedtomorethoroughanalysis.
Thisbookengagesinthatanalysisinordertoprovideanempoweringframeworkforacademicwriters.
Itaimstohelpyoutodevelopeffectiveapproachestoyourownwritingchallenges.
Itoffersinsightsandlessonsthatwethinkwillbeparticularlyusefulforthosewhoarenewtotheacademicenvironment,butwillalsohelpwiththere-conceptualizationofwriting-relatedissuesforthosewhohavebeenoperatinginacademicenvironmentsforsometime.
Academicwritingisoftenahighlyproblematicbutalwayspotentiallytrans-formationalactivity.
Despitethegreatdiversitywithinandbetweendifferentacademicdisciplines,severalcommonthemesareassociatedwiththeexperi-enceofwritinginacademia.
Itisoftenencounteredasaprocessthatisfullofparadoxes.
Thisbookaimstoidentifyandexplorethosecommonthemesandtohelpyou,theacademicwriter,toaddressandresolvetheparadoxesforyourself.
Itwilldothisinawaythatcanalsohelpyoutobecomeamoreproductive,effectivewriterwithhealthier,morepositiveapproachestowhatitmeanstobeanacademic,andmoreparticularlywhatitmeanstobeawriterofacademictext.
Whetheryouarewritingyourdoctorate,planningajournalarticle,strugglingwithreviewers'comments,ordraftingaresearchproposal,thisbookwillhelpyoutomakemoreeffectiveprogress.
Itwillhelpyoutodeviseastrategythatwillreachbeyondanyindividualwritingtaskandtodevelopanintegratedapproachtoyourlifeasanacademic,inwhichwritingplaysacentralrole.
PerspectiveandbackgroundoftheauthorsWearebothexperiencedintheprocessofacademicwritingwithinourowndisciplinesandhaveworkedwithacademicwritersformanyyears.
Duringthistime,wehaveidentiedarangeofcommonfearsandproblemsthatpeoplebringtotheacademicwritingprocess.
Wehavefacilitatedandwitnessedavarietyofwaysinwhichacademicscanexperienceimportantbreakthroughsintheirdevelopmentaswriters.
Ourmotivationinwritingthisbookistosharetheapproachesthatwehavefoundcanhelptocreatemoreproductivewritinghabitsamongacademics.
Indoingthis,wealsoexplorethevaluesandideasthatwebelievearenecessarytounderpineffectiveacademicwriting.
TheimportanceoftheiterativenatureofwritingTheideaofwritingbeingdrivenbyaniterativedynamiciscentraltoallofthethemesthatweexploreinthisbook.
Weseeacademicwritingasbeingcharac-terizedbyadynamismthatisessentialbutoftenfrustratingforthosewhoarechargedwiththeresponsibilityofdoingit.
Wedemonstratethateffectivewritersmustwaneaswellaswax,ebbaswellasow,gobackaswellasgoforward.
TheseideaswillbemorefullyoutlinedinChapters1,2and3,whereacademicwritingisdenedindetail,andwheretheiterativecharacteristicsofwritingareexplored.
Webelievethatitisimportanttounderstandwritingparadoxesinyourdevelopmentasanacademicwriter.
Onceyouexploreandacceptthepara-doxicalnatureofwriting,andoncethisislesssurprisingtoencounter,itmaybepossibleforyoutoconfrontthechallengesofacademicwritinginsomenewandinterestingways.
Problemswithwriting–problemswiththeacademyTheproblemsassociatedwithacademicwritingarethosethathauntthemanycreativeactivitiesthathavebecomehighly'transaction-based'inorganiza-tionalsettings.
Therewardsassociatedwithproductiveacademicwriting,andthesanctionsassociatedwithalackofit,increasinglyformabackdroptoacademiclifethatisoftenexperiencedasstressfulandthreatening(Chandler,BarryandClark,2002).
Writingcanbedrivenbyanegativeethic,andonethatislinkedtoa'deciency'modelofprofessionaldevelopment.
'UnlessyouhavexPREFACEaPhDyoucan'tbealegitimateacademic'.
'Unlessyoupublishregularlyinarangeofidentiedjournals,youwon'tbepromoted.
''Unlessyoubringinsomuchresearchfundingtoyourdepartment,youwon'tbeavaluedmemberofyouracademiccommunity.
'Theseareoftenseenastherealitiesofacademiclife.
Partsofacademiamaystillofferaprivilegedexistence,butincreasinglyitcomeswithaprice.
Andpartofthatpricemaybeexpressedasthepressuretowrite.
Manytalkaboutcompetitionbetweencolleaguesthatgivesrisetodysfunctionallycut-throatdynamics.
Manylamentthatindividualistic,non-collaborativebehaviourisrewardedandendorsedwhentheyfeelthatuniversitylifeshouldbeencouragingjusttheopposite.
Positivewritingenvironmentscanenhancethepossibilitiesassociatedwithsharingideas,collaborating,teaching,researchandlearning.
Likeseveralcommentatorsinacademicenvironments,wethinkthatitistimetoreframethenatureofacademicwriting.
Formany,academicwritinghasbecomeathorninthesideoftheacademy,insteadofthegluethatholdseveryonetogether.
Itcanbearguedthattheemergenceofthe'newpublicmanagement'andthemanagerialistprocesseswithwhichcorporatevalueshavebeenimplementedhaspreventedacademicwritingfrombeingaprocessthroughwhichlearningandscholarshiparenour-ished,andthroughwhichpositivedialoguewithinandbetweendisciplinesisinitiatedandsustained.
Webelievethatitisstillpossibleforacademicwritingtorepresentaroutethroughwhichteaching,learningandresearchinuni-versitiescanbemoremeaningfullyunited.
Wethinkthatreconceivingwritinginmorepositive,collaborativewaysoffersimportantsolutionstomanyoftheproblemsthathauntcontemporaryuniversitysettings.
Fromtheperspectivesofindividualacademicsandfromthoseoforganizationaldevelopersinuni-versities,weproposethatthisbookoffersasetofimplementableinterventionsthatcouldhelptogiverisetothedevelopmentandsustenanceofhealthierapproachestowriting.
InuencesfromothereldsofinquiryIndevelopingourideas,werefertoarangeofbothestablishedandemergingideasfromvariouselds.
Weexplorethefactthat,separatefromtheexternalrewardswithwhichitmaybeassociated,writingcanbesatisfyingandpleasur-ableinitsownright.
Werefertoconceptsof'ow'(Csikszentmihalyi,1990)whichdenehowsheer,unselfconsciousdelightcanbeassociatedwithexceptionalperformanceandtheactivitythatisrequiredtoachieveit.
Werefertotheideathat'transaction-oblivious'orientationslikethoseassociatedwithnaturalplayarethosethatcandirectustowardstheachievementofhealthyandmoremeaningfulpatternsofacademicwriting.
Weshowthroughourownexperiencesandthroughtheaccountsofothers(forexampleGrantPREFACExiandKnowles,2000),thatwritingcanbecomeapleasurableactivity,evenforacademicswhodreadtheprocessandinitiallyfeelalackofcondenceandcompetencewhenitcomestowritingwithintheiracademicdisciplines.
Wealsobelievethatmanypopularideassuchasemotionalintelligence(Goleman,1995),stressmanagement,self-esteem,careerdevelopment,andtheprinciplesofmentoring,networkingandcoachingcanallbeincorporatedmoresuccessfullyintobothindividualandgroupstrategiesfordevelopingacademicwriting.
Inthisbook,wewilldescribearangeofinterventionsthroughwhichthiscanbeachieved.
AnoverviewInPartI,wepresentacontextualizedanalysisofacademicwritinginuniversityandotherthird-levelsettings.
Chapter1setsthescenebydeningandexploringimportantaspectsofacademicwriting.
Weexploretheiterativenatureofwriting,whichwearguecharacterizesallwriting,andweunravelsomeoftheparadoxesthatareaninevitablepartoftheprocess.
Byanalysingwritingparadoxes,wepresentamatrixforthedevelopmentofwritingstrategiesthatcanformausefulframe-workforbuildingpositiveapproachestowritingwhileavoidingunhelpfulroutinesandhabits.
Chapter2focusesoninitiatingcreative,energizedandcondentapproachestoacademicwriting.
Theactof'advancing',orsteppingforward,isdenedasaphaseinwhichideasareplentifulandwhenalargerangeofpossibilitiesandalternativesliesinfrontofthewriter.
Thisorientationrequirespreparationandplanning,andyouwillbeintroducedtotechniquestogenerateandfreeupyourthoughtprocesses.
Youwillbeencouragedtoexplorethepositivedimensionsofthe'creativephase'aswellastounderstandthatthisphasecanalsobeassociatedwithproblemssuchasthoseassociatedwithdisorganization,chaosandinformationoverload.
Chapter2endswithaseriesofpracticalideasabouthowwriterscangetreadytostepforwardintheiracademicwritingprocesses.
InChapter3wediscusswhyretreating,orsteppingbackandregroupingaftersustainedadvancesinwriting,isanessentialpartoftheprocess.
Inthatchapter,wealsoprovideananalysisofwhatretreatingfromyourwritingrequires.
Retreatingmaybeinitiatedbyyourownindependentdiscoveriesorasaresultofcriticalinsightsfromsomeoneelse.
Chapter3alsopresentsastructuredstrategyfordevelopinghealthyattitudesandresponsestocriticism.
Youwillbeencouragedtoexplorehowtomakethemostofsteppingbackfromyourwritingbyunderstandingthepositiveandnegativeexperiencesassoci-atedwiththisphase,andbydevelopingeffectivemethodsofre-evaluatingyourwriting.
Chapter4explorestheimportanceofunderstandingyourownparticularacademicdisciplinewhenyouaretargetingtheplacesinwhichyouxiiPREFACEhopetohaveyourworkpublished.
Itidentiescommonanddistinctivefea-turesofscholarshipandproposesspecicwaysinwhichthesefeaturescanbeincorporatedintoyouracademicwriting.
PartIIprovidesdetailsofthreeinnovativeapproachestodevelopingaca-demicwritinginthird-levelsettings.
Chapter5describestheconceptualandpracticalconsiderationsassociatedwithrunninguniversity-based'writers'retreats';Chapter6providesdetailsofastructured'writingforpublicationprogramme';whileChapter7explorestheparametersassociatedwiththeestablishmentofwriters'groupstoenhanceanddevelopeffectiveacademicwriting.
Chapter8explorestheinsightsgainedfromtheseinstitutionalinnovationsinordertoredeneandreconceptualizewritingpracticesinacademia,withparticularreferencetotheimportanceofcommunity-based,collaborativelearningbothforfacultyandstudents.
PartIIIfocusesonhowyoucanrenegotiateyouracademiclifeinveryprac-ticalways,ensuringthatwritingoccupiesacentralpartofyourprofessionallife,linkingpositivelywithawholerangeofotherimportantactivities.
Weshowthatbybecomingamoreproductivewriter,youcanenhanceyourrolesasateacherandascholar.
Wesuggestthatinordertoproceedwithyouracademicwriting,itisusefultoengageinaseriesofnegotiationsthatrecog-nizenotjustyourresponsibilities,butalsoyourrightswithinyourownuniquenetworkofprofessionalandprivatesupport.
Thenalchapterofthisbookpullstogetherthestrandsandthemesthathavebeenexploredtopresentpracticalmodelsofacademicwritingthatcanactasguidestohelpyoutoputacademicwritingincontextandmanageitspeaksandtroughseffectively.
Someoftheideaswepresentinthisbookaresimpleandself-evident.
Somewillprovideyouwithstrategiesthatyouhaveneverthoughtofbefore,butwhichwehopeyoucaneasilyandrapidlyadopttohelptodevelopyourwriting.
Moresimply,though,allofthemencourageyoutoenjoythejourney.
Theyurgeyoutostopalwayslookingatyourwatchandtoavoidtheconstanttemptationtomeasurethedistancebetweenyourcurrentpositionandyourultimatedestination.
Themoreyoufocusonthejourneyanditsintricaciesandsights,thefasterandmoreexcitingthejourneywillfeel.
Ifyoustrugglewithacademicwriting,orassociateitwithatleastsomebadexperiences,wehopethatthisbookwillhelpyoutoreframetheaspectsoftheacademicwritingprocessthatyounddifcult.
Ifyouhavealreadygainedagoodcommandofyouracademicwriting,wehopethatsomeofthereectionsinthisbookwillhelptogenerateevenmorecomfortablewritingroutinesandtoenhanceyourapproachfurther.
Ifyouareinterestedinhelpingotherstodeveloptheiracademicwriting,thenthisbookwillalsoprovidesomeinsightsforyoutoconsider.
Throughoutthisbook,weencourageacademicwriters,educationaldevelopersandteachersofacademicwriting,toconsiderideas,rhythmsandroutinesthattheymaynothavepreviouslyconsideredinthiswayorthisdeliberately.
Importantly,ifyouapproachwritingasalinear,step-by-stepprocessandyoucan'tbearthethoughtof'goingback'torevisitandtore-evaluateyourwriting,thenwehopethatthisbookwilloffersomePREFACExiiiworkablealternativesthatwillfeedanddevelopyourapproachasawriter.
Wehopethatthereections,strategies,guidanceandadvicethatthisbookcontainswillhelptomakeyouracademicwritingeffective,pleasurableandsatisfying–characteristicsthatshouldbecentraltotheexperienceofacademiclife.
xivPREFACEPartIIngettingtogripswiththeprocessofacademicwriting,ausefulstartingpointistoexploreitsnature,phasesandcharacteristics.
Ifweknowmoreaboutthecomplexitiesoftheprocess,itmaybethatwecancometotermswiththechallengesofthecontent.
Theserstfourchaptershavebeenwritteninordertoengageinadeeperanalysisofwritingparadoxes,writingtimeslots,writingprogressionandwritingregression.
Gettingusedtotheideathatwritinghasitsinherentcomplexitiesandrhythmsis,wethink,ausefulthingtodo.
Sothisrstpartofthebookrecognizesthatwhileeverysinglewritingtaskwillhaveitsownuniquecadencesandrhythms,therearecharacteristicsofacademicwritingthatarecommontomanypeople'sexperience,thecentralelementsofwhichwehavetriedtocaptureinthispartofthebook.
1DeningandunderstandingacademicwritingIntroductionTheiterative,continuousnatureofacademicwritingExploringtheparadoxesofacademicwritingTacklingwritingtimeframesWritingexercisesGuidancefordeningyourownwritingchallengesIntroductionThischapterprovidesaframeworkforexploringthedynamicsandparadoxesofacademicwriting.
Itpresentsguidelinesthatcanhelpyoutoanalyseyouracademicwritingprocesses,butalsoemphasizesthatnoamountoftheorizingandintellectualizingofwritingisgoingtomakemoresuccessfulwritingpat-ternsunlessaccompaniedbyanundertakingtoengageinpracticalstrategiesandtoplaneffectivewritingtactics.
Equally,though,inordertogeneratepracticalapproachestowriting,wehavefoundthatacademicwriterscanbenetfromexploringsomeofthecontradictionsandparadoxesassociatedwiththeacademicwritingprocess.
Academicswhohavetakenthetimetoparticipateonourwritingprogrammeshaveoftenreportedthatexaminingwhatwritingmeanstothem,andanalysingitsparadoxesandcontradictions,helpsthemtogainmorecontroloverhow,whenandwhattheywrite.
Youmaynditusefultoo.
Alsoonceyouhaveexaminedmorecloselythethingsthatbringyoutoawritingtaskandthethingsthattakeyouawayfromit,youmaysimplybeinabetterpositiontowriteproductivelyandwell.
Exploringwritingcomplexitiesandparadoxesmighthelpyoutomakemoresenseofyourexperiencesofwritingandgainmorecontroloveritsassociatedprocesses.
Writinghasoftenbeendescribedasademandingandsometimestroublesomedimensionofacademiclife.
Analysingitscomplexitiesandpara-doxesmayhelptoshedmorelightonwhythisisthecaseformanyacademicsinmanydifferentcontexts.
Inordertoexploreandhighlightthecomplexitiesandparadoxesthatareassociatedwithwriting,werstexploreitsiterative,continuousnature,emphasizinghowimportantwethinkitistotreatacademicwritinginarecur-siveway.
Weexplorewritingparadoxesinanefforttoexplicatetheupsanddownsoftheacademicwritingprocess,andweprovideamorepracticalframeworkwithinwhichtomanagethoseparadoxesbyintroducingtheideaofoutlininganddesigningshortburstsofeffectivewritingintobusyacademiclifeaswellasavailingofopportunitiesforlongerperiodsofwriting,ifsuchopportunitiesarise.
Theiterative,continuousnatureofacademicwritingHoweverdifcultandcomplicateditmaybe,theprocessofbecomingawriterisanimportantjourney.
Itisajourneythatleadsustomanynewdiscoveriesaboutourselves,aboutourideas,abouttheworldinwhichwelive,andaboutourprofessionalidentitiesasacademics,teachers,researchersandscholars.
Choosingnottowriteinacademiashouldnotbeseenasaprincipledstandtoresisttheincreasingdemandsoftheacademy(thoughwecanunderstandwhypeoplewouldmakethatchoiceforthosereasons).
Rather,choosingnottowritecanbeconceptualizedasanimplicitacceptanceofanacademichalf-lifeinwhichone'slegitimatescholarlyvoicehasnotbeensufcientlyexer-cised,orrespected.
Toputitmorepositively,choosingtowriteinone'sareaofacademicexpertiseisanafrmativechoicethatannouncesbothyourcourageandactiveengagementintheworldyouhavechosentooccupy.
Therearemanywaysinwhichyoucanavoidpitfallsandfalsestartsinyourwriting.
Therearepracticalandpositivewaysinwhichitcanintegratewiththeotheractivitiesinyourlife.
Academicwritingcanbeconceptualizedlessas'jumpingthroughhoops'andmoreastheproactivepositioningofyouracademicvoice.
Byactivelyaddressingquestionsaboutyourwriting–'Howiswritinglearned''Howdopeopleorganizethemselvesinordertowrite''Whatarethecommondifcultiesthatpeopleencounter,andwhy''Andhowcanyoudevelopaworkableorientationtowardsacademicwritingthatallowsyoutotitintothecontextofyourbusyprofessionalandpersonallife'–youcanhelptopositionitasacontrollableandachievablepartofyourprofessionaldevelopment.
4DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITINGEssentialtoaddressingsuchquestionsistherecognitionthatwritingisnotasingle,homogenous,linearachievementtowardswhichyoustriveandatwhichyouonedayarrive.
Rather,itisthemanifestationofyourprofessionallearningjourneyanditis(oratleastitshouldbe)acontinuousprocessinvolv-ingreection,improvement,development,progressandfullmentofvarioustypesandinvaryingmeasures.
Itcontainsdifferentprocessesandphases,anditisanactivitythatcanhelptogreasethewheelsofyourprofessionallifeofallsortsofways.
Itisnotsomethingthatneedstointerferewithothergoalsorbepsychologicallydauntingeven(orperhapsespecially)whenyou'renotdoingit.
Focusingonthenecessarystagesandphasesofyourwritingandwhathap-penstoyouatdifferentpartsoftheprocessmayprovideyouwithimportantlearningmilestonesfromwhichyoucanbenetjustasmuchasyoucanfromanal,polishedwrittenproduct.
Ifyouconsiderthatwritingisaniterativeprocesswithphasesofprogressionandphasesofregression,youmightallowyourselftoconceptualizeyourownwritingchallengesmorefruitfully.
Reect-ingonwhatmanyresearchersandtheoristssuggestistheiterativenatureofwritingmayalsohelpyoutodeviserealistic,appropriateandultimatelypro-ductivewritingstrategies.
Ifyouhavealreadydevelopedstrategiesthatworkforyou,thenreectingontheprocessofwritingmayhelpyoutoenhanceandrenethemevenmore.
Yourwritingcanbeacompaniontoyourlearningratherthananimposingenemythatconstantlyneedseithertobeagonizinglywrestledorartfullyavoided.
Therearepleasurable,positivepossibilitiesembeddedineverywritingtask,nomatterhowoneroussuchtasksmaysometimesfeel.
Manycommentatorshavehintedattheparadoxesassociatedwithacademicwriting.
Givingtheseparadoxessomeexplicitattentionmayhelpyoutoknowwhattoexpectaboutthecontradictionsandcomplexitiesthatwritingsometimescontains.
Theebbsandows,andhighsandlowsofwritingarethingsthatyoumayalreadybefamiliarwith,ortheymaybediscoveriesthatarelurkingjustaroundthecorner.
Whetheryouareanexperiencedwriterorsomeonegrap-plingwithacademicwritingforthersttime,webelievethatitisimportantforyoutobeabletorecognizemanyoftheconundrumstheexperienceofwritingmaycontain.
Academicwritingisnottheprinteddisplayofone'sfullyformedthoughts.
Itstartswithawed,incomplete,vaguehunches,ideasandconcepts.
But,ifyouexploititsinherent'revisability',itallowsyoutocomefullcircle,torevisitideaslongafteryourstthoughtofthem,toexplorethesamethingsindifferentways,toexperiment,torevise,torepeatandtoreconceptualize–allofthesearearguablycentraltotheessenceofscholarshipwhichyouexerciseeverydayinotheracademictasksliketeaching,supervisionandguidingstudents.
Evenifyourgoalistoproduceaperfectpieceofwriting(animposingtargetthatmayprohibitinitialattemptsatwriting,butonethatmanywriterspursuenonetheless),thensurelyitistheimperfections,discoveriesandserendipitousTHEITERATIVE,CONTINUOUSNATUREOFACADEMICWRITING5loopsinwhichyoumustengagetoreachthatgoalthatareatleastasinterest-ingasyournaldestinationAsastartingpoint,weoftenencourageacademicwriterstotrytoenjoytheirwritingjourneysabitmorethantheyoftensaytheynormallydo.
Manycol-leaguesndthisideaimmediatelyappealing–asortofantidotetothenotionthatwritingispartofthedrudgeryofacademicwork.
Wheninvitedtocon-sidertheenjoyable,positive,creative,empoweringaspectsofacademicwrit-ing,manyofthemrespondbysayingthatevensimplyassociatingthesewordswiththeirwritingmakesthemfeelmorepositivelyorientatedthantheymightotherwisehavebeen.
Butnoteveryonerespondsinthisway,andperhapsyoudon'teither.
Inanysessionthatfocusesonthisorientation,somepeopletellusthatourencouragementisunrealistic.
Theysayitsoundsevangelicalandnotreectiveoftherealitiesinwhichtheywork.
Theysaythatacademicwritingisneitherapositivenoranempoweringexperienceforthem,andnoamountoftryingtoconvincethemthatitcanbewillchangethat.
Thesearereactionsthatwehavereecteduponandexploredinourworkaswritingdevelopers.
Suggestingthatwriting,eventhatwhichisextremelyscholarly,doesnotactuallyhavetobeafearsomegrindandthatformanywriterscanbecomejusttheopposite,issomethingthatseemstoconfrontarelativelycommonviewamongacademics,manyofwhomseewritingasanunpleasantbutnecessaryactivity.
Thisideaexistsacrossmanydifferentcol-legeanduniversitysettings.
Ourresponseisthis:ifwritingissomethingthatyouhavetodo,butsomethingthatyoudislike,perhapsitisworthexploringalternativeperspectives.
Perhapsitisworthanalysingyournegativeassoci-ationsinordertounderstandthembetter.
Andevenifyoudon'tparticularlydislikethewritingprocess,youmaystillhaveencounteredproblemsandpitfallsthatamorethoroughanalysisofwritingandofitsprocessesandparadoxesmighthelptoaddress.
ExploringtheparadoxesofacademicwritingWritinginvolvesstarting,progressingandnishingacomplicated,chal-lengingcombinationoftasks.
Itrequiresyoutoactivatelotsofdifferentskillsandorientations,sometimesatdifferentstagesandphasesintheprocess,sometimesallatthesametime.
Someresearchershaveclaimedthatwritingcanbeexperiencedasoneofthemostdifcultofallskills,requiringanintri-catecombinationofneurological,physical,cognitiveandaffectivecompeten-cies(see,forexample,Levine,2004).
Others(perhapsmostnotablyElbowandBelanoff,2000)claimthatevenifwritingmakescomplicateddemandsonyourskillsandabilities,itispossibletomakewritingeasy,oratleasteasyenoughforittofeelworthtacklingregularlyandwithgoodeffect.
6DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITINGWesharePeterElbow'soptimismthatallacademicscanwriteandthattheycanallwritewell.
Butthisdoesnottakeawayfromtheneedtorecognizethedifferentandcontradictorypushesandpullsassociatedwiththewritingprocess.
Writinginvolvesstartingandnishing,bothrequiringverydifferentkindsoforientation.
Writingrequireslisteningtoandbeingguidedbythevoicesofothers,butalsoitdemandsyourcondenceandyourwillingnesstopresentyourownvoice,yourownperspectivesandyourowninterpretations.
Writingofteninvolvesanintimatefamiliaritywiththeminutedetailsofaspecicpieceofwork,butitalsodemandsthatwepositiontheseminutiaeonabroaderstage,identifyingandexplainingconnectionsandcomparisonsinawidertheoreticalcontext.
Writingisnotjustinuencedbywhatweknowandwhatwehavediscoveredaboutaparticularphenomenon,itisalsoinuencedbywhatwefeel,andmoreparticularly,whatwefeelaboutourselves(Boice,1988).
Thecreativepartofwritingrequireschaos,serendipityandcoincidence;butinordertoshapeandcraftourwritingeffectively,itneedstheimpositionofatleastsomeorderanddiscipline.
Theimplicationsoftheseparadoxesareimportantandworthexploringinsomemoredetail.
Paradox1:ThestartingversusnishingparadoxManylecturers,professorsandacademicssitguiltilyonastoreofunnishedbusiness.
Theyhavewritingprojectsthattheystartedonce,perhapslongago,projectsthatmayhavehadmagnicentinitialmomentum,butforavarietyofreasons,theexcitementandenergyoftheearlyideaszzledoutandcametonothing.
Ofcoursesomeunnisheddoctorates,researchpapers,journalTheparadoxesofacademicwritingParadox1:ThestartingversusnishingparadoxParadox2:TheoriginalityversusconventionparadoxParadox3:ThelogicversusemotionparadoxParadox4:TheeasyversusdifcultparadoxParadox5:ThepublicversusprivateparadoxThestartingversusnishingparadoxexistsbyvirtueofthefactthattheskillsassociatedwithstartingawritingprojectarequalitativelyandradicallydifferentfromtheskillsyouneedtoactivateinordertoprogressandtocom-pleteit.
Startingawritingprojectisverydifferentfrompersistingandnish-ing,andthisfactisoftenthecauseofwritingobstaclesasthedemandsofmovingfromstartingtonishingbecomedifculttoovercome.
EXPLORINGTHEPARADOXESOFACADEMICWRITING7articlesandbookchaptersouttherewereterminatedfortherightreasons,butverymanymeritedacompletionthatnevermaterialized.
Manyofusstartourwritingprojectswithatleastsomeenthusiasmandself-belief,butthegoodintentionsandanimatedbeginningsdon'talwaystrans-lateintoanishedproduct,andasaresult,alotoftheworkthatwentintotheearlystagesofaprojectdoesnotbearfruit,atleastnotinanyexplicitorsatisfactoryway.
Whydomanyofushaveprojectsthatwestartbutdon'tnishAcademicwritingoftenleadspeopleintoazonethatcanbepsychologicallydangerous–azonethathumannatureimpelsustoavoid.
Thesedangersarenotnecessarilyapparentinitially,butcanbecomeveryobviousonceawritingprojectisunderway.
Unlessweriseaboveourinitialfearsandreactionsbybuildinginourown'safetymechanisms'toguideourwritingprojects,thingscanhappenthatleadustoabandonsomeofourmostpromisingwork.
Andindeeditiseasytobecomeoverwhelmedbycriticismatacrucialstageintheprocess.
Thiscanbeprecipitatedbythingslikebadreviewsorbysuddenlybeingchallengedtoansweracriticalorfundamentalquestionthatyouhadn'tpreviouslyconsidered.
Asyoubecomemorefamiliarwiththeeldinwhichyouarewriting,itispossibletodevelopadisillusionmentabouttheaddedvalueofyourworkthatcausesyoutocastasideaprojectaltogetherwhenasimplere-orientationcouldhaveturneditaround.
Alackofclarityabouttheconventionsofthegenrecansetyouback,andoftenitisdifcultnottoseparateyourwritingfromotherdimensionsofyouracademicorprofessionallife,makingitfeeldisjointedfromtherestofyourwork.
Atcertainpointsinthewritingprocess,youmightbetoohardonyourselfbyaiminghigherthanisappropriateforyourstageofdevelopmentorpre-maturelyexposingyourworktohighlycriticalreaders.
Conversely,inordertoprotectyourselffromexcessivecriticism,youcanbecometimidandunwillingtoexposeyourworktoscrutinythatmighthelptoimproveit.
Otherreasonsforstagnant,unnishedworkrelatetothecommonandinevitabledistrac-tionsoflifethattakeyouawayfromyourwritingprojectsforlongerthanyouhadexpected,onlytodiscoveronreturningthatyouhavelostwhateversparkitwasthatoriginallyencouragedyoutogetgoing.
Inaddition,someacademicsregularlysaythattheyhavebecomeverydis-enchantedwiththerequirementsandconventionsofacademicwriting,feel-ingthatitissomehowstranglingtheir'true'voicesinsofarasitseemstorequireastiltedandconstrainedwayofexpressingideas,andthatconformingtotheconventionalrequirementsof'genre'somehowunderminesintegrity.
Writingforacademiamaybeconceivedasagamethatsomesimplychoosenottoplay.
If,however,youfeelthatacademicwritingisimportanttoyou,eitherforpragmaticoridealisticreasons(orboth),itisvitaltorealizethattheseobstructionscanbenavigated,negotiatedandovercome.
Astartingpointmaysimplybetomakewritingsafe,oratleastsafeenoughforyoutokeepdoingit.
8DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITINGPerhapsinitially,themostimportantdynamicsforyoutoconquerarethosethatgetyoustarted,whateverthoseinitial,sometimeschaotic,sometimesstumblingeffortsrequire.
Butitisalsoworthrememberingatthoseinitialstagesthatthemaintenanceandnalclosureofyourwritingtasksrequireadifferentsetofdynamicsthatwillinvolverewriting,editing,revisitingandreconceptualizing.
Startingisonething,butnishingisentirelyanother.
Youneedtoorientateyourapproachestowritinginwaysthatwillhelpyoutodobothsuccessfully.
Paradox2:TheoriginalityversusconventionparadoxYoudoneedtorecognizethegenresandconventionsofyourdisciplineinaca-demicwriting(seeMurray,2004).
However,youneedalsotoguardagainstbeing'terrorisedbytheliterature'(Becker,1986)inwaysthatrobyouofyourownideasorthatmakeyoulesscondentaboutthethingsthatyouaretryingtosayinyourownwords.
Theparadoxoforiginalityandconventionsuggeststhatallacademicsriskbecomingengagedinanendless,defensivetrawlofthe'literature'inordertodemonstratethatwhatyou'resayingiscompletelyneworthatitllstheelusive'gap'thatisoftentheintimidatingholygrailofacademicpursuit.
Thisdynamiccancreateaninsurmountablewritingblockthatstandsimposinglybetweenyouandyoureffortstowrite.
Ononesideofthisparadoxistherealitythatifyouaretoodetachedfromtheliteratureorhalf-heartedinyoureffortstofamiliarizeyourselfwithit,thenyouruntheriskof'reinventingthewheel'and,moreimportantly,ofexposingyourselftotheunnecessarycriticismofmoreinformedcounterparts.
Ontheotheristhefactthatifyouaretooconcernedabouttheconventionsofyourdisciplineandthevoicesofthosewhohavecontributedmostconvincinglytoit,thenyouruntheriskofaligningyourworksocloselytoprevailinggiantsorpopularnamesinyoureldthatthereisreallynoroomleftforthefreshvoiceortheinterestinganglethatyoumightotherwisehaveadopted.
OfcourseyouneedtopayattentiontotheexistingliteratureintheeldyouTheoriginalityversusconventionparadoxreectsthedifferencesandtensionsbetweentakingininformationandputtingforwardorarticulatingideasofyourown.
Whenwritingyouneedtondyourownindividualvoiceinthemidstofothervoices,manyofwhichseemmoreexpertandmoreknowledgeablethanyourown.
Ofcourseotheracademicvoicesdoneedtobeinvokedwhenyouwriteandtheydoinformandnourishyourwriting,buttheyshouldnotdrown,smotherorsidelinetheessenceofyourowncontributions.
Itisperhapsthequestto'llagap'intheliteraturethatmakesacademicwritingsometimesfeelsodaunting,especiallyinacontextwhereconventionalwaysofexpressingideassometimesappeartoberigidandunyielding.
HowcanfreshideasandnewinsightsbeincorporatedintoawritingstylethattendstodemandsomuchconformityEXPLORINGTHEPARADOXESOFACADEMICWRITING9havedecidedtotackle,butyoualsoneedtorecognizethatyouarecapableofbringingsomethingnewandimportanttothatconversation.
Beinformedbytheliterature,notconstrainedbyit.
Beguidedbytheprevailingorestablishedvoicesbutnotenslavedbythem.
Listencarefullytothevoicesofothersandreadwhattheyhavewritten,butclearyourthroat,stretchyourngers,andpreparetotalkandwriteyourself.
Nomatterhowmuchyouconformtotheconventionsofyourdiscipline,itisstillpossibleforyoutomakeyourcontri-butionwithyourownuniqueandoriginalvoice.
Findingacondentvoiceinthegreatoceanofexistingvoicesisperhapsoneofthefundamentalritesofpassagethatacademicsneedtonavigate.
Thisriteofpassageisnevermoreobviousthanwhenyousitdowntowrite.
Paradox3:ThelogicversusemotionparadoxInourexperienceaswritingdevelopers,wehavefoundthatthelogicversusemotionparadoxisusuallymoreintenseandmoreimpactedthanacademicwritersareinitiallypreparedtoadmit.
Butthereisplentyofevidencetosug-gestthatitmaycausemoredifcultiesforacademicsthanmightrstappeartobethecase.
Duringtheprofessionalwritingdevelopmentworkshopsthatwehavefacili-tatedwithmanyacademicsfromallovertheworld,conversationsaboutthewritingprocesssoonerorlatertouchontheemotionaldimensionsofwritingforacademicaudiences.
Peopletalkaboutexperiencingemotionsasextremeasguilt,fear,anxiety,worry,angerandshamewhentheydelaytheirwritingorwhentheyfeelforwhateverreasonthattheiracademicwritingis'notgoodenough'.
Similarlytheytalkaboutjoy,satisfaction,curiosity,happiness,eveneuphoriaassociatedwiththesuccessfulengagementinandcompletionoftheirchallengingwritingtasks.
JustasBecker(1986),Boice(1997),Cameron(1999),GrantandKnowles(2000)andothershavefound,wecanonlycon-cludewhatweknewintuitivelyalready:writingisanissueoftheheartaswellasthehead.
Apublishedresearchpaperdoesnotdisplaythescarsthatitswriterincurredwhileproducingit(notbeingstainedwithblood,sweatortears–atleast,notusually).
Thenalproductdoesnotrevealtherealfrustrations,nordoesitexposetheconsiderableanxietiesorjoystowhichatleastsomeofitsexistencecanbeattributed.
Whenyoureadacademictextwrittenbysomeoneelse,youcanbedeceivedbyitsclarity,itsstructureanditscoherence.
Youmightassumethatitwasproducedeasilyanduently.
Thisassumptionislikelytobewrong.
Thelogicversusemotionparadoxiscontainedintherealitythatacademicwritersarerequiredtocastacoldandobjectiveeyeonthenatureandcontri-butionoftheirwriting,andyetitisimpossible(andalsoundesirable)toignoretheimportantemotionaldimensionthatcandrive,motivateandinuencewrittenworkinbothpositiveandnegativeways.
10DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITINGThebestwritingemergesfromthewriter'swillingnesstoaddresstheirownweaknesses,totakeonboardcriticismandtoredrafttheirworkseveraltimesbeforecompletingit.
Inordertoapplybothlogicalandemotionalintelligencetoyourwriting,it'sworthengaginginanefforttoincorporateemotionalawarenessintothewrit-ingprocess.
Thelogicaldimensionsofenhancingordevelopingawrittenpiecemaybesignicantlyblockedbecauseofouremotionalreactionsandassoci-ations.
Goleman(1995)remindsusthattoanyrelevantstimulusinourliveswehaveanemotionalreactionbeforeweapplyintellectuallogicorcognitiontoit.
Thiscanexplainsomeofthereasonswhysuggestionsforrevisionbypeerreviewersofwrittenworkcanbemisinterpretedorignored.
Keepinmindthataswellasthelogicassociatedwithyouracademicwriting(whichincludesaddressingquestionssuchas:whatistheevidencesupportingmyargument;whatarethebasesofmyconclusions;whataretheassumptionsuponwhichmyassertionsarebased;whatismyintellectualcontribution;andsoon),thereareotherimportantquestionsthatreecttheemotionalrelationshipyouhavedevelopedwithyourwriting.
Thesemightinclude:whataremyfeelingsaboutthispieceofwritinginparticular,orabouttheacademicwritingprocessingeneral;whyamIfeelinglikethisatthemoment;howcanIharnessmyemotionsinawaythatwillhelpmetomakeprogressonthis;issomeofwhatIamfeelingpreventingmefromtacklingcertainaspectsofthistaskamIunderparticularpressuretoproducescholarlyworkhowisthisaffectingthewayIfeelaboutmywritingtasksWe'renotsuggestingthatyoutangleyourselfupinpsychotherapeuticbabbleaboutwritingorbecomeself-indulgentabouttheprocessesthatitrequires.
Weare,however,assertingthatifyouignoretheemotionalaspectsoftheactofwriting,youmissoutonanimportantopportunitytobecomeamoreself-awareandreectiveacademicwriter.
Paradox4:TheeasyversusdifcultparadoxPeterElbowsuggestsavarietyofreasonswhyacademicwritingcanfeelhardandeasyatdifferentpointsinthejourneyorevenatthesametime.
Itishardbecauseofallofthethingsthatyouarelikelytothinkaboutwhenengagedinwriting.
Inacademiathisisparticularlytrue.
Therangeofaudiencesthatmightreadwhatyouhavewritten,thetypesofquestionsthatmightbeaskedorthingsthatmightbesaidaboutyourwritingandaboutyou,andthekindsofrewardsthatyoumightormightnotobtain,dependingonhowyourwritingisreceived,areallconsiderationsthatmight,attheveryleast,makeyoufeeluneasyasyouattempttocraftyourwriting.
Suchconsiderationsparalysemanypeople'seffortstobecomeproductiveacademicwriters.
ButifyoustripWritingcanseembotheasyanddifcultatdifferentstagesintheprocess,orevenatthesametime.
EXPLORINGTHEPARADOXESOFACADEMICWRITING11awaythesethingsandjustthinkaboutthesimpleactofwritingitself,youmightbeabletoseetheothersideofthisparadoxmoreclearly.
Writingcanbeeasy,andeventhoughtheremaybedifcultaspectsassociatedwithit,therearefeaturesofwritingthatmakedimensionsofitintrinsicallyeasy,oratleasteasierthanotherformsofexpression.
Firstly,nooneeverhastoseewhatyouhavewrittenifyoudon'twantthemto.
Andsecondly,youaremuchmoreincontrolofwhatyouwanttosaybecauseyoucandraftandredraftsomethinginawaythatisimpossibleduringaconversation,ameetingoralecture.
Perhapsakeystrategy,then,isforyoutobecomemoreknowledgeableaboutwhenyouneedtomakethewritingprocesseasyforyourself,andwhenyouneedtoencounteritsmoredifcultaspects.
Ifyoubecomemoreexplicitlyawareandreectiveofwhatphaseofthewritingprocessyouareinvolvedin,youwillbebetterabletocontrolandinject'easy'writingintothewritingmomentsinwhichyouneedakick-start,andtoaddress'difcult'writingwhenyouneedtocraft,clarify,informoradjustthetextyouhaveproduced.
Itispossiblethatyoucannavigatethe'easyversusdifcult'paradoxbyrec-ognizingthatdoingsomethingwitheasedoesn'tmeanthatitisnecessarilysimpleorunchallenging.
Easeimpliesenjoyment,poiseandcondence.
Thesearethekindsofstatesassociatedwithgainingprociencyinanytaskthatisimportanttous.
Inordertodevelopcommandoveratask,weneedtostartinwaysthatareeasy,oratleasteasyenough.
Paradox5:ThepublicversusprivateparadoxBoyer(1990)referstoscholarshipassomethingthatdemandspublicscrutiny,somethingthatisbyitsveryessencedenedbyaninherentopennesstocriti-cism,debateanddialogue.
Indeed,itcanbearguedthatifyouarenotpreparedtosubjectyourwrittenworktothescrutinyofothers,thenyou'resimplyinthewronggame.
Andtosomedegree,mostacademicsseemtohaveencounteredthisratheruncompromisingorientationtowardstheirwriting.
Ourworkinhelpingpeopletodeveloptheirwritingconrmsthat,againstthisDarwinianbackdrop,thereshouldbeprivate,protectedwritingplacesthatallowacademicwriterstobecomemoreaccustomedtotheheattowhichtheirworkmayultimatelybeexposed.
Toputitanotherway:academicwritingdoesn'tallhavetobereandbrimstoneassociatedwiththefearofinvokingthepotentialfuryofunknown,unnamedexpertswhoyouimaginearelaugh-ingmirthlesslyatyourbestefforts.
Ifyousetupspaces,timesandenviron-mentsforyourwritingthatareprivate,safeandsupportive,thenyoucanequipyourselfwiththearmourandcondenceyouneedwhenexposingyourworktomoreexactingcritics.
Ifyouco-optfriendlycriticsfromtheverystart,thenyoucanprovideabuilt-inantidotetothedangersandanxietiesofpublicInadesirablesociety,theprivateandthepublicritualsmustbothenhanceandrestrainoneanother.
(Norman,1995:85)12DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITINGscrutiny.
Publicscrutinyonlyfeelsdangerousifyouarenotequippedtorespondtoit.
Ifyouare,thenitcanbecomeanexhilaratingpartoftheprocessofscholarship.
Byrecognizingthatyouhaveatleastsomecontrolovertheprivacythatcanprotectyourearlywritingefforts,youcancontainyourfragileearlydrafts,whilealsobuildingyourownself-beliefthatallowsyoutoconsider'goingpublic'atsomespeciedpointinthefuture(Cameron,1999).
Onewayofdoingthisistoidentifytimeswhenprivatewritingcanfeedtheprocessmoreproductivelythanwritingforapublicaudiencewould.
Freewriting,atech-niquepopularizedbywritingexpertssuchasFlowerandHayes(1977),ElbowandBelanoff(2000),andMurray(2004),isastrategythatcangetyourwritingjuicesowing,andinvolvesshortprivatewritingsessions(5to10minutesinduration)inwhichyourespondinwritingtoyourownpromptsascontinu-ouslyaspossibleinordersimplytogetyourideasdownonpaper.
Thistypeofwritingignoresstructures,genres,andconventionsinordertogiverisetoamoreuentapproachtoanywritingtask.
Onceyougetusedtosettingupprivatespacesforyourwriting,inwhichyoumaybefreertoplayaroundwithideasandtohaveadialoguewithyourselfaboutyourperspectivesonasub-ject,youcanthenmakeadvancesbypickingwhichnuggetsinyourprivatewritingworldcantravelintoamorepublicdomain.
Asonewriterputsit:ThersttimeIwriteadraftofapaper.
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Itotallyletgoandrantandraveandsayunprofessionalthings,includingswearwords.
LaterIgobackandchangeittosomethingmoreacceptableformyacademicaudience.
Mytheoryisthatthenew,moreprofessionalwordswillstillcarrytheoriginalenergyoftherstdraft,andsoevenmynal'academised'versionwillhavemoreoomphthanifItriedtoohardtocontrolmyinitialreactionsthersttimeround.
(CassityviaElbowandBelanoff,2000:387)Rememberalsothatthebenetsofkeepingyourwritingtoyourselfhavebeenunderestimatedinacademicsettings.
Whileitisoftenusefultoshowyourworktopeoplewhocanhelpyoutoimproveit,wealsoknowthattherearetimeswhensuchexposurecanfeeldangerousandproblematic,andcanleadtoblocksthatmightnothaveoccurredifyouhadkeptitprivateevenforalittlelonger.
Itisimportantsometimestoletyourselfwriteinaprivatespacewhereanykindofscrutinyisnotaconsiderationoracauseofconcern.
AsRalphNorman(1995)putsit:[Sometimes]wewanttobeabletohidethepreciousinformationunderthejacket,ortoreaditinwhisperstothebeloved,ortoburyitforawhileinthevegetablegarden.
Partofwhatfreepeoplemeanbythefreedomofappearanceishavingthepowertoturnawaybetimesfromwherealltheothersare.
(Norman,1995:85)EXPLORINGTHEPARADOXESOFACADEMICWRITING13Thisisanimportantinsightforhelpingyoutoreectonyourwriting.
Ifyouaresoawareofthepublicperformanceoroutputatwhichyourwritingistargeted,youmayndthatyourvoicelackspersonalintegrityandbecomesnervousandself-conscious.
Butifyouareonlyimmersedintheprivate,solitaryprocessofwriting,itmaymaketheprocessof'steppingforward'almostimpossible.
Youcouldndthatsimplybeingawareofaneedtobalancethepublicandprivatedimensionsofyouracademicwritingenablesyoutomanageyourwritingwithmorecondenceandself-determination.
Allofthesewritingparadoxestendtobeunder-exploredandunspokeninacademiccontexts,andyettheymayhelpyoutondimportantkeystodevelopingamoreself-awareapproachtoyourownacademicwritingtasks.
Justbeingmotivatedtowriteisnotenough.
Webelievethatitisimportanttounderstandthedynamicsofacademicwriting,andthedifcultiesthatsuchdynamicscanpresentinthecontextofyourcareer.
Inordertodevelopmorecomfortable,regularandsuccessfulapproachestoyouracademicwriting,weencourageyoutograpplewiththesedynamicsandparadoxesandtoidentifywhichonesaremostrelevanttoyourexperiencesorplans.
TacklingwritingtimeframesWhenwehaveaskedcolleagueswhattheyneedinordertowrite,theyidentifyarangeofthingsthatwouldhelp,includingmentorsupport,training,inter-actionwithexpertsintheireld,conferenceattendanceandfunding.
Butbyfarthemostcommonresponsetheyprovidetothequestionofwhatwouldhelpthemtowriteis'moretime'.
Likeallareasofhumanendeavour,writingisinextricablytimebound.
Butitispossibletouseandeventomanipulatetimeinwaysthatsupportyourwritingmoreeffectively.
Youmaynditusefultoidentifydifferentkindsofwritingtimezonesinwhichyoucanproductivelyengage,andtocarveupscheduledtimeforwritinginwaysthatwillhelpyouturngoodstartsintoproductivenishes.
YoucanbeproductiveandunproductiveinshortburstsorlongswathesofwritingTheliteratureoneffectiveacademicwritinghasnotreachedaconsensusonwhetherlongswathesofwritingarebetterorworsethanshortbursts.
Somewriterssaythattheycanonlywritewhentheyhave'cleared'afairlysignicantblockoftimeintheirlivesinordertopursuetheirwriting.
Otherssaythatallocatinglongperiodsoftimeexclusivelytowriting(apartfrombeingimpractical)risksgivingrisetoarelentless,intensiveapproachtowritingthatleadstoburnout,exhaustionandinsomecasesasenseofisolationthatis14DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITINGdifculttoclimboutofonceitisover.
Boice(1990),Murray(2004)andothershaveoftenhighlightedthebenetsof'snack'writing,arguingthatlongswathesofwritinghavebeenshowntobelessproductiveandmorepsycho-logicallydestabilizingthanshortbursts.
However,therearemodelsfromthecreativewritingworldthatsuggestthattimeawayfromnormalschedulesandrhythmsoflifemaybenecessarytomakeprogressoncertainkindsofwritingtasks(seeChapter5foranoperationalexample).
Zerubavel(1999)encouragesacademicstondabalancebetweenexcessivelyshortandexcessivelylongwritingsessions.
Hesuggeststhat:Whentryingtoestablishtheoptimallengthofyourwritingsessions,besuretotakeintoaccounttwomajorergonomicfactors;theapproximateamountoftimeitusuallytakesyoutogetintoacreativemodeandtheapproximateamountoftimeyoucaneffectivelysustainsuchamodeandbeproductive.
Consideringtherstfactor,ofcourse,oughttohelpyouavoidschedulingwritingsessionsthataretooshort.
Consideringthesecondshouldlikewisehelpprecludeonesthataretoolong.
(Zerubavel,1999:18)Writinginshortburstsorlongswathesoftendependsontherestofyourscheduleatdifferenttimesintheyear.
Whetherornotyoucanputasidedays,weeksormonthsexclusivelyforwritingissomethingthatdependsontherealitiesandresponsibilitiesassociatedwiththerestofyourlife.
Forpractical,work-basedreasons,mostacademicsnditverydifculttoidentifyblocksoftimeinwhichtheycanwritetotheexclusionofeverythingelse.
Theyusuallyhavetodealwithahugerangeofdifferentactivitiesonaday-to-daybasis.
Themultiplerolesplayedbyacademicsmeanthat,increasingly,ndingtimeforwritingbecomesadifculttaskinitself(Chandler,BarryandClark,2002).
Wearguethatinsteadofinsistingthatshortwritingsnacksarenecessarily'better'thanlongwritingtracts,wecanmovefromonemodetoanotherineffectivewaysifandwhenthepossibilitiesfordoingsopresentthemselves.
Shortwritingburstscanbepotentiallyunproductive,butiforganizedandplannedwellcanformanessentialpartofanintegratedwritingstrategy.
Simi-larly,longerdedicatedperiodsofwritingtimecanbeultimatelyunproductiveifundertakenwithoutnecessarysupportsandstrategies,butplannedintensiveperiodsofwritingcannourish,develop,accelerate,completeorotherwisesustainessentialwritingtasks.
Short,unproductiveburstsofwritingoccurwhen:Youmakeinsignicantchangestosomethingthathasalreadybeenwritten,perhapsborneofareluctancetoletitgo,oralackofcondenceaboutwhatyou'reattemptingtosay.
(See,forexample,Hjortshoj's(2001)descriptionofthe'endlessintroduction'.
)TACKLINGWRITINGTIMEFRAMES15Youdolittlebitsofpotentiallyexcellentwritingthatyoudon'tintegrateorcaptureinawaythatisorganizedenoughforyoutoexploitordevelop.
Youidentifythekernelofagreatideaandwriteitdownsomewhere,butneverrevisitit.
Essentiallythiskindofwritingoccurswhenyoumaketrivialchangeswithoutmakingprogress,oridentifyimportantpotentialwritingactivitywithoutpur-suingorintegratingit.
Wehavefoundthatmanyacademicsengageinwritingthatcanbedescribedinthisway.
Long,unproductiveburstsofwritingoccurwhen:Youengageinalotofendless,feverishwritingthattakesuptimeandenergy,butmaynotbewellpaced,structuredorreectedupon.
Youwritewithoutbreaks,throughmealtimesandtotheexclusionofotheraspectsofyourlife.
Youproducelargetractsoftextonyourownandwithoutatleastsomeadviceorobservationfromothers(makingyouvulnerabletoasubsequentwritingblock).
You'writeyourselfintoacorner'anddon'tknowhowtogetoutofit.
Theenergyandintellectualfocusthatwritingrequirescanmeanthatpeoplebecometoointenseintheireffortstowrite,lesslikelytosharethewritingcontentorprocesswithothersandlesslikelytoseereasonableoptionsforchanging,redirectingordevelopingourwritinginwaysthatcouldmakeitTable1.
1AmatrixfordevelopingyourwritingstrategyNegativePositiveSmallamountsofwritingFalsestartsDisjointedbitsofwritingNotfeedingintothebiggerplansthatyouhaveforyourwritingContinuoustinkeringwithanaldraftShortperiodsofregularwritingFeedingregularlyintoalargerprojectFillinginthegapsofanoutlineLargeblocksofwritingWritingendlesslyandwithoutbreaksProducinglargetractsoftextwithoutreectingorfeelingcondentaboutwhathasbeenwrittenWritingunderpressureSchedulingandpreparingforlargertractsofwritingtimeFeedingwritingsnacksintoamorededicatedperiodofwritingHavingcrucialperiodsoftimewheretotalfocusonwritingisachieved16DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITINGbetter.
Wehaveencounteredmanyexamplesofthiskindofwritingamongacademicsandbelievethatsuchanapproachcanbetransformedintomoreeffectiveandultimatelyproductiveorientations.
EnhancedwritingorientationsShortburstsofproductivewritingThisisanorganized,plannedapproachtowriting.
Itfacilitatesttingshort,healthyblastsofwritingintoyourdailyacademiclifewithoutfeelingthatyouhavetocordonofflargetractsoftimeinordertomakeprogress.
It'snotproductivetodoshortburstsinrandom,disorganizedways.
Inordertobecomeasuccessful'shortburstwriter',youneedtospendpreparatorytimeoutliningandorganizingyourwork,creatingheadings,sub-headingsandsec-tions,andthenworkinginadeliberatewaytollinthegapsduringsmallspeciedperiodsoftime.
Thesesessionscanbeasbriefas20minutesandmaybenolongerthananhoureachday.
Ifyoupractiseandlearntoengageinplannedwritingbursts,you'llndthatyourideasandenergywillbelesslikelytogotowaste,thatyou'remorelikelytofeedyouracademicwritingstrategyinawaythatpaysoffforyou,generatesmorecoherenceinyourlife,andissimplymoreeffectiveandefcient.
LongswathesofproductivewritingOccasionallargetractsofwritingtimecancomplementtheshortburstapproachinanintegratedway.
Theremaybetimesinaparticularwritingprojectwhenitwillbeveryhelpfultocordonoffalargerblockoftimeinordertoachievefocusandtomakesignicantprogress.
Chapter5outlinesaformalinstitutionalinterventionthatcanfacilitateextended,focusedwritingtimeinacollaborativesetting,butevenwithouttheavailabilityofsuchaninterven-tion,individualacademicscanbenetfromschedulingtimeoutforthepro-gression,accelerationorcompletionofawritingtask.
Itisoftenduringthesescheduledtimesthatcrucialbreakthroughscanbeachievedandopportunitiesfordevelopingorextendingtheworkcanbeidentied.
Writingexercises1Toexploretheiterativenatureofwriting,writeasummaryofyourwritingprojectfourdifferenttimesaccordingtotheseinstructions:a.
Abrief,broadoutlinethatmightincludewords,bulletpoints,ideas.
Completeanoutlinesketchofyourwritingprojectthatmightsimplybeaseriesofheadings,wordsorconcepts.
WRITINGEXERCISES17b.
A250-wordsummarythatbeginswiththefollowingwords:'thispieceofwritingdoesnot.
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'andthatfocusesonwhatyourwritingwillnotdoorwillnotachieve.
c.
A250-wordsummarythatbeginswiththefollowingwords:'thispieceofwritingaimstoachievethefollowingobjectives',andcontinues,'itdoesthisinthefollowingways.
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'd.
Aoweryexposition:averywordy,elaborateandornatepiecethatisaboutfourtimesaslongastheonesyouwroteforsummariesbandc.
Expandthenumberofwordsyouneedtoexplainordiscussyourideas.
Indulgeyourselfbymakingyourwritingaswordyandlengthyaspos-sible.
Don'tworryifyoursentencesaretoolong–thisexerciseisaboutelaboratingandextendingyourideas.
Thentrawlthroughthiswordypiecetoseeifthereareanynewnuggetsorideasfromwhichyourwritingcouldbenet.
Reectbrieyonthewritingexercisesyouhavejustcompleted:whichofthefourdidyoundthemostdifcultWhichwastheeasiestWheredidyouget'stuck',andwheredidyoundyourselfwritingmostuentlyandwithmostcomfortWhenweaskwriterstodotheseexercises,theyoftenreportthatithelpsthemtodiagnosetheirdifcultiesandtohighlighttheareasinwhichtheyaremostcondent.
Ifyounditdifculttosaywhatyourwritingisnotabout,thenyoumaystillneedtosetclearerboundariesaroundyourwork.
Ifyounditdifculttospecifyhowyourwritingachievesitsobjectives,thenyoumayneedtodomoreworkinsequencingandlinkingyourwork.
Ifyouparticularlylikedwritingexercised,thenyoumaybenetfromexploringmorealternativesandpossibilitiesassociatedwithyourwork.
2Recognizingtheemotionalandlogicaldimensionsofyourwriting:again,thinkaboutawritingprojectinwhichyouarecurrentlyinvolvedoronwhichyouareconsideringembarking:a.
Ononesheetofpaper,writedownallthethingsyoufeelaboutthiswritingproject:thepositiveandthenegative.
b.
Onanothersheetofpaper,imagineyourselfasyourownsupportivereviewerorsupervisor,andwritedownallthethingsyouthinklogicallyaboutthiswritingproject(forexample,doyoustillneedtogathermoredata;doyouhaveagoodideaaboutwhatotherliteratureguidesyourthinkingonthis;areyouknowledgeableaboutresearchandopinioninotherareas).
WhatarethemainconclusionsyouthinkyouarelikelytobeabletoarticulateatthisstageinthewritingprojectLogicallyspeaking,whatneedstobedoneinordertoprogressandnishthisworkc.
Nowrevisitthe'emotional'pageandseeifyour'logicalbrainstorm'invokesorchangesanyofyournegativeemotionsbyimplyingpositiveactionornextsteps.
Writeabriefplanandschedulethatwillhelpyoutotakethosesteps.
18DEFININGANDUNDERSTANDINGACADEMICWRITING3.
Invokingyourownwritingparadoxes:perhapsthediscussioninthischap-teronwritingparadoxeshaspromptedyoutoidentifyotherparadoxesinherentinthewritingprocess.
Wehaveselectedonlyafewfordetaileddiscussion,butofcoursetherearemanyothersthatoverlapandextendtheparadoxesthatwehaveidentied:generatealistofotherparadoxesthatmightberelevantasyoutacklewritingprojects.
Theymightincludesomeofthefollowing:a.
cloningversuscreativity(Murray,2004);b.
disciplineandexibility;idealsandconstraints(Zerubavel,1999);c.
productandprocess(Hjortshoj,2001);d.
orderandchaos(Csikszentmihalyi,1990);e.
safetyanddanger(Cameron,1999).
GuidancefordeningyourownwritingchallengesWehaveoftenobservedthatdifferentwritersndcertainparadoxesmoreevocativethanothers.
Reectbrieyonwhichparadoxesaremostmean-ingfulforyouandthinkabouthowthisinsightmighthelpyoutostartdevelopingorenhancingyourownacademicwritingstrategy.
Onceyouhaveidentiedwritingparadoxesthataremostrelevanttoyourownwritingexperiences,youmaybeinabetterpositiontodesignyourownapproachtowritinginawaythatsuitsyourneedsmoreappropriately.
Ifasenseofsafetyordangerinwritingismostevocativeforyou,thenperhapsthesearethefeaturesthatyouneedtoaddressmostcruciallyinyourwritingbycreatingsaferspaces,recruitingasupportivementoranddoingmoreprivate,containedwriting.
Perhapsalsoyouneedtoexaminecriticallyhowhelpfulyourcurrentwritingmentorsare.
Ifstrikingabalancebetweendisciplineandexibilityismoreofastruggle,thenissuesliketimemanagementandtheorderingandstructuringofyourworkmayneedmoreattention.
Analysethewritingparadoxesidentiedinthischaptertohelpdevelopmoreeffectivewritingstrategiesforyourself,recognizingthatyoumayneedtoadoptadifferentapproachthantheonesyouseeotherpeopleusing.
GUIDANCEFORDEFININGYOUROWNWRITINGCHALLENGES192AdvancingyourwritingStarting,gainingmomentumandengagingcreativelyintheacademicwritingprocessIntroductionInitialreectionsontheadvancephaseExploringthemotivationtowriteWhatdoacademicslikeaboutwritingWhatdoacademicsdislikeaboutwritingTheelementsofenjoymentCreativityWhenyoujustdon'tknowwheretostart–experimentingwithdifferentkindsofwritingThedownsideofadvancingHowtogetstartedandbecomecreativelyengagedwithyouracademicwriting–checklistandstrategyIntroductionThepurposeofthischapteristoconsiderhowacademicwritersgetstarted,gainmomentumandengagecreativelyinthewritingprocess.
Wehavechosentocallthisthe'advance'phase.
Itinvolvessteppingforwardwithyourwritingtask,andwehaveseenthatthisisanidentiable,creativeandcrucialphaseofwriting.
Itischaracterizedbywritingthatisinitiallyunbridledbyanyexplicitconcernaboutstructure,coherenceandrhetoric.
Itisassociatedwithandemergesfromtherststepstakentowardsthebeginningofawritingtask.
Itinvolvesthegenerationandmaintenanceoftheinitialsparkthatfeedsyourwriting.
Itischaracterizedbynoveltyandinterest:newideas,newdirections,newbeginningsandnewinsights.
Anyaspectofyourwritingthatismarkedbyafeelingofmovingforward,ofgeneratingnewnessandofcreativeengagementisrelevanttothisaspectofthewritingdynamic.
InitialreectionsontheadvancephaseUnderstandingthisaspectofwritinginvolvesaskingthesekindsofquestions:howdoyou(orhowwillyou)startwriting;howdoyougaincondenceinyourwritingandmaintainlevelsofinterestandmotivationthatkeepyouwritingregularlyAdvancingmightbeginasaconversationaboutsomethingthatyoumightliketowriteabout,oritmightbeasconcreteasproducingtextaccordingtoanoutlineyouhavedenedinsomedetail.
Takingsomethingfromyourhead,orfromanideaorfromasnatchedconversationoraninsightfromalectureorananglethatyouhaveidentiedfromyourownresearchorfromtheworkofothers,doescontainanelementofrisk.
Advancing,then,needstobeimbuedwithenoughexcitementandmotivationtomakeitariskthatyoufeelisworthtaking.
Itisimportantwhenreectingonyourwritingtounderstandtherstearlystagesofyourwritingtasks.
Theserststepswilloftendeterminethemomentumanddirectionthatyoumaysubsequentlygaininpursuitofanywritinggoal.
Asyoustartawritingproject,sometimesyoumightfeelconfusedanduncertain,sometimesyouwillfeelcondent,comfortableandready,sometimesyouwillfeeltrepidation,sometimesexcitement.
Theadvancephasemaylastonlyfor10or15minutes,oryoumightstayinthatzonefordays,orevenlonger.
Always,though,itwillbeaprocessofgoingforward,evenwhenyoulater,temporarilybutinevitably,needtoretreatagain.
Themoreengagedandthelessfearfulyoufeelattheseearlystages,themorelikelyitwillbethatyourprogresswillbepositiveandprogressive.
Beforeyousubjectyourworktocriticismandtomorerigorousrequirementsofacademia,itmaybenecessarysimplytogetsomethingdownonpaper.
Advancingmeansdoingjustthat.
Thepsychologyofbeginningorofinjectingmorecreativeengagementintoyouracademicwritingrequiresyoutoorientateyourselfinarangeofways.
Ingettingreadytowrite,thereneedtobeperiodsofproductivityinwhichyoumustwritebeforeyou'reready,oratleastbeforeyoufeelready,inordertoovercomeobstaclestoyouruency,yourgenerationofideas,andyourcon-denceasawriter(BoiceandJones,1984;Murray,2004).
Instartingtowrite,andinbecomingengagedand'present'inyourwriting,wethinkitisusefultoexploresomeimportantpsychologicalprocessessuchasmotivation,creativityandtheconditionsforengagedaction.
TheseareallconceptsthatwesuggestINITIALREFLECTIONSONTHEADVANCEPHASE21arecentraltothenecessaryphaseofadvanceinpursuitoftheproductionofacademicwriting.
ExploringthemotivationtowriteWesuggestthatacademicsmightnditusefultoreectontheirmotivationinanefforttogainmorecontroloverwhytheydo(orwhytheydon't)write.
Byanalysingyourmotivationtowrite,youmaybeabletostartcreatingbetterconditionsforacademicwriting.
Ifyouthinkaboutthetimeswhenyouarereallycommittedtoandengagedinanyactivity,thenyoumightbeabletostarttheorizingaboutwhatgenericfactorsneedtobeinplaceinorderforyoutofeelengaged,switchedon,focusedandmotivatedwhenyouwrite.
Somebehaviouraltheoristshavesuggestedthatinordertobemotivatedtostartanything,youneedtoperceivethatthereareatleastsomeassociatedrewardsthatrespondtoyourparticularneeds(see,forexample,Morleyetal.
,2004).
Ifyoundthatitishardtogetstarted,orthatsomethingalwaysseemstointervenebetweenyouandawritingtask,itmaybethatyoudon'tperceivethattherewardsarevaluableenough.
If,forexample,youhavealreadygainedacademictenure,ifyouhavereachedalevelofpromotionwithwhichyouarehappy,orifpromotionand/ortenurearesimplynotthatimportanttoyou,thenthecareerrewardsthataresometimesassociatedwithacademicwritingmaynotbethekindsofrewardsthatwillgiveyouthesparkyouneedtobeginandsustainyourwritingtasks.
However,evenwhenyoudoperceivethatthereisrealvalueintherewardsthatmightbelinkedtoacademicwriting,youmaybedemotivatedforotherreasons.
Therewardsassociatedwithacademicwritingmightbethingsthatyouseeare'outthere',butyoumaybelesscondentthattheserewardswilleverapplytoyou,evenifyoudostartwriting.
ThisisamotivationalReectingonyourwriting:whatdoyoulikeanddislikeaboutacademicwritingBeforereadingthenextsection,brieywritedownanythingyoucanthinkofthatyoulikeaboutacademicwriting–includeanythingyoufeelandthinkaboutthewritingprocessandconsideranyrecentexperiencesyouhavehadwithwriting.
Onceyouhavedonethis,writeanotherlist.
Thistimefocusonthethingsyoudislikeaboutthewritingprocess.
Usetheselistsoflikesanddislikestoreectonhowyoumightfurtherdevelopyourownwritingstrategyandtocompareyourinsightswiththoseoutlinedbelow.
22ADVANCINGYOURWRITINGcontingencythatbehaviouraltheoristscall'effort-rewardprobability'(see,forexample,PorterandLawler,1968).
Alotofacademicwriterswehaveworkedwithseemtoperceivethattheirowneffort-rewardprobabilityisverylow.
Thiscanbetrueevenforacademicswhohavebeenrelativelysuccessfulinproducingandpublishingwrittenoutput,butitisparticularlytruefornewacademicwriters.
Asonenovicewriterputit:'itjustseemslikesuchalottery:youengageinallthiseffortandallthisangst,andnallyproducesomething.
Thenyousenditoff,andit'srejected,andyou'rebacktosquareone.
Eventu-ally,it'seasiertostopdoingthattoyourselfandtoconcentrateonotherthingsliketeachingandsupervisingwell.
'Inorderforyoutobemotivatedtowrite,andtokeepwriting,itisimportantthatyouperceivethatyoureffort-rewardprobabilityissomewhereabovenil.
Itisworthreectingonthefactthatincreasingyourlikelihoodofbecomingaregular,productiveacademicwriterwon'thappenunlessyouwrite.
Writingwell,oratleastinwaysthatwillbeacceptedandendorsedbythosepeoplewhoreviewyourwork,isanothermatter,onethatyoucanaddressinduecourse(seeChapter4).
Butinordertowritewell,youmustrstwrite(Cameron,1999).
Perhapsthissimpletruismmightstarttochallengeanysneakingnotionthateffort-rewardprobabilityistoolowforyoutobother.
Ifaftereverystepyoutakeinthedirectionofaparticulardestination,yousay'I'mnotthere',thenyouriskde-energizinganddiscouragingyourself.
It'struethatinitialwritingeffortsdon'tbringyouimmediatelytoyourdestination,butwecanalmostguaranteethattheydogetyoucloser.
Ifyouwanttobeself-critical,don'ttellyourselfyou'renotthere.
Instead,tellyourselfyou'renotthereyetandthenkeepgoing.
Startingtowriteisanecessarystep,butit'snotsufcienttoproduceeffectiveoutputs(suchasnishedpiecesandpublishedpapers).
Inorderforyoureffortstoturnintoeffectiveperformance,youneedtohaveaclearideaaboutwhatotherworkisassociatedwithacademicwriting(e.
g.
research,analysis,discus-sionwithinyoureldofinquiry).
Ifyouoperateinanacademicsetting,itislikelythatyouwillgetguidanceonthenatureandqualityofresearchinyourarea.
Butinourexperience,itislesslikelythatyou'llbeguidedspecicallyonthingssuchaswhatacademicwritinginyoureldshouldlooklikeandhowyoucanimproveyourchancesofgettingpublished.
YouwillbeabletoenhanceyourskillsandabilitiesintheseareasinparticularbyreadingChapters3and4ofthishandbook.
Inthemeantime,itisworthkeepinginmindthatenhancingyourmotivationtowriterequiresmorethanjustimprovingyourtechnicalwritingskills.
Evenwhenyouhaveproducedandpublishedapieceofacademicwriting,theremaybenoguaranteethatyou'llbemotivatedtodoitagain.
Unlessthereareactual(asopposedtoexpected)rewardsthatemergeasaresultofawrittenpiece,youmayfeelthatthere'snotmuchpointincontinuing.
Itisrare(thoughnotunheard-of)thatasinglepieceofacademicwritingrepresentsaleverthatactivatesrewardssuchaspromotion,tenureandinvitationstospeakatinternationalconferences.
UsuallysuchextrinsicrewardsemergeasaresultEXPLORINGTHEMOTIVATIONTOWRITE23ofarangeofpublishedpieceswhich,takenincombination,maygiverisetoaccoladesandrecognitionbestowedbydecision-makerswhohavethepowertoendorseyourwork.
Butnomatterhoweffectiveyourwritingandpublishingstrategycurrentlyis,ornomatterhoweffectiveiteventuallybecomes,therearenoguaranteesthattheserewardswillautomaticallyaccruetoyou.
Thepoliticaldynamics,thechangingcompetitivecriteria,andtheunequal(andunfair)distributionofrewardsarerealitiesinallorganizations,notleast(ormaybeespecially)inacademicones.
Don'talwaysrelyonthenotionthatthemoreeffectiveandproductiveyouareasanacademicwriter,themorelikelyitisthatsomeonewillrewardyouforit.
Inanycase,theserewardsmaynotbeaseffectiveasotherthingsthatcoulddriveandenergizeyourwritingstrategies.
Researchonmotivation(Kohn,1993)hasdemonstratedthatmostextrinsicrewardsystemsarebasicallyawedandultimatelyincapableofmotivatingperformance.
Rather,itseemstobethecasethattheexcessiverelianceonextrinsicrewardscanmakepeoplefeelcontrolledandmanipulatedinwaysthatsoonerorlatertheytendtoreject.
Intrinsicrewards(thatis,thosethatcomefromwithinyourself)relatetoexperiencessuchascuriosity,satisfaction,knowledgedevelopmentandanincreasedsenseofefcacy(White,1959).
Thesemaybemuchmorepowerfulandeffectivedriversofyourownwritingbehaviour.
Fortheacademicwriterswhomwehavestudied,wehavecertainlyfoundthatthemoreenjoyableaspectsofwritingtendtorelatemoretointrinsicrewards,butthattheyalsoconsiderthatextrinsicrewardsareatleastsomewhatrelevantandmeaningful.
Thefollowingtwosectionsrepresentasummaryofoverahundredresponsesthatwehavegatheredfromacademicwriters.
Youwillprobablyndthatsomeoftheseinsightsrelatetoyourownexperienceofwriting,butperhapsyourownlistoflikesanddislikeswillhaveaddedafewmore.
WhatdoacademicslikeaboutwritingOurndingssuggestthattherearefour'writingdrivers'thatarecommonlyinvokedreasonswhyacademicsliketowrite(orattheveryleast,whytheylikesomeaspectsofthewritingprocess).
Thesedriversareassociatedwiththefollowingfactors:interactivityanddialogue;knowledgecreationandexten-sion;achievement,outputandapproval;andtheintrinsicallypleasurableexperienceof'ow'.
Wewillexploreeachofthesewritingdriversinsomemoredetailinordertoexaminetherolethateachcanplayinsustainingandnourishingyoureffortstoadvanceyourownacademicwriting.
24ADVANCINGYOURWRITINGInteractivityanddialogueAcademicwritingaffordsyoutheopportunitytointeractanddiscussideaswithawideraudience.
Asyoudevelopknowledgeandunderstandingofyoureld,theexcitementofbeingabletoshareyourideas,buildonthoseofothers,askexpertswhattheythinkandengagethosewithinthedisciplinewithyourtopicsandperspectivesbecomesmorerelevant.
Atthebeginning,youmayfeelthatyouhaveverylittletosay,butaftermakinginitialadvancesinyourwritingyouhaveatleastcreatedasituationinwhichdialoguewithothersisbothmorepossibleandmorelikely.
Whenacademicsstarttogettheirworkpublished,theyputthemselvesinasituationwhereengagedandinterestedothersaremorelikelytoencountertheirwork.
Thedialogueofyourdisciplinemovesoutsideoftheclassroom,inwhichrelativelysmallnumbersofyourstudentsareexposedtoyourideas(oryourinterpretationsoftheideasofothers),andintoawiderrealmwhereyourideasandcontributionsmaysimplyreceivemoreairplay.
Ofcourse,thisisnotalwayswhatpeopleexperienceasadirectresultoftheiracademicwriting,butwhentheydo,itseemsthattheeffectontheircon-tinuedmotivationtowriteisbothpositiveandstrong.
Asoneacademicputit:thebuzzthatIgetfromsomeonewritingtomewithaquestionaboutmywriting,orevenbetter,ringingmeupfromanothercountrytodiscusssomethingthatIhavewritten,issofabulous.
Whatstartstohappenisthatyoubegintorealisethatyoubecomepartofanendlessconversationtowhichyouhavemadesomesmallcontribution,whichinturncatalysescontributionsfromothersand.
.
.
helpsyoulearnmoreandunderstandmore.
Forme,thiskindofdialogueistheessenceofcontinuouslearning.
Itseemsthatitisnotjusttheinteractivitythatissometimespossiblewithacademicwriting,butalsotheiterativitythatwehavearguedfromthebegin-ningofthisbookrepresentsanimportantandpotentiallymotivatingaspectofacademicwritingandwhichechoesinmanyoftheotherpleasurablewritingdriversthatacademicshaveidentied.
However,itisalsotruetosaythatmanyacademicsfeelmorethanalittlecynicalaboutthecapacityfortheirwritingtogiverisetohigh-qualitydialogue(orindeedanydialoguewhatsoever).
Theywonderwhatthepointisofwritingforacademicjournalsthatfewpeoplewillreadandfewerstillwillderiveanybenetfrom.
Foraslongasacademiahasexisted,thebenetsofacademicwritinghavebeenquestioned.
AsVandenBerghe(1970)onceputit:'Theaverageacademicauthordoesnotwritebecausehehassomethingtosay,becausehehopestocontributetoknowledge,orbecausehehasfundoingit;ratherhewritesandpublishesinordertoimprovehisc.
v'.
(p.
87).
Ifthisisyourstartingpointtoo,ifyourprimaryconcernistobuildamoreimpressiveCV,youshouldnotfeelguiltyaboutthat.
Thesystemissetupinsuchawayastomakethisaverycommonmotivatorofwriting.
WhatourownndingsWHATDOACADEMICSLIKEABOUTWRITING25suggest,however,isthatwhenaskedtoidentifywhattheylikeaboutwriting,theneedtobuildtheirCVandtheassociatedpressuretowritearerarelyinvoked.
Ontheotherhand,thepleasureofengaginginscholarlydialogue,andtheextenttowhichwritingaffordsmorechancestodothatareregularlycitedasreasonswhywritingismotivating.
Asyoustepforwardtotackleawritingtask,youmaywellbekeepingpragmatic,career-buildingconsiderationsinmind,butitistheopportunityforengaginginthedialoguethatismorelikelytokeepyouatyourdesk,tonourishandsustainyourmotivation,andtohelpyouderivepleasureoutofthetasksandactivitiesthatwritingentails.
KnowledgecreationandextensionTheprocessofwritingisnotjustanoutcomeofthinking,italsohelpstofeedthethinkingprocess,andtogiverisetonewinsightsandanglesonthematerialyouaretackling.
Oneofthereasonsthatpeopleoftenfeelblockedwhenwritingforacademiaistheinherentassumptionthattheyhavetothinkverycarefullyaboutwhatitisthattheyaregoingtowrite,andtoperfectthesethoughtsbeforeeverputtingpentopaper.
AsHjortshoj(2001)putsit,aca-demicwritersfeelnervousbecausetheyfeelthat:'criticalreadersarewaitingforyoutomakeafalsemove'.
Theveryprocessofwritingbothextendsandcreatesknowledge(FlowerandHayes,1977;Mullin,1989).
Andfurthermore,it'soneofthereasonsthatacademicwritingcanbepleasurable,notpunishing(Bean,2001).
Ifyouseewritingassomethingthatispartofyourprofessionallearning,ratherthansimplyameasureofyourprofessionalperformance,thenyourmotivationandyourcatalystsforwritingmightbestronger.
Achievement,outputandapprovalThesenseofachievementanddelightassociatedwithnishingwrittenworkmakespeoplefeelproudandeffective.
There'snothingwrongwiththesatis-factionassociatedwithaddinganotherpublishedpieceofworktoyourCV.
Academicssaythattheyenjoythissenseofcompletionandachievement.
Thereisasatisfactionandprideassociatedwithseeingyournameinprint–itmightjustencourageyoutokeepgoingandtotryagainortostepupyouracademicwritingstrategy.
Beingcongratulatedabouthavingachievedanaca-demicwritinggoalissomethingthatreallydoesfeelgood.
Organizationaltheoristshavelongrecognizedthatoneofthedriversofhumanbehaviouristheexperiencedneedforachievement(see,forexample,McClelland,1961;andFisherandYuan,1998).
Thiscanbebothintrinsicallymotivating(inthattheachievementisaccompaniedbyaninternalsenseofsatisfactionandcom-pletion)andextrinsicallyreinforcing(inthatitmaygiverisetorecognition,congratulationandreward).
However,inthelightofthismotivator,itisworthremindingyouagainthatifyoucometoexpectthatasuccessfulwrittenpiecewillautomaticallyleadtopraise,promotionorpatsonthebackofotherkinds,26ADVANCINGYOURWRITINGthenyoumaybeinstallingacycleofdisappointmentintoyourwritingexperi-encesthatmayultimatelymakeyouverydisillusionedaboutyourcontribu-tion,youroutputsandthenatureofacademiaingeneral.
Ifyou'regoingtomakewritingaregular,satisfying,professionallydevelopingandsustainingactivity,thenyou'regoingtoneedmorethanthefragilepromiseofexternalrewardtospuryouon.
Andyetendorsementforyourwrittenoutputsdoesundoubtedlyaddtothestrengthofthesenseofachievementthatgoeswiththatoutput.
Thereinliesanotheroftheparadoxesofacademiclife.
Wethinkthatthekeytoaddressingthisparadoxisrsttobeawareofit;andsecond,nevertofallintothetrapofassumingthatwrittenoutputautomaticallyorimmediatelyleadstoexternalrewards.
Findotherwaysofsustainingyourcommitmenttowriting.
Feelingthatyouhavemadeacontribution;helpingtoexploreasubjectmoresuccessfullyormoreclearlythantheliteraturehasdonetodate;makingadifferenceinthelivesandthelearningofyourstudentscanallbemeaningfulendorsersofyoureffectivewritingstrategy.
'Flow'Theexperienceofowrefersgenerallytotheintrinsicallyenjoyableexperi-enceofgettingintotheswingofwritingandbecomingsoengagedthatyourthoughts,ideasandwordsstarttooodout.
Often,whenacademicsareaskedtoidentifywhatitistheylikeaboutwriting,theytalkaboutarangeofexperiencesthatareconnected,webelieve,tothisimportantexperienceofow.
Thefactthatverymanyofthemactuallyusethiswordisoneindicatorthattheconceptisanimportantandcentralonethatrelatestothepleasuresofacademicwriting.
Buttheyalsoinvokearangeofotherconnectedideas:theytalkabouthowexcitingitiswhenthey'vereallygot'into'awritingtask;theytalkaboutthepleasureof'gettinglost'asopposedtothenegativeaspectsthatthatexperiencesometimesconveys;theyadmitthatit'sdifculttogetintoastateofowbutalsorecognizethatoncetheyhaveachievedit,itfeelsexhilarating,exciting,creativeandafrmativeinawholerangeofimportantways.
Csikszentmihalyi(1990)capturedalotofhisownresearchandworkintheareaof'ow'bystudyingpeopleinvolvedinengagedaction.
Hedenesowasthepsychologyofoptimalexperience,andshowsusthattherearefeaturesoftheowexperiencethatdeneitandallowallsortsofpositivebenetstoaccrue.
Weproposethatbyinstallingthesefeaturesasmuchaspossibleintoyourownwritingcontexts,youcanbecomeamorefrequentbeneciaryofasenseofsatisfaction,enjoymentandcreativityassociatedwiththepositiveaspectsofwritinginacademia.
Csikszentmihalyistudiedthousandsofpeopleoveraperiodofseveralyearsinordersimplytoidentifythecharacteristicsofcertainexperiencesthatmaketheminherentlyenjoyable.
Theframeworkheappliestotheconceptofoworoptimalexperiencecanbeinstalledmorefrequentlyintoacademicwritingcontexts–apropositionthatisdiscussedinmoredetaillaterinthischapter.
WHATDOACADEMICSLIKEABOUTWRITING27WhatdoacademicsdislikeaboutwritingWhenacademicstalkaboutthethingstheydon'tlikeaboutwriting,averydifferentlistemerges.
ThisndingisratherHerzbergianinnature(intheorganizationalbehaviourliterature,Herzbergfamouslyfoundthatjob-related'satisers'arequalitativelydifferentfromjob-related'dissatisers'ratherthantherebeingjustapresenceorabsenceofaseriesofgenericfactorsrelevantbothtodissatisfactionandsatisfaction).
Whenacademicswereasked'whatdoyoudislikeaboutacademicwriting',theiranswerstendedtotintoatleastoneofthefollowingvecategories:ThefeelingofnegativesurveillanceandenforcementtowhichtheirwritingissubjectedWhentalkingaboutwhattheydislikeaboutwriting,academicsoftensaythatitisthefeelingofhavingtowritethatsometimesinterfereswiththefeelingofwantingtowrite.
Thatpeoplewillreviewtheirwritinginacriticalandnegativewayissomethingthatcanmakethemfeelintimidatedabouttakingtherststep,orindeedaboutbuildingthecondenceandmomentumthattheycanfeelwhentheydogetintoaowofwriting.
Surveillanceandenforcementarepartoftheacademicrealmthatpeopleassociatewithunpleasant,pressurized,judgementalaspectsofwriting.
AfeelingofinertiaordifcultywithgettingstartedManyacademicwriterstalkabouttheagoniesofjustgettingdowntoit.
Gettingstartedisoftenexperiencedasadifcultandunpleasantpartoftheprocess.
Perhapsthisisbecausewriting,unlikeotherpartsofourprofessionallives,isnotscheduledandstructuredordrivenbyapredictable,externallydenedtimetableinthesamewayas,say,teaching,marking,andadministrationactivitiestendtobe.
Afeelingofgettingstuckorbeingblocked,ordifcultyinmovingfromonephaseortypeofwritingtoanotherTheexperienceofbeing'blocked'isalsosomethingthatacademicstalkfrequentlyabout.
'Ijustdon'tknowwhattodonext';'thewholetaskfeelssooverwhelming'.
Thesearecommonstatementsaboutwritingthatimplythatthereareobstacles,eitherrealorimagined,thatdostandinthewayandpreventordelayourwritingtasks.
Itisthefeelingofbeingblockedthatpeoplesayisunpleasant,andthethings(asdiscussedabove)thatareenjoyableaboutwritinggenerallyrepresentsolutionstoorantidotesforthosefeelingsofblockage.
28ADVANCINGYOURWRITINGAgeneralsenseofinadequacyaboutwritingskills,processesandoutputsCondence,orratheralackofit,isoftencitedbyacademicsastherationalefornotstarting,ornotcontinuing,towrite.
Theacademicworldisoneinwhichprofessionalself-esteemandself-beliefaresometimesunderattack.
Ifyouoperateindysfunctionallycompetitiveenvironments,theremaybenooneinthesystemwillingtohelpyoutobelieveinyourselfandtheremaybethosewhoactivelyundermineyoursenseofcondenceevenifyouaredoinganexcellentjob.
Allofthiscancontributetoadeationandadiminishingofyourmotivationtowrite,perhapsevenattimeswhereyourabilitytomakeameaningfulcontributionisatitshighest.
Ofcourse,it'snotjustaboutcondence.
Condencemayhelpyoutogetstartedorfuelyourwritingefforts,butyoudoalsoneedtobuildskills,topractiseandeventomodelyourwritingdependingonthedisciplinewithinwhichyouwrite.
Manyacademicsgenuinelyfeelthattheylackboththecompetenceandthecondencetowriteintheirareaofexpertiseandtheseareamongthecommonreasonswhyacademicwritingcanbeexperiencedaschallenginganddifcult.
Difcultiesassociatedwithndingone'sownvoiceasanacademicwriterRelatedtotheissuesofcondenceandcompetenceisthatofacademicvoice.
Manyacademicwritersoracademicswhowanttowritesaythatoneofthethingsthattheydislikeisthisfeelingofbeingsomehowconstrainedinwhattheyaretryingtosay.
Thisiseitherbecausetheyfeeltheyhavesomethingtosaybutdon'tpossessthelanguagetoarticulateitproperly,orbecausetheconventionsoftheiracademicdisciplineforbidthemfromwritingfreely,withoutconstraint,intheirownwords.
Theissueofvoiceisarticulatedlargelyintwoways:nothavinganadequatelyarticulateacademicvoice;orhavingavoicethatisstrangledanddistortedbytherequirementsassociatedwiththegenresofone'sdiscipline.
Bothoftheseconcernsareassociatedwithadislikeofwritinginacademia.
Overcomingthedislikesofacademicwritingrequiresusnotnecessarilytoignorethem,astheyareunlikelytogoaway.
Atleastoccasionallytheymayhavetobeencountered,addressedandtackled.
Rather,itrequiresustostartwiththethingswelikeandtobegintofeelthattherearemorepositivethingsabouttheprocessthantherearenegativethings.
WHATDOACADEMICSDISLIKEABOUTWRITING29TheelementsofenjoymentAccordingtoCsikszentmihalyi(1990),thereareeightconditionsthatpreparethegroundforanexperiencetobeenjoyable,intrinsicallymotivatingor'ow-like'innature.
Activitieswhichinvolveowarecharacterizedby:1inherentchallenge;2thefusionofactionandawareness;3cleargoalsandfeedback;4fullconcentrationonthetask;5somesenseofcontrol;6afeelingofeffortlessness;7alackofself-consciousness;8alackofawarenessofthepassageoftime.
Flowisthatpleasurable'gettinglost'inataskoranactivitythatmanyofourcolleagueshavetalkedaboutwhenaskedtoidentifythepositive,enjoyableaspectsoftheacademicwritingprocess.
It'sanexperiencethatmakesyousurprisedwhenyoulookupattheclockandseethathourshavepassed;oralternativelywhentime'stretches'orevenstandsstillandwhenalotcanfeellikeithashappened,eveninafewshortminutesorseconds.
Writingishardandpleasurelesswhenwe'reforeverfeelingdistractedandpulledinallsortsofotherdirections,afeelingthatpreventsusfromachievingthetotalfocusthatitsometimestakesforustogetourthoughts,ideas,structures,evidenceandanalysesdownonpaper.
Writingisachorewhenwe'rewritingintothedarkwithoutanyopportunitytoseehowwe'regettingonortogetsomekindoffeedbackaboutthequalityofourefforts.
Writingcanfeellikeapointlessprocessifiteitherdoesn'trequireustochallengeourselvesorifthegoalswesetourselvesaretoohigh.
Again,understandingtheprocessofowcanhelpustogetabetterunderstandingoftheparadoxesofwritingthatweexploredinChapter1,andtosetupwritingcontextsthatmakeitmorelikelywe'llstarttolike,eventolove,theprocessofwritingwithinouracademicworlds.
CreativityWhileacademicwritingmightfeelformulaicandinherentlylackingincreativity,wearguethatjustliketheproductionofanything,itisessentiallyacreativeprocess.
Researchoncreativityshowsthatoneofthecharac-teristicsofcreativepeopleissimplythattheyhaveastrongsenseofthemselves30ADVANCINGYOURWRITINGasbeinginherentlycreative(BarronandHarrington,1981).
Thismaysoundlikeatautology,butwethinkitisameaningfulobservation.
Itmaybethatpartofthereasonwhymanyacademicsdonotwrite,donotmaketimeandspaceforwriting,orreportthattheydislikethewritingprocess,isthattheydonotseethemselvesascreativepeopleoraspeoplewithacreativemandate.
Thismaybeasmuchanissueofidentityasitisofaction.
Perhapsifacademicsplayedorexperimentedwiththeiridentityandfocusedmoreontheircreativeselves,theculturesandstructuresofacademiamighttiltmoreinfavourofcreativeexpressionandbreakthroughsinawaythatcouldbenetteachers,learners,researchersandwritersfromalldisciplines.
Writingisaverycreativeprocess–allthemoresoasyoutargetyourwritingatincreasinglyexactingaudiences.
Itrequiresyoutodosomething,toact,toputwordsonpaper,tomakesense,tostructure,toanalyseandtocontribute.
Alloftheserequirementsimplycreativity.
Inmakingpositiveadvancesinyourwritingbygettingstarted,youmightbenetfromreectingontheessentialcharacteristicsofcreativity:Csikszentmihalyialsostudiedeminentlycreativepeopletoseewhethertherewere'ingredients'associatedwiththeirbehaviourthatexplainedtheirsuccessesandtheimpactthattheyhadontheworld.
Insummarizinghisndings,thisiswhathesaid:IfIhadtoexpressinonewordwhatmakestheirpersonalitiesdifferentfromothers,it'scomplexity.
Theyshowtendenciesofthoughtandactionthatinmostpeoplearesegregated.
Theycontaincontradictoryextremes.
Themanagementandencounteringofparadoxalsoemergesasanessentialfeatureofacreativeorientationtoworkandlife.
Csikszentmihalyi'sresearch(1990)identiesparadoxesassociatedwithcreativepeople.
Creativepeoplealternatelyengageinintenselevelsofphysicalactivitybutalsoareabletoswitchoff(orstepbackandretreatfromtheiractivities)byavailingofquiet,restfultime.
Theyarecleverandengagedwiththeirareasofexpertise,butnotsmug–oftendisplayinganinnocenceandnavetéaboutaspectsoftheirworkthatallowthemtoasksimple,revelatoryquestionsthatcangetthemclosertosolvingproblems.
Creativepeoplebringstrongdisciplinetowhattheydo,butneverinsuchaseriousorhumourlesswaythattheycannotalsoinjectplayfulnessandfunintotheirwork.
Theycombineimaginationwithreality,rebelliousnesswithconservatism,humilitywithpride,andpassionwithobjectivity.
Otherresearchonthepersonalcharacteristicsofcreativepeople(BarronandHarrington,1981;EckertandStacey,1998)hashighlightedthatcreativeindi-vidualshaveawidebreadthofinterestsandareadinesstoreceiveandabsorbideasfromanyangleorsource.
Theyaremorelikelytothinkinboundery-lesswaysaboutatopic,andarehappyto'borrow'importantnotionsfromeldsofinquiryotherthantheirown.
Theyexerciseautonomyandanindependenceofjudgement,andarepersistentintheirwillingnessto'resolveanomaliesortoCREATIVITY31accommodateoppositeorconictingtraitsinone'sself-concept'(Runco,2004a:661).
Theseparadoxicalandcomplexfeaturesofcreativitycouldbeusefultoconsiderasyouembarkonyourowncurrentandfuturewritingventures.
Whenyoujustdon'tknowwheretostart–experimentingwithdifferentkindsofwritingWehavefoundthatinordertobecomeamoreproductiveacademicwriter,itcanbeworthwhilepractisingyourwritingskillsinarangeofdifferentways.
Therearedifferentkindsofwriting,notallofwhichcanbedenedasacademic,butthroughthem,youcannourishyouruencyinwaysthatmayultimatelyhelpyoutobecomemoreprolicinmoreacademicrealms.
Atwhatpointdoesyourwritingbecome'academic'Whatistherole(ifany)ofother'kinds'ofwritingCanyouuselessthreateningorstructuredgenresasimportantstepping-stonesthatmighteventuallyleadyoutoproduceanacademic,publishedoutputTherearelotsofdifferentwritingoptions.
Youdon'talwayshavetoengageinthesamekindsofwritingandyoudon'talwayshavetowriteaccordingtoastructuredsetofrules.
Experimentingwithdifferentkindsofwritingmayhelpyoutogainmorecondenceandmomentum.
Notallofyourwritinghastobepurelyandperfectlyacademic,evenifseriousacademicwritingisyourultimategoal.
IfyourultimateaimortaskistonishyourPhD,ortowriteabook,ortogetpublishedinaninternationallyrenowned,peer-reviewedjournalinyourdis-cipline,youreallycanbenetfromwritingthatlooksandfeelsdifferentfromthestructuredlanguageassociatedwiththose'higher-order'goalsofacademicwriting.
Thereareotheroptionsforwritingwithinyourprofessionalcontext,optionsthatmighthelpyoutostepforwardinsomewaywithyourwork,evenwhenyou'renotfeelingparticularlycleverorintellectual,evenwhenyoudon'tfeelreadytoproduce'respectable'academicwork,evenwhenyou'rewonderinghowthewholethingwillturnout,orwhenyoufeelyoucouldbenetfromthrowingyourideasaroundwithinterestedcolleagues.
Differenttypesofwriting,then,canactasstepping-stonestowhatmightbeyourultimatedestination.
Theyincluderandomprivatescribblings,writteninteractionswithotherpeopleaboutyourideas(emails,letters,eventextmes-sages),concretecollaborationwithpeopleinterestedinsimilartopics,and'proled'collaboration–allofthesemightleadtowrittenoutputsthatgetyouclosertothegoalsassociatedwithpublication,eventhoughsomeofthemmaynotbedenedaswritingthatisacademic.
Thepointisthatnearlyanykindofwritinghasthepotentialtoprovidefoundationsorrawmaterialforanalfullyformedacademicpiece.
32ADVANCINGYOURWRITINGSo,aswellasaimingforhigh-levelacademicjournals,youcangenerateideasandwritingfuelbydoingsomethingassimpleaskeepingadiary,bycarryinganotebookwithyouandrecordingideasorinsightsastheystrikeyou(seealsoMooreandMurphy,2005),byusingyourprofessionalexperiencestowritematerialandresourcesforcolleaguessuchas'howto'outlines,learningresourcepacks,casestudies,manuals,textbooks,lecturenotes,studynotes,distancelearningresourcesandsoon.
Youcandevelopacondenceinyourvoicebytargetingnewspapers,orconsiderotherwaysofreachingmoregen-ericaudiences.
Youcandevelopamoreacademicapproachbycontributingtocolloquiaandconferencesandthenusetheresultingexperiencesandinsightstotransformandcraftyourideasforevenmorespecialistacademicaudiences.
Andyoucanusealloftheseactivitiestomoveclosertowardstheultimategoalsassociatedwiththemoreacademicaspectsofyourwriting.
Byconsideringtheseotherkindsofwriting,youcanthenpositionwritingasameansratherthanexclusivelyasanend.
AsHjortshoj(2001)hassuggested,anxietiesaboutwritingmaycomefromseeingitasanend;andexcitementaboutwritingmaycomefromseeingitasameans.
Butinconsideringallofthesedifferentstartingpointsforyourwriting,itisprobablylegitimateandpragmatictoask:howmuchoftheseotherkindsofwritingactually'count'Perhapsintheirownright,noneofthemdo,whenitcomestocareerdevelopment,tenureorpromotion.
Butifyoucanusethemascatalystsforyouradvancephaseandasfacilitatorsofyourwritingandyourcondence,thentheyallcount.
Iftheyenableyoutocreatetheconditionsforproducingmorestructuredacademicwritingeventually(orevenquitequickly)thentheycountverymuch.
DifferenttypesofwritingRandomprivate:apersonalprivatemethodofcapturingandrecordinginsights,ideas,anxieties,triumphs.
Organizedprivate:awayoforganizingandcapturingideasbeforedevelop-ingandexploringthemwithothers.
Interactive:awayofcommunicatinginformally,brainstorminganddiscuss-ingpossibilitiesaboutyourwritingwithothers.
Concretecollaboration:workingpaperswithinaprofessionalgrouptodevelopthemesandcaptureactivities.
Proledcollaboration:transmittingcollaborativeworktootheraudiencesinwrittenform.
High-levelprofessionalproling:producingpublishedoutputinstructured,conventionaljournalsorpublicationtargets.
WHENYOUJUSTDON'TKNOWWHERETOSTART33ThedownsideofadvancingAdvancing,becomingactivelyengaged,makingastartandgainingcon-denceareallimportantdimensionsofwriting,andinthischapterwehavetriedtohelpyoutoexplorewhatthesekindsoforientationsmightmeanforyou.
Butsuchengagementdoesnotcomewithoutrisksandpotentialproblems.
Developingaprolic,progressiveorientationtowardsyourwrit-ingcanbecomebothtiringandstressful,especiallyinacontextwhereyoualsohavetodeliveronmanyotherworkandliferesponsibilities(Fisher,1995;DoyleandHind,1998).
Ifyouengageonlyinwritingthatisunbridledbyconcernsassociatedwithstructureandgenre,theneventhemostinsightfulproliferationofideasmaynotyieldpositiveoutcomesormaynotfeedintoamorestructured,organizedapproachtoyouracademicwritingstrategy.
Withoutthechecksandbalancesassociatedwithrevisiting,reconceptualizing,revisingandreworkingyourwriting,youmaystarttoworkinavacuum,uninformedoruntestedbyusefulideasthatmightbesittingonyourdoorstepifonlyyoucreptoutonceinawhiletotakealook.
Inbecomingdeterminedtoadvanceyourwork,alsoguardagainstasortofovercondentisolation(Blantonetal.
,2001)thatcouldbecounteredbysteppingback–aphaseofwritingthatwe'llexploreinmoredetailinChapter3.
Howtogetstartedandbecomecreativelyengagedwithyouracademicwriting–checklistandstrategySeeyourselfaspartofaconversationanddecidetojointhedialogue.
Identifyhowyoucanengagewithcurrentissuesorunansweredquestionsinawaythatmightcatalyseareaction.
Encourageyourstudentstoreadwrittenworkofyoursandthatofotherauthors.
Respondpositivelytorequeststotalkaboutyourwork.
Exploreyourmotivation(seealsochapter9).
Trackthetimesinyourwritingwhenyou'remostlikelytofeelengagedandfocused.
Avoidunstructuredproliferationofideas–setupyourideasleandkeepthemrelativelyorganized.
Generatetargetsandoutlinesthatwillhelptoavoidunstructured,uncap-turedgarrulousapproachestowriting.
Findwhatreallyinterestsyou,somethingyoucareaboutoranangleaboutwhichyoucanfeelpassionate.
34ADVANCINGYOURWRITINGChecktheextractsofyourwritingthatyoufeelmostproudof,andtrytoidentifythefeaturesofthecontextinwhichyouwroteit.
Keepawritingdiarythatallowsyoutotracktherhythmsofyourwriting.
Talktotrustedothersaboutyourwritingandcaptureimportantorstrikingaspectsofthatconversation.
Protecttimeforadvancingyourwriting–don'tlistentovoicesthatsayyoudon'tknowenough–maybethisistrue,butyouwon'talwaysknowwherethegapsareuntilyouhavegeneratedsomeskeletaloutlineofwhereitisyouwanttogo.
HOWTOGETSTARTEDANDBECOMECREATIVELYENGAGEDWITHYOURACADEMICWRITING353RetreatingReviewing,revising,craftingandenhancingyourwritingIntroductionDeningtheretreatphase:reviewingandrechargingFromadvancetoretreatRetreatinginordertorestRetreatingtogetfeedbackfromothersExercisesinretreatingfromyourwritingChecklistandstrategyforretreatingfromyourwritingSummaryIntroductionThischapterpresentstheimportanceofretreatingorsteppingbackfromyouracademicwriting.
Itprovidesguidanceabouthowtopreparetoengageinthislessactive,morereective,objective,detachedmode.
Wearguethatthisisanessentialphaseoftheacademicwritingprocess.
Weshowhowacademicwriterscanbenetfromthedeliberateadoptionofaretreatstrategyatvariouskeystagesintheirwriting.
Itwillalsohighlighttheimportanceofbalancingregularandsuccessivephasesofprogressandrevision.
Deningtheretreatphase:reviewingandrechargingOurownobservationshavehighlightedthreeimportantdimensionsoftheretreatphaseofacademicwriting.
Therstistheimportantneedtorelaxandrestfromwritingtasks,aneedthatmaybeprecipitatedbysomeofthenega-tiveexperiencesthatareassociatedwiththeadvancephaseofwriting.
Signalsthatyoumaybereadytoretreatfromyourwritingincludesuchthingsasexhaustion,stressandothersignsthatactivewritingmayhavereachedapointwhereanyprogressisgraduallycharacterizedbydiminishingreturns.
Thesec-onddimensionoftheretreatphaseisthatofre-evaluation,anactivitythatnecessarilyrequiresrevisiting,gettingfeedbackandlisteningtootherpeople'sviewsonwhatyouhavewritten.
Writinginacademia,likemostotherwriting,involvessendingyourmessagetoreaders.
Partoftheretreatphaseinvolveslisteningtotheviewsofpeoplewhoarelikelytobeabletotellyoualotaboutyourwriting,giveyouinsightsthatyoumaynothaveconsideredyourself,andequipyouwithbigandsmallideastohelpyoutodevelopandtoenhanceyourwork.
Thethirddimensionoftheretreatphaseisgettingreadyforanotherphaseofadvance.
Afteryouhaverestedandswitchedoff;afteryouhavesought,receivedandreectedonfeedback;thenyouneedtogearupagainandprepareforthenextstageofprogress.
Retreatingfromyourwritingrepresentsachangeofgearandcaninvolvearangeofdifferentdynamics:arestphaseafteraperiodofactivewriting;theincubationofandreectiononideasthathavealreadybeenatleastpartlyformed;the'handingover'ofyourwritingtosomeoneelseandallowingyourwritingtobeviewedthroughanotherlens.
Retreatingorsteppingbackmeansstopping,resting,thinking,reecting,re-evaluating,revisingandre-orientatingyourwriting.
Allofthesemaybeimportantthingstodoinordertoproduceapublishable,coherentpieceofwork.
Theimportanceofretreatingreectstheneedforyoutobecautiousaboutbecomingsoimmersedorlockedintoyourworkthatyoucan'tcastamoreobjectiveeyeoverwhatyouhavedone.
Someofthekeypracticaladviceinthischapterincludesguidelinesforhandingyourwritingtosomeoneelse;listeningtoorreadingfeedbackandachievingrelaxationanddetachmentinthecontextofeventhemoststressfulanddemandingwritingprojects.
DEFININGTHERETREATPHASE:REVIEWINGANDRECHARGING37FromadvancetoretreatEventhemostprolicandsuccessfulacademicwriterssaythatthemomentumtheyachievewhenwritingisnotdirectorautomatic.
Whiletheywrite,theyexperienceperiodsofactiveprogress,buttheyalsoencounterperiodsofdelay,criticismandre-evaluation.
Justasoneaspectofyourwritingischaracterizedbyagratifyingsenseofprogress,another,complementaryphaserequiresyoutostop,toreectandtoreview.
Muchofthisinvolvessimplyputtingdownyourpen,orprintingoffapieceofwritingandswitchingoffyourcomputer.
Someinevitablyinvolvescriticismandreection.
Partofitinvolvesplanningandsketchingoutnextstepsthatcanbetakenwiththebenetofthereectionthataretreatphaseallows.
Rewritingandrevisitingone'swritingisnotanadmissionoffailure,norshoulditbeadepressingrakingoverthecoalsofone'sinadequacies.
Implicitinmuchexistingworkonwriting'blocks'istheargumentthatoncewriterscangetoverthenotionthatreviewingandcriticizingtheirownwritingisnotanegativestatementontheworkthattheyhavedonetodate,thentheyhavemadeacrucialbreakthroughintheirrelationshipwiththeirwritingtasks(Hull,1985).
Re-evaluatingyourwriting,preferablyafteraperiodofrestanddetachment,isapositiveandalmostdenitelyanecessaryphaseinallyourwritingprojects(Zinsser,1980;Levine,2004).
Thewillingnesstodothissimplyrecognizesthatyouaremovingfromonephaseofwritingtothenext.
Youarenottakingaretrogradestepbutaprogressiveone,onethatwillgetyouclosertoyourgoalofcompletionsuccessfullyandwithsatisfaction.
Inthewritingsessionsthatwehaveobservedasfacilitatorsofacademicwriting,weareoftenstruckbyhowquicklyanduentlyself-confessednon-writersorblockedwritersstarttowrite.
Whentheconditionsfeelrightforthem,andwhenwritersstepforwardandstarttoadvance,inkreallydoescomeowingfrompens,keyboardstapfuriouslyandfeverishly,peopleforgetaboutwhattimeitis,losethemselvesintheirwritingandareoftenamazedtodiscoverthathourshavepassedsincetheylastliftedtheirheadfromtheirtasks.
Oncepeoplestarttowritefreelyinthisway,itoftenseemslikethere'snostoppingthem.
Aftermanyofthefreewritingsessionsthatwehaverun,academicwritersreporthowsurprisedtheyweretodiscoverthattheyhadsomuchtosay.
AsweexploredinChapter2,freeingpeopleupfromtherestrictedconventionsofacademicwritingproves,perhapsironically,tobeaveryeffectivewayofhelp-ingpeopletomakerealprogressonacademicwritingtasks.
Theacademicswehaveworkedwithdemonstratehugeengagementandsatisfactionwhentheyareinthisphaseofactiveprogress,learningtowriteinawaythatsidelinestheirconcernsaboutrhetoric,genre,spelling,structure,atleastforatime,inordertogetintoaproductivewritingmode.
Butlikeallhappy,productive38RETREATINGphasesinourlives,itcan'tlastforever.
Prolicproductionoftexteventuallyslows.
Peoplestarttore-readandreconsiderwhattheyhavewritten.
Thevoicesofdoubtandcautionstarttowhisper.
Theneedfordirection,sequenceandorganizationstartstobecomeclear.
Thismaybethesignalthatyouareabouttoenteradifferentbutequallyimportantphaseinthewritingprocess.
Andyoushouldtrytoseethisasapositivething,notastheindicatorthateverythingisabouttogrindtoaninexorableandpermanenthalt.
Slowingdownisjustasimportantasspeedingup.
Whenyouarewritinguentlyandunselfconsciously,therewillcomeatimewhenyouneedtotakestock.
Whenmovingforwardwithyourwriting,theprojectcanstarttofeeloverwhelmingandstressful.
Worriesalsoemergeaboutdeadlines,yourknowledgebase,thelegitimacyofyourarguments,the'acceptability'ofwhatyouhavewritten,therobustnessofyourdataoryourassertions,thecomprehensivenessofyourframeofreference,theappropriatenessofyourinuencesandtherelevanceoftheliteratureyouhavecited.
Youmaybeabletoaddressthesequestionsmoreeffectivelyandassiduouslyifyoudeliberatelyplantoenteraphaseofretreatfromyourwriting.
Itallowsyoutore-evaluateratherthanabandon;toreworkratherthanreject.
Itcanhelpyoutoengageinusefulcriticismofyourwork.
DoyouknowenoughtomakeaparticularargumentDoyouhaveenoughdatatodeliveraparticularassertionIsyourwritinginitscurrentformsuitableforyourtargetpublica-tionsWhilethesequestionscanfeelstressfulandfrustrating,perhapstheywillfeellesssoif,fromthebeginning,youplanaheadoftimetopauseatsomepointandaskthem.
Youcanstarttoresentsuchconsiderationsbecausetheytakeyououtofthemoresatisfyingphaseofowinwhicheverythingwascomingeasilytoyouandyouweren'tworryingsomuchabouttheissuesofrigourorquality.
Beforeyouaddresstheseconsiderations,then,therstthingthatitisusefultodowhenretreatingfromyourwriting,istodonothingatall,torelaxandtoswitchoff.
RetreatinginordertorestSo,theredoescomeastageinacademicwritingtaskswhenconstant,relentlessengagementinyourwritingissimplyunproductive.
Workingactivelyonyourwriting,orfeelingitforeverhangingoveryou,cancreateasemi-tolerable,butratherunpleasantlife–oneinwhichyouareconstantlyvulnerabletobeingdistractedfromotherimportantthingsinyourlifeforthesakeofyourwriting,alwaysatriskofallowingyourwritingtasktotakeover,alwaysindangerofbeingdrawnawayfromthepresentmomentinwhichyoumightberelaxing,socializing,spendingtimewithyourfamily,orgettingotherthingsdoneatworkorathome.
WeencourageyoutonurturetheskillofswitchingoffcompletelyandtoRETREATINGINORDERTOREST39learnthatjustbecauseyouleaveyourwritingforawhile,doesn'tmeanthatthewordsyouhavewrittenaregoingtoevaporateorthatyouwillneverbeabletopickupthethreads,orthatthenexttimeyoustart,you'llfeelitwillnotbepickingupwhereyouleftoff,butstartingalloveragain.
Over-engagedwritersdofearthesethingsand,becauseofthesefears,areoftenreluctanttostoponcethey'vestarted,writingforlongblocksoftimeinwaysthatareultimatelydamagingandunhealthyforthem(Boice,1990).
Whenaskedwhytheydothis,someofthemdorefertothepleasureofowandofgettinglostinawritingtask,asdescribedinChapter2,butmanyofthemreportthattheysimplydon'ttrustthemselvestobeabletocomebacktoawritingtaskoncetheyhaveleftit.
Productive,successfulwriters,andthosewhoderivemorepleasureoutofwriting,arethosewriterswhohavefoundwaysofplanningandorganizingtheirtimeinawaythatcreatesbalancebetweentheirwritingandalltheotherimportantaspectsoftheirlives.
Weneedstrategiesfortakingourbreaks.
Itisnotadvisablejusttogetupandwalkaway,creatingaMissHavisham-styledustydeskleftexactlyasitwasonthedayyouabandonedit.
Ifyouplanyourretreatphase,itwillbelessanabandonmentofyourwriting,andmoreastrategicregroupingofyourenergies,yourperspectivesandyourmotivation.
Sometimessimplygoingtosleepcangiveyouinsightsandideasaboutyourwork(Wagneretal.
,2004).
TurkandKirkman(1998)advise:'trytoleave[yourwriting]forafewdays,oratleastovernight.
.
.
itisessentialtomakeacon-sciousefforttostepbackfromyourwork'(p.
41).
Hereissomemorepracticaladvicethatyoumightbenetfromwhenplanningyourrestperiods.
Practicaladvicefortakingbreaksfromyourwriting1.
MakeyourbreakscompleteInordertofunctionattheirbest,ourbrainsneedperiodsofintenseandpro-foundrest.
Thebenetsofswitchingoffarewelldocumented(forexampleJensen,1995;Cooper,2000;Schneider,2003),andmaybeparticularlyimport-antforthoseinvolvedinacademicwritingtasks.
Inordertoswitchoffcom-pletelyfromthetaskinwhichyouareembroiled,youneedtogetsomekindofclosurefromtheactivephaseofwriting.
Itmighthelptoprintoffpartsorallofwhatyouhavewrittenandtohaveaquickreadwithaviewtoeditingitatalaterstage.
Goingthroughbasichousekeepingritualsmightmakeiteasierforyoutogetsometemporarydistancefromyourtaskandtoretreatfromyouractivewritingphase.
2.
Makeyourbreakstimed–knowwhenyournextwritingperiodisgoingtobeToooften,writersaretakenawayfromtheirwritingtasksnothavingarmideaaboutwhenthey'llnextgetaroundtowritingagain.
Havingawriting40RETREATINGscheduleisausefulwayofensuringthatyoudon'tleavetoomuchtimebetweenwritingsessions.
Thepsychologyofknowingwhenyouaregoingtorevisityourwritingbeforeyoutakeabreakfromitwillallowyoutoplaninmoreconcretewaysandgiveyouasenseofcontinuityandoptimism.
Someofthedisciplineimposedbymembershipofawriters'group(seeChapter7foradetailedoutlineofthewriters'groupconcept)canhelptoinjectthissenseofcontinuityinyourwriting,evenwhenyou'renotdoingit.
Youmayneedtonegotiatethistimeinquiteassertivewayswithallsortsofpeopleinyourlife(seealsoChapter9).
Butonceyoudohaveaschedule,thenyouwillbemoredeliberateabouthowmuchtimeyouspendbothwithandawayfromyourwritingtasks.
Thiswillallowyoutotakebreakswithoutfeelingguiltyorworriedthatyou'returningyourbackonyourwritingcompletely.
3.
WritealistofwhatneedstobedonenextbeforeleavingyourwritingtaskBeforeyoustopwriting,it'susefultosketchoutalistofthethingsthatyouwanttodonext.
Itmightbeanoutline,alistofwordsorsomegeneralideasofstepsandaspectsthatyouwouldliketocover.
Itmightbeaplanofwhichsectionsofaparticularoutlineyouwanttotacklenext.
Havingawritingactionplanmeansthat,again,itwillbeeasiertopickupwhereyouleftoff.
Itisusefultoendaparticularwritingsessionwitha5-minutefreewritingexerciseusingapromptlike:'TheideasthatIwanttowriteaboutnextare.
.
.
',ormorespecically:'atmynextwritingsessionIwouldliketo.
.
.
'Themorespecicyouareaboutthewritingtasksyouwanttoreturnto,theeasieritwillbe(ElbowandBelanoff,2000;Murray,2002).
Thisisimportantwhenyou'replanningaperiodawayfromthetask.
Itisunlikelythatyouhavethepowerofperfectrecall–it'seasytoforgetwhereyouwere.
Aplannedlistofnextstepswilljogyourmemoryandreassureyouthatyoudoactuallyknowwhereyouaregoing.
Itwillsaveyoutimeandmakeiteasierforyoutotakebreakswhenyourenergyisdippingandwhenyoujustneedtogoawayanddosomethingelse.
4.
Dosomethingcompletelydifferent:exercise,entertainment,socializing,meditating,massage,yoga,swimmingInordertomakesureyoureallydotakeaproperbreak,it'sworthplanningtodosomethingtotallydifferentthantheactivitiesthatyouusuallyengageinwhilewriting.
Avoidbreaksthatkeepyousittingdown,haveyouinfrontofacomputerorinvolvetiringreading-orwriting-relatedtasks.
Watchingtelevisionmightseemlikeabreakfromwriting,butitprobablywon'tprovideenoughofachangeofscenetostopyoufrombeingpreoccupiedwithyourtask.
Psychologistssuggestthatthebestkindsofwork-relatedbreaksinvolveactive,moderatelychallengingphysicalactivitiesthatkeepyouengagedandRETREATINGINORDERTOREST41stopyoufromthinkingaboutthetasksfromwhichyouaresupposedtobegettingabreak.
5.
Don'tactivelytrytothinkaboutyourwritingproject–butbringanotebookwithyou–justincaseWhileyourbreaksshouldbecompleteandutterlydiverting,don'tbanyourbrainfromitsinevitableabilitytogainimportantinsightsaboutyourwritingwhileyouareawayfromyourtask.
Oftenitisattheverytimeyouarerestingthatthebestideaspopintoyourhead–soletthathappen,justdon'tforceitto.
Ifyoudohaveabrainwavewhilerelaxing,makeanoteofit.
Keepyour'ideas'notebookwithyouevenwhenyou'renotworking,sothatanyinterest-inginsightsthatmightstrikeyouwon'tgotowaste,andlateronyoucanexploitthemmoredeliberatelyduringyournextdedicatedwritingsession.
Allowyourideastomarinatesothatthecontentwillbetenderandeasiertotackleonyourreturn.
RetreatingtogetfeedbackfromothersAtleastasimportantasrestanddetachmentisthedimensionofretreatthatinvolvesgettingfeedbackfromothers.
Boice(1982)oncesuggestedthataca-demicswhodon'twritechoosenottodosobecauseofsuchthingsasnegativeearlyexperiences,atendencytowardsperfectionismorevengrandiosityandanxietyassociatedwithevaluation.
AsyousawinChapter2,wehavefoundsimilarissuesinvokedinourownexplorationsaboutwhatpeopledislikeaboutacademicwriting.
Mostofthesewritingprohibitorsarelinked,atleastinsomeway,totheissueoffeedback.
Beingreadytoreviserequirestheabilityto'decentre'andallowyourselftoseeyourworkthroughtheeyesofothers(Kroll,1978;Bradford,1983).
Onceyougiveyourwritingtosomeonetoread,youtakethecontroloutofyourhandsandyougiveittosomeoneelse.
Itisbothsteppingbackandlettinggo.
Itisallowingsomeoneelsetostarttoplayarole.
ThepsychologyofnegativefeedbackNegativefeedbackistheconundrumoffeedback.
Fewbeliefsaremorewidelyacceptedbypsychologists,managers,educators,andotherscon-cernedwithhumanperformancethanthebeliefthatpeopleneedtoreceivefeedbackabouthowwelltheyareperformingtheirtasks.
.
.
Yetinspiteofthebestintentionstostimulateperformanceimprovementwithnegativefeedback,itrarelyworksthatway;alltoooftennegativefeedbackproducestheoppositeeffect.
(IlgenandDavis,2000:551)42RETREATINGWhenpeopleareexposedtoinformationthatisuncomfortableorthreateningtothem,theytendtodeny,distort,ignoreoravoidit(Festinger,1958).
Aca-demicwritersareconstantlyriskingwhatpsychologistscallcognitivelydis-sonantexperiences,particularlywhentheysubmittheirworkforreviewandcriticismtointernational,peer-reviewedjournalsortouncompromisingedi-tors.
Ontheonehand,theyaretoldthattheirtenureorprogressionwithinacademiadependsontheirabilitytopublishtheirwork,whileontheother,receivinganynegativeperspectivesontheirworkcanmakethemfeelliketheyarefurtherawaythaneverfromtheirwritingandpublishinggoals.
Thesetwoconictingexperiencesoftenleadacademicstoabandonprojectsthatareactuallyfullofpromiseortoavoidsituationsinwhichtheywillreceiveanynegativefeedbackabouttheirworkwhatsoever.
Afterseveralboutsofcriticismorrejection,manyofthemstarttofeelthatnotworkingonawritingtaskatallmightbepreferable.
Negativefeedback,eveniflogicallyfullofpotentialutilityandinsightfullessonsaboutyourperformance,oftenproducestheoppositeofitsdesiredeffect.
Insteadofadeterminationtoimprove,peoplewithdraw,dejectedanddiscouraged.
Insteadofanurgetogaininsightsaboutthegeneralandspecicwaysinwhichapieceofwritingfallsshortofthemark,peopleaverttheireyesfromthecriticism,somenotevenallowingthemselvesseeit,letalonelearnlessonsthatcouldhelpthemuseit.
ThepsychologyofpositivefeedbackJustasitisdifculttoencounternegativefeedbackaboutyourwork,it'salsoverypleasanttohearpositivethings.
Thisisallthemorethecaseifsuchfeedbackcomesfromauthoritativesourcesorfromthosewhoseopinionyourespect.
Makesureyoupayattentiontothelessonsthatpositivefeedbackcancontain.
It'sjustasimportanttoanalysewhat'sgoodaboutyourwritingasitistogetareasonablepictureaboutwhatitisaboutitthatneedsimprovementorchange.
Interrogatethepositiveperspectivesasassiduouslyasyouanalysethenegativeones.
Thiswillbeimportantasyourwritingstrategyunfolds.
Becarefulthatpositivefeedbackdoesnotleadtoarroganceorcomplacency.
Makesurethatyoumakeuseofthepositivefeedbackyoureceivebyfocusingcarefullyonexactlywhatitisthatmakesaparticularpieceofwritingsogood.
Ifyoudothis,thenitislikelythatyou'lllearnbothfromyourwritingsuccessesaswellasyourwritingfailuresandbeequippedasmuchbypositiveasbynegativeperspectivesonyourwriting.
PotentialblockstoeffectivefeedbackIfwritersdon'tlookforfeedbackatall,theymissoutonimportantopportunitiestoimprovetheirworkManyoftheacademicwriterswehaveworkedwithsaythatitsometimesfeelshardtotrustpeopletoreadtheirworkinprogress.
TheyprefertoworkRETREATINGTOGETFEEDBACKFROMOTHERS43privatelyorevensecretly,fearingthatiftheydosharetheirwork,they'llberiskingridicule,jealousyorbadadvice.
Evenwhentrustlevelsarehigh,writersoftenassumethatwritingisapurelysolitarytask,onethatdoesnotinvolveorrequireinteractionwithotherpeople.
Butwebelievethatwritingisbetterconceivedofasbothiterativeandinteractive.
Whileitmaybeimportanttocontainandkeepyourwritingprivateintheearlystages,gettingfeedbackthatisconstructiveandhealthygenerallycreatesopportunitiesforimprovingwrittenwork.
Thisopportunitymightstillnotbeenoughofamotivationforyoutoseekitout,though.
Alotofacademicwriterssaythatwhensomeonepointsoutpossiblenewavenuesfortheirwriting,orgapsthattheymayneedtollwithfurtherresearchandinvestigation,itcreatesmore,notless,stressforthem.
Manyofthemsaythingslike:'Idon'tcarewhat'swrongwithit,Ijustneedtogetitnished',or'Nomatterwhatyoutellmeaboutthis,Ican'timagineeverwantingtodoanymoreworkonit.
'Thesereactionsarecommonandnormalinacademia.
Ifyou'veeverexperiencedperspectiveslikethisonyourwork,wesuggestthatsteppingbackbygettingfeedbackisevenmoreimportantthanyoumighthaveimagined.
Needingtostayincontroloftheirwriting,evenwhenotherpeoplearereadingandcommentingonit,issomethingthatwritersoftenreport.
Youcangetfeedbackwhilealsofeelingandstayingincontrol.
Ifwriterswaituntiltheyarecompletelycommittedtoanalizedpieceofwritingbeforelookingforfeedback,thenitmaybeharderforthemtofacetheprospectofmakinganychangesatallTheearly,uid,exiblestagesofawritingprojectareoftenidealtimestogetfeedbackfromothersaboutwhatyou'redoing.
Conversely,whenyouhavecrossedevery't'anddottedevery'i',whenyouhavedraftedandredraftedyourwriting,polishedandnalizeditwithoutreferencetotheviewsorinputsofanyoneelse,itcanbemuchmoredifculttocountenancechangingitortoincorporateeventhemostusefulinputsfromothers.
So,itmaybethatearlydraftsaretheeasiesttogetadviceon.
Besides,youarelikelytobeabletobelessdefensiveifyouhaven'tworkeddayandnighttomakeitasgoodasyoufeelitcanbebeforeshowingittosomeoneelse.
Ifwritersdon'ttelladvisersaboutthekindoffeedbacktheyneedtohelpthemkeepwriting,thefeedbacktheydogetmightbemoredamagingthanbenecialElbowandBelanoff(2000)suggestthatpeopleshouldbemuchmorepointedwhenaskingforfeedback.
Basedontheirexperiencesandresearchwithwriters,theyrecommendthatyoubecomemuchmoredeliberateaboutman-agingthefeedbackprocess.
Don'tjusthandyourdraftsnervouslytosomeoneandsaysomethingvaguelike:'tellmewhatyouthink'.
Theysuggest,for44RETREATINGexample,thatanyoneyougiveyourwritingtoshouldbefullybriefedaboutthestageofwritingthatyouareat,howmuchandwhatkindoffeedbackyouhavealreadyreceivedandfromwhom,whatkindofadviceyouwouldndmostusefulatthisstageintheproject.
Theysuggestthattherearemanydifferentkindsofsharingandfeedbackthatyoucanreceive,andprovidealistofoptionsthataresummarizedattheendofthischapter.
Byaskingyourreadersforspecickindsoffeedback,yousuddenlybecomemore'incharge'ofthefeedbackyoureceive,andasaresult,aremorelikelytofeelasenseofcontrolratherthandesperatehelplessnessthatwritersoftentalkaboutwhentheyhave'released'theirworktootherpeople.
Ifwritersareafraidoffeedback,theymayignore,distortordenyitsvalidityNobodylikestohearnegativecommentsaboutthemselvesortheirwork.
Ontheonehand,logicwouldsuggestthatifyouwanttoreachaparticulargoal,thenyoushouldndanyperspectivesorinformationaboutyourperform-anceveryuseful.
Thetruthisthatforacademicwriters,thefearofnegativefeedbackisverystrong.
Itisoftentheonethingthatcausesmanyacademicwriterstoavoidwritingaltogether,ortomakemuchslowerprogressthanmightotherwisebethecase.
KlugerandDeNisi(1996)havearguedthatingeneraltermscriticalfeedbackmaybenecessarytohelpyoutoimproveandprogressonanytask,butitcanalsohaveaprohibitiveimpactonyourmotivationandmomentum.
Again,thisreinforcestheimportanceofbeingawareandstayinginchargeofthekindsoffeedbackyouneedtohelpyouprogress.
Ifwritersdon'tanalysefeedbackcalmlyandobjectively,theymayndithardertoimprovetheirwritingandchancesofpublicationAcademicwritersdon'ttendtogetthemselvesintoadeliberateframeofmindwhenlisteningtoorreadingfeedbackontheirwork.
Theyreportreceivingandreadingrejectionlettersorreviewers'commentsinhurried,harriedwaysdur-ingbusytimesoftheyear.
Mostfeedback,eventhefriendliestkind,indicatespossibilitiesformore,notless,work–somethingthatpeoplearesometimesnotevenreadytocountenancewhilerushingbetweenmeetingsandlectures.
Andsowhatemergesintheirwritingischaracterizedby'writer'sblock',demotivation,disaffectionandinactivity.
Theoneactivitythatcanbesotransformative,thatcanfacilitatelearningandknowledgecreation,thatcanyieldsomuchself-efcacyandprideinone'sworkcanbeadestructiveforceinacademiccareerorprofessionaldevelopment.
Thishappensformany,manyacademicsinalmostallinstitutions.
Weestimate,basedonourowninter-actionswithacademicsaroundtheworld,thatthiskindofwithdrawalisaglobalphenomenon.
But,itisonethatwethinkcanbeaddressedbyencouragingpeopletotrainthemselvestoallocatetimetotheirfeedback,RETREATINGTOGETFEEDBACKFROMOTHERS45andtobecomedeliberatelycalmerandmoreobjectiveaboutadvicetheyreceive.
Doingthiscouldhelpyoutodeveloprobustandquestioningwritingstrategies.
Functionalapproachestogettingfeedbackonyourwriting1.
UnderstandingtheimportanceofaudienceWhatwritersneedisanaudience:athoughtful,interestedaudience.
Inthelongrun,youwilllearnmostaboutwritingfromfeelingthepresenceofinterestedreaders–likefeelingtheweightofashattheendoftheline.
(ElbowandBelanoff,2000:508)OurexperiencealsosupportsElbowandBelanoff'sclaimthatinterestedreadersareoneofawriter'sgreatestassets.
However,GrantandKnowles(2000)evocativelytalkaboutwritersholdingtheirworktotheirchestsprotectivelyclaiming'it'snotready,Ican'tshowittoanyone,it'snotperfect'.
Itisverycommonforwriterstobereluctanttoshowtheirworktoanyoneatall.
Thatis,untilitistoolatetoreceiveanyusefuladviceaboutthetextthattheyhaveproduced.
Good,productive,effectivewriterseitherdon'texperiencethiscommonhumantendencyorhavefoundawaytoovercomeit.
Thetruthis,thatanyonewhoispreparedtoreaddraftsofyourworkshouldbetreasuredandavailedofasoftenaspossibleoncetheveryearlyfragilestagehasbeennavigated.
Theearlieryouareableshowyourworktoothers,thesooneryou'llgetotherperspectives,beabletoclarifywhat'snotclear,beabletostructurewhatseemsunstructured,beabletosetaboutcorrectingwhatseemsAnoteonhumilityinwritingIthinkthatoneneedsagreatdealofhumilitytobeawriter.
Soitwaswithmyfather,whowasablacksmithandwrotetragedies,anddidnotvaluehiswritingoftragediesmorehighlythanhisshoeingofhorses.
Ratherthecontrary:whenhewasshoeinghorses,hewouldneverletanyonesaytohim,'no,notlikethat.
.
.
likethis.
You'vedoneitallwrong.
'Hewouldlookupwithhisblueeyesandsmileorlaugh;andhewouldshakehishead.
Butwhenhewaswriting.
.
.
helistenedtowhatanyonesaidtohim,anddidnotshakehisheadbutagreedwiththem.
Hewasveryhumbleabouthiswriting;hesaidthateveryonehadahandinit;hetriedforloveofhiswriting,tobehumbleandtolearnfromothersineveryeld.
(Vittorini,1959)46RETREATINGincorrect,beableto'roundout'yourwritinginawaythatbenetsfromtheintelligentviews,insightsandinputsofotherpeople.
Inordertobenetfromtheadviceofothers,thereisaneedtodetachoneselfsomewhatfromone'swork,tobepreparedtocastacriticaleyeonitsothatthecriticismofothersdoesnotcomeasashock,andthatyoudon'tgointo'defensivemode',aplaceinwhichitisdifculttohearortorespondtoevenmildlynegativeviewsorquestionsthathavebeenprovidedbysomeoneelse.
2.
ThebeautyofcriticismBygivingyoutheirviews,criticalreadersdemonstratetoyouthattheyhavepaidattentiontoyourwriting.
Criticismisanindicatorofengagement,activeinterestandawillingnesstodevelopandrespondtowhatyouhavealreadywritten.
Itcontainsseedsofnewideas,challengestooldonesandsecretstoenhancingyourwriting.
Andthatisinformative,evenifyoudecideforthetimebeingtodonothingaboutit.
Ifyoudo,criticismhelpsyoutoclarifythestancesyouhavetakeninyourwriting,andenhancetheauthority,rigour,robustnessandprofessionalismofyourwriting.
Goodcriticismcanhelpyoudevelopawritingprojectandensurethatitwillprogressintoaninteresting,effective,inuential,publishablepieceofwork.
Respondingpositivelytocriticismcanultimatelyleadyoutodiscoversatisfyingandeffectiveformsofyourownwriting.
3.
Theutilityofreceptivity:becomingareceptivelistenerYoumaynditparticularlyhelpfultoreectcarefullyonhow,atwhatstageandwithwhomyoushouldshareyourwork.
Onceyouhavemadethatdeci-sion,youcanhelptomanagetheprocessofsharingyourworkbypayingattention,andlisteningcarefullyandrespectfully.
Byallmeansalsoquestionthebasisofthefeedback–nottochallengeit,butrathertondoutmoreaboutwhatthevaluablereaderisthinking.
Whenyougiveyourworktosomeonetoread,it'sworthkeepinginmindthatyourreadershavearighttotheirreac-tions.
Iftheyhavetakenthetroubletoreadyourworkcarefullyandthought-fully,thenyouareatleastobligedtoallowthemtodecidewhattheythinkthemselves.
Arguingwithreadersorassumingtheyhaven'tunderstoodisnotveryuseful.
Whatismuchmoreusefulislisteningcarefullytowhattheyaresayingandtryinghardtounderstandwhetherwhattheyhavesaidcanbeusedtohelpimprovewhatyouhavewritten.
Tellingyourreaderthattheydon'tunderstandsomething,orevengettingshirtywiththemaboutanynegativethingstheyhavetosay,ismuchlessusefulthanaskingthemtoexplaininmoredetailwhytheyhavereactedinthewaythattheyhave.
Achievingareectiveorientationallowsyoutoadoptamoreobjectivestancesothatyouarenothurt,annoyedorinsultedbycriticalreaders,butenergizedandmotivatedbythem.
RETREATINGTOGETFEEDBACKFROMOTHERS474.
StayinginchargeWhileempoweringyourcriticalreader,itisalsoimportantnottobecomedisempoweredyourself.
Itisimportanttofeelactive,inchargeandrelaxed.
Nomatterwhatotherpeoplesay,thisisstillyourwritingandonlyyouultimatelymustdecidewhat(orwhatnot)todowithit.
Don'tbesubservientorhelpless.
Youcandecidewhatkindoffeedback,ifany,youneedandyoucanchoosewhatyouwanttodowithit(Elbow,1973;TurkandKirkman,1998).
So,insteppingbackfromyourwork,itisimportanttoaskforwhatyouwantandthenallowyourcriticalreadertoprovideit.
Listeningcarefully,curiouslyandundefensivelywillhelpyoutomakethemostofthefeedbackyouget.
Theexercisesectionattheendofthischapterprovidesyouwithaseriesoffeed-backoptionsthatyoumightconsiderlookingforatdifferentstagesinyourwritingprocess.
Theimportantthingtorememberisthatyoucanchoosethekindsoffeedbackyouwouldliketogetandyoucanmaintaincontroloverhowyourespond.
5.
AfocusonprofessionaldevelopmentandlearningSomeofthethingsthatmaydistinguishregular,successfulacademicwritersfromtheirlessproductivecounterpartsare:awillingnesstolearnfromtheperspectivesofothers,acuriosityaboutanycommentsthatrelatetotheirwritingandadeterminationtointegratetheseperspectivesintotheirsubsequentwritingstrategies(FaigleyandWitte,1981;Zerubavel,1999).
Byadoptingthesestrategiesyourself,youwillbemorelikelytouseallfeedbackinpositiveandprofessionallyhelpfulways.
6.
LettingotherpeopleplayaroleinyourwritingFurthermore,engaginginasearchforfeedbackallowsyoutobreatheasighofreliefnomatterwhathappens,becauseyoucreateastageinyourwritingprojectinwhichsuddenlytheballisinsomeoneelse'scourt.
Someoneelseundertakestodosomethingwithwhatyouhavedone,tosaysomethingaboutit,tosubjectittosomeanalysisortosuggestwaysinwhichitcanbeimproved.
Thissimplyallowsyoutositbackquietlyforawhileandtolistencarefullytoperspectivesonyourwork.
Becalmandreectiveaboutwhatotherpeoplesay.
Feedbackwillnotalwaysbeuseful,butitismuchmorelikelytobeusefulifyoulistentoitandreectonwhatitmeansforyourwritingstrategy.
7.
CopingwithunhelpfulordestructivefeedbackSometimes,evenwhenyouseekoutusefulfeedback,yougetresponsesthatmaynotonlybeunhelpful,butthatcreateobstructionsandblocksinyourwritingprogress.
Thereisnoguaranteethatthefeedbackyougetwon'tatleast48RETREATINGoccasionallybeunclear,inaccurate,incomprehensibleordifculttorespondto.
Manyacademicwriterscantellyouaboutintemperate,insultingandunhelpfulfeedbackthatstillsometimescomesfromanonymousreviewersofinternationaljournals.
Youshouldbeawarethatnotallanalysersofyourworkwillbemotivatedtoencourageyoutoimproveit,andnotallofthemwillbepositiveenoughtogiveyoufeedbackthatyoucandosomethingabout.
Thismakesitallthemoreusefultohavepositivewritingpartnershipsinyourprofessionallife.
Thefollowingsectionprovidessomepreliminaryadviceaboutsettingupsupportivewritingpartnerships.
Youcanalsoreadaboutmoredetailed,contextualizedapproachestodoingthisinPartIIofthisbook.
SettingupwritingpartnershipsandsomeguidelinesforprovidingeffectivefeedbackSettingupaneffectivewritingpartnershipinvolvesndingsomeonewhoispreparedtospendtimegettinginvolvedinthoughtfuldialogueaboutyourwriting.
You'remostlikelytobeabletodothisifyouoffertoreadsomeoneelse'sworkinreturnforthemreadingyours.
Insettingupapartnershiplikethis,aswellasreectingonhowbesttorespondtofeedbackyou'llreceive,itisalsoworthagreeinggroundrulesforgivingfeedback.
Itmightbeworthintegratingthefollowingfeedbackguidelinesintoyourwritingpartnerships:Givefeedbackthatyouthinkwillfacilitateimprovement(IlgenandDavis,2000).
Aswellasidentifyingaspectsofthewritingthatcouldbestrengthened,pointoutstrengthsthatalreadyexist.
Behonestandspecicwithbothyourpositiveandnegativecomments.
Askthewritertobespecicaboutthekindoffeedbacktheywouldndmostusefulandalsotospecifythestageofdevelopmentofthewriting(ElbowandBelanoff,2000).
Differentiatebetweenhigher-orderandlower-orderconcerns(Bean,2001).
Higher-orderconcernscouldincludewhetherthewritingaddresseskeyquestions,isarguedinsoundandjustiedwaysoriswellorganizedandclear.
Lower-orderconcernsincludesuchissuesasstylisticchoices,formsofexpression,grammar,punctuation,spellingandlayout.
Alwayswrite/givefeedbackinawaythatrespectsthepersonwhoseworkyouarecommentingon,andthatrecognizeshowyourfeedbackislikelytomakethemfeel(Goleman,1995).
RETREATINGTOGETFEEDBACKFROMOTHERS49ExercisesinretreatingfromyourwritingThischapterhasexploredhowimportantitistoseeyouracademicwritingfromperspectivesotherthanyourown,butalsoofnotbeingoverwhelmedorparalysedbythefeedbackyoureceive.
Theseexercisesprovidesomepracticalstrategiestohelpyoutostrikethatimportantbalance.
Exercise1:ContextualizingyourworktoenhancethefeedbackprocessWhenworkingwithawritingmentororpartner,trycontextualizingyourwork.
Promptsthatmightbeusefulininitiatingfeedbackmightsoundlikethis:'Beforeyougivemefeedbackonthispiece,thisiswhatyouneedtoknow':e.
g.
theevolutionandstageofmywriting(rstdraft,redraft,revisitedafteralongtime,unstructured,polished).
'ThesearethereasonsIwrotethispiece.
''Ihavereceivedfeedbackaboutapreviousdraftthatadvisedmeto.
.
.
andthesearethewaysinwhichIhavetriedtointegratethatadvice.
'Exercise2:Decidingonthefeedbackyouwant(AdaptedfromElbowandBelanoff,2000)Youcanaskyourfeedbackgiverstoprovideyouwithdifferentkindsoffeed-back.
Selectapieceofwritingthatyouarecurrentlyworkingon,andreectonwhichofthefollowingfeedbackinstructionswouldbemostusefulforyoutogiveyourmentorintheinterestsofprogressingthiswork:1Highlighttheessential,centralmessagesinmywritingAskreaderstoidentifywhattheythinkisthemostimportant,centralstatementinyourwriting.
Ifyourreadersdothis,itwillbesatisfyingifthecentreofgravitythattheyhaveidentiedisthesameasyouintended,andinterestingiftheyidentifysomethingdifferent.
2InvitemetoelaborateonparticularaspectsofmywritingAskreaderstoidentifywhattheywanttohearmoreabout.
Thiscantriggeryourcapacitytoelaborateandbuildonthemostinterestingaspectsofyourwork.
3Tellmewhatyouknow/think/feelaboutthetopicEveniftheyarenotexpertsinyourdiscipline,theknowledgebases,ideasandopinionsoftrustedothersmighthelptouncovernewanglesorlensesthroughwhichtoviewanddevelopyourwriting.
50RETREATING4Tellmehowmuch'voice'youhearinmywritingIfyourwritingmentorsareconfusedbythisquestion,thenperhapsaskthemtotellyouiftheywouldknowthatitwasyouwhowrotethesewords.
Thiscanhelpyoutoexploretheextenttowhichyouaredevelop-inganindependent,condentstyleinyourwriting.
AsElbowandBelanoffputit:'Whenpeopledescribethevoicetheyhearinwriting,theyoftengettothesubtlebutimportantmattersoflanguageandapproach'(2000:513).
5BemywritingchampionAskyourcriticalreadertoidentifyonlythethingsaboutyourwritingthattheythinkaregood.
Thisisausefulinstructiontogivesomeoneattimeswhenyou'refeelingfragileandtentativeaboutyourwork.
Askingsomeonetotellyouwhattheythinkisgoodcanboostyourcondenceattimeswhenyouneedit.
Youcanhelpyourreadertodothisforyoubyaskingthemtodothingslikebuildon,developorbrainstormaspectsofyourwork.
6Bemydevil'sadvocateAskyourcriticalreadertoidentifyonlythosethingsaboutyourworkthattheythinkareweakorneedmoreattention.
Youmightdothisattimeswhenyou'refeelingrobustandcondentbyencouragingyourreadertodoubt,question,'needle',eventeaseyouaboutyourwriting.
Thiscouldgiveyousomevaluableroutestoenhancingwhatisalreadygoodortoreconsideringaspectsofyourwritingthatrequirefurtherattention.
7SummarizemywritingAskyourcriticalreadertotakeapieceofyourwritingandsketchoutasummaryoroutlineofit.
Thiscanbeveryhelpfulifyoufeelyourwritingismessyorunstructured,andcanfacilitateyoursubsequenteffortstotidy,craftandclarifyyourwork.
8Givemespecicfeedbackonaspectsofmywriting(criterion-basedfeedback)Directyourcriticalreaderstospeciccriteriathatareconcerningyou.
Itcanbeparticularlyusefultogetcriterion-basedfeedbackwhenyouarepro-ducinglaterdraftsofyourwork.
Speciccriterion-relatedquestionscouldinclude:IsthisclearenoughIsmywritingsimpleenoughtoconveythesecentralideasIsthissectiontooshort/toolongDoyoufeelI'vejustiedmyassertionsinthissectionCouldyoureadthispiecewithaviewtopickingupmisspellings,typosorgrammaticalmistakesEXERCISESINRETREATINGFROMYOURWRITING51ChecklistandstrategyforretreatingfromyourwritingPlantotakeregularbreaksfromyourwriting,especiallyattimeswhenyouhavemadealotofactiveorintenseprogress.
Bevigilantforsignsthatyoumayneedtostartsteppingbackfromyourwork.
Thesesignsmightinclude:slowingdownofyourwritingmomentum,alackofstructure,asenseofrepetitiveness,uncertaintyorfatigue.
Practiseswitchingoff.
Stopthinkingaboutyourwriting.
Trytoleaveitbehindandnotbroodormulloveritduringtheseswitch-offtimes.
Getusedtoshowingyourworktootherpeople.
Ifyoundthisdifcult,startwithsmallpiecesofyourwriting,andchoosetoshowittosomeoneyoureallytrusttobesensitivebutalsohonestabouttheirreactions.
Trytodecideonwhatkindoffeedbackwillbemostlikelytohelpyoumakeprogressonyourwork,andthenaskforit.
Analysepositivefeedbackonyourwritingasassiduouslyasyouanalysenegativefeedback.
Inassimilatingfeedback,takenotesandplanthewaysinwhichyouaregoingtostartre-engagingwithyourworkwiththebenetoftheadviceandinputsonyourwriting.
SummaryThischapteremphasizedthenecessityofrefocusingandsharpeningone'swork.
Retreatingcanbetriggeredbydifcultexperienceswithinouracademiccareers–experiencesthatalsoriskleadingtowriter'sblockorotherformsofprofessionalparalysis.
Suchexperiencesincludereceivinganegativepeerreviewofapaper,asupervisor'scritique,orothers'criticalquestioningofthemeritsorrationaleunderpinningone'swork.
Wehopethatthischapterhelpedyoutothinkabouthowyoucantreatsuchexperiencesascatalysts,asopportunitiesforregrouping,asfacilitatorsforreection,andessentiallyaswaysofenhancingyouracademicwriting.
Ouranalysisofwritersinretreatphaseshowsthattherearethreedimen-sionstothisphaseofthewritingprocess.
Therstinvolvesrestandrelaxationandrequiresyousimplytoswitchoffforaperiodoftimeandtostopthinkingaboutordoingwriting.
Thisdisengagementisuseful,nourishingandhealthy.
Theseconddimensionofretreatinvolvesrevisitingandre-evaluating–activitiesthatarebestachievedwithinputfromotherpeopleandthatallowyoutolookatyourwritingindifferentways,fromdifferentcriticalstand-points,withaviewtoimprovingit.
52RETREATINGThethirddimensionisre-engagement,whereyoustartactivelytoimproveyourwork,andgetre-energizedtodevelopit,movingagainintoaphaseofactiveprogress.
Andsotheiterativecycleofwritingcontinues,asdoesyourcapacitytoimproveandtoenhanceboththeprocessesyouusetowriteandthecontentofthetextthatyouproduce.
Justasitmaybeimportantforyoutocontainyourwritingand,attheearly,fragilestagestoprotectitfromtheeyesofcriticalothers(Cameron,1999),itisalsoimportanttogetyourwritingtoapointwhereyouarepreparedtoincorporatetheviewsofothers.
Ifyoubecomemoredeliberateabout,andaccustomedto,retreating,youcanstarttomakesignicantandpotentiallytransformativestepsintheenhancementofyouracademicwriting.
SUMMARY534DisciplinarityinacademicwritingAnalysinggenreinyourdisciplineAnalysingjournalabstractsAnalysingjournals:whatcanittellyouaboutdisciplinarityDevelopingyourown'voice'ChecklistDisciplinarityisconstructed,inasense,bypublishedwritinginyourdiscipline,andyoursenseofdisciplinarityisshapedbyyourunderstandingnotonlyofresearch,butalsoofhowresearchispresentedinjournalsand,moreimportantly,howthecasefor'contribution'tothedisciplineisconstructedinwriting.
Disciplinarityisoftenheldupasoneofthemostimportantfeaturesofacademicstudy,researchandwriting.
Thissuggeststhat,ifyouwanttowritewithinaspecicdiscipline,youneedtoestablishwhatconstitutes'disciplinar-ity'inyourareaand,morespecically,howthatisrepresentedinpublishedacademicwritinginyoureldatthistime.
Thisapproachtodisciplinarityisrhetorical,inthesensethatitinvolvesanalysingfeaturesoftextsandconsideringtheaudiencesandpurposesofacademicwriting.
Writinginadisciplineundoubtedlymeansusingcertainrhetoricalfeatures,andaswriterswehavetoassimilatethosefeaturesintoourthinkingandwrit-ing.
Thismayseemlikeaprocessoflearningand/oradapting.
Weassumethatacademicsarefamiliarwitharangeofjournals,butfewhaveconductedthetypeofdetailedanalysisfeaturedinthischapter.
Ifthisideaisnewtoyou,oneimplicationmaybethatyourunderstandingofacademicwritinginyourdisciplinewouldbenetfrommoredetailedanalysisofpublishedwritingthanyoucurrentlydo.
Ouranalysesprovideanindicationofthetypeofworkyoucan–andperhapsshould–do,particularlyforjournalsyouintendtotarget.
Thischapterexplorestheimportanceofunderstandingtheacademicdiscip-linewithinwhichyouworkandwrite.
Wedescribehowdisciplinaritycanbeunderstoodintermsofthefeaturesofacademicwritingthatcurrentlyappearinpublishedforminyourdiscipline.
Weidentifybothcommonanddistinctivefeaturesofacademicwritingpublishedinaselectionofjournalsandproposespecicwaysinwhichyoucandeepenyourknowledgeofthesefeaturessoastoincorporatethemintoyouracademicwriting,asappropriate.
Towardstheendofthechapter,werevisittheissueofmaintainingyourownvoicewithinyouracademicwriting.
AnalysinggenreinyourdisciplineThepurposeofthissectionistodemonstratethatanalysisofpublishedwritingcanrevealfeaturesofadiscipline,thatthesefeaturesmaybevaried–present-ingyouwitharangeofoptionsforyourwriting–andthatthisrangeisnotinnite.
Youcancarefullyspecifytherangeforeachjournal.
Wesuggestthatyoucan,inspiteofvariationbetweenandwithinjournals,makegeneralizationsaboutwritinginyourdiscipline.
Theaimofanalysisofpublishedpapersistoidentifycharacteristicsofacademicwritinginthesub-setofadisciplinerepresentedbyanygivenjour-nal.
Whileyoumaywonderwhatyoucanlearnfromanalysisofjournalsindisciplinesotherthanyourown,andwhilewewouldnotargueagainstdiscipline-specicanalysis,youmayndthatyoucanlearngenericlessonsfromlookingathowacademicwritingisproducedinotherdisciplines.
Thisanalyticalprocessmayseemtoinvolveretreatingfromyourownwritinginordertoanalyseothers'.
Thisdoesnotmeanthatyouhavetostopwriting;butyoumayndthatyouhavetodevelopnewstrategies–describedelsewhereinthisbook–forcontinuingtowritewhileyouaredeningtherequirementsofspecicjournals.
Ultimately,thisanalysisshouldhelpyoutoadvanceinyourownwritinginawaythatislikelytobejudgedappropriateinaspeciccontext.
Somewritersfearthattheywilllosemomentumiftheystoptoanalyse,andsomendthestudyofpublishedpapersleavesthemfeelingintimidated,ifthestandardsareveryhigh,ordisillusioned,ifthestandardsarelowerthantheyexpected.
Thesereactionsrevealauthors'expectations–aswillyours–andleadtoarealizationthatsomeadjustmentofexpectationsmightbehelpful.
Itmaybedifculttoachievethisworkingonyourown,andthisisanareathatwriters'groupsandwriting'buddies'ormentorscanhelpyouworkthrough(seeChapter7).
ANALYSINGGENREINYOURDISCIPLINE55Ithasbeenarguedthatthesubjectofouranalysisshouldbea'personalcorpus'ofourownwriting.
Suchanalysiswouldallowustoestablishthedis-coursefeaturesofourindividual'textualprole'(Coniam,2004:55).
Usingthisapproach,youcouldestablishwhichfeaturesyoucurrentlyusemostinyourwriting–forexample,'HowmuchdoyouhedgeorboostHowdoyouusedirectivesHowmuchnominalizationisthereinyourwritingWhattensedoyouwritein'(Coniam,2004:55).
Thatisnottheapproachwetakeinthischapter,sinceweassumethatratherthanformingoneprole,academicwritingrequiresyoutoalteryourwritingforspeciccontexts–youalreadydo–andthatyouwillwriteindifferentwaysfordifferentjournals–perhapsyoualreadydothattoo–butthatthereisvalueindeningtheexpectationsofeachjournal–throughanalysis,andeveninmovingacrossdisciplinesindevelopingyouroptionsandskillsasawriter.
Wearguethatitshouldnotbeamatterof'Whattensedoyouwritein'(Coniam,2004:55),butwhichtenseisconsideredappropriateandistherefore,inasense,required,foryourtargetjournalOnceyouhaveaddressedajournal'srequirements,youcanmoveontoconsidertheextenttowhichyoufeelwillingorabletousefeaturesofthediscoursethatoccurinpublishedpapers.
Youcanassesshowmuchroomformanoeuvreyouhave–howfreewillyoubetochallengethedominantnormsandforms,notjustinjournalsingeneral,butinspecicjournalsWhatwouldbethebenetofdoingso–toyou,yourwork,tothereadersofthejournalandtootherresearchersYoumay,nevertheless,ndthatyoudobeginto'study'yourownwriting.
Youmayndyourselfcomparingapublishedauthor'swritingwithyourown,ponderingperhapshowyouwouldhavewrittenaboutthesubject.
Whilethisisnotthesameasdevelopingyour'textualprole',youmayndyourselfbecomingmoreawareofyourpreferences,habitsandvaluesinwrit-ing.
Youmayalreadyknowthatyoulikecertainexpressionsanddislikeothers,forexample,orthatyouadmirepapersthatseemto'ow'withouttheneedforlinkingwords,orthatyoudislikepapersthatusepersonalpronouns.
Indiscussionswithacademics,wefrequentlyndthatitisdifculttostopacademicwritersevaluatingpublishedpapersaccordingtotheirowncriteria–evenwhenweaskthemnotto–andtoanalysetheminstead.
Thereis,ofcourse,nothingwrongwithjudgingpublishedpapers,butthepurposeofanalysis–asopposedtoevaluation–istoworkouthowpapersareputtogether.
Your'take'ontheseissueswill,tosomeextent,bedeterminedbythetypeofresearchorscholarshipyoudo,orbythemethodsorapproachesyouuse,orperhapsbyyourresearchphilosophy.
Equallyimportant,however,isyourchoiceabouthowyouwanttowriteaboutyourwork,whichaspectsyouwanttoemphasizeandwhichelementsyoujudgetobemostinterestingandpoten-tiallyvaluabletoyourpeers.
Thesechoicesareunlikelytobe'free'.
Youmayhavetomakeadjustmentstoyourpreferredstructureorstyleinorderto56DISCIPLINARITYINACADEMICWRITINGpresentyourresearchinawaythatiscurrentlyacceptabletotheresearchcommunity.
Youcanbegintodenewhatis'acceptable'byanalysingwhatjournalshave'accepted'.
Thisisnottosaythateditorsandreviewersconsciouslysitdownwithasetofcharacteristicsastheyselectpapersforreviewandpublication.
Thereiscurrentlyinsufcientdataonpreciselywhattheydo,butwecanassumethatthepaperstheychoosetopublishhavefeaturesthatarevalued,bothintheresearchandthewriting.
Youcanbeginyouranalysisofpublishedpapersbyfocusingonspeciccharacteristics:structure;statementclaiming'contribution';casemadeforsufciencyofevidenceforcontribution.
Otherfeaturesmeritanalysis,includingtheuseandplacingofdenitions,contextualizationofthework,inclusionofcounter-arguments,establishingauthority,referencingstyleandsoon.
Youcandrawupyourownlist,andreadingthischapterwillhelpyoudevelopyourinitialchecklistandanalyticalprocess.
Buildingonwhatyoualreadyknow,youcandevelopacriticalunderstandingoftheconventionsofyourdiscipline.
Youmay,inthecourseofyourreadingandyourownanalysis,formtheviewthattherearebothgenericfeaturesofacademicwritingandfeaturesofspecicdisciplines.
Itmightbehelpfulifyoucoulddeneandillustratethese.
Considerwhetherspecicjournals,withtheirspecicagendas,andtypesofwriting,canbeseenassub-genres.
Thisisnottosaythatthepaperspublishedinanyjournalareeitheridenticaloruniform–fortheyclearlyarenot–butthepurposeistoshowthat,whileanyissueofanyjournalwillhavearangeofpapers,thatrangeisnotinniteand,therefore,therangeofwriters'optionsislimited.
Thebroaderpurpose,beyondthisanalysisinourchapter,istogiveyouaframeworkforcontinuingthistypeofscrutinyofjournalsinyourdiscipline.
Thisisprobablyyourmostimportantfollow-uptaskforthischapter.
Oneoutcomemaybethatyoudrawupa'prole'ofyourtargetjournals.
Somejournalshaveawiderangeofpapers,andothersarelativelynarrowrange.
Inanyeventyourjournalproleswillconsistofoptions.
Thenextsectionofthischapterisaguideforthelevelofanalysisthatyoucandoonyourtargetjournals.
Thefollowinganalysesshowhowyoucanexaminerhetoricalstrategiesusedinpublishedpapersinyourdiscipline.
WeselectedanissueofthejournalCognitiveSciencebecauseitincludedbothscienticandsocialscienceapproaches,andwethoughtthiswouldappealtoawideraudi-ence.
Weanalysedallveabstractspublishedinoneissue.
Asyouscanthesevepieces,youwillseetherangeofsubjectmatter,includingcomputationalmodels,heuristics,motorlearning,perceptualsystemsandthedisciplineofcognitivescienceitself,oftencombiningempiricalandtheoreticalargumentsandcontributions.
ANALYSINGGENREINYOURDISCIPLINE57Theabstractsvaryinlength.
Titlestakedifferentforms,althoughthemajor-ityidentifyboththesubjectandtypeofworkconducted.
Followingthisinitialimpressionofvariety,thereareotherquestionsyoucanaskinordertobeginamoredetailedanalysis.
Forexample,thetwomostimportantquestionscon-cernhowproblemsareidentiedandwhatconstitutesacontribution.
Bothofthesesteps,inthecontextofanacademicargument,canbeperformedinmanydifferentways,anditcanbehelpfultodenewhichonesarecurrentlyusedinyourtargetjournals.
AnalysingjournalabstractsBy'branded'inthelastpointwemean,whattypeofcontributionisoffered,andhowisthevalueofthattypearticulatedWhatkindofcaseismadeforthattypeofcontribution(Seeourcommentaryonexample3below.
)Youcangetsignalsabouthowthewholepaperisstructuredfromtheabstract,andthiscanhelpyoutostructureyourownpapers.
Alternatively,ifyouarewritingforajournalthatdoesnotincludethecontentofthewholepaperinabstracts,thenyouarelikelytohavetoproducethattype.
Athirdpossibilityisthatbothoptionsareavailable–bothabstractsthattaketheformof'thewholepaperinminiature'andthosethatfunctionasintroductionstothepaper–andyouwillhavetomakeachoice.
Thischoicemightbeinuencedbythetypeofresearchyouhavedone,orbytheassociationofonetypeofabstract,inyourtargetjournal,withthattypeofwork.
Theprinciplewearticulatehereisthat,ateverypointinyouranalysis,youcan–andperhapsshould–considerwhetheryoucanproducethetypesofargumentthatyouseeinyourtargetjournal.
Ofcourse,ifyoufeelthatwhatisbeingpublishedinyourtargetjournalisjusttoofarremovedfromtheresearchyoudoandhowyouwanttowriteaboutit,thenyoumayhavetondanotherjournaltosendyourworkto,ormakeacaseforchallengingthecurrentconventionsinthejournal.
Thismaymeanexplicitlymakingacasefordoingso,articulatingwhyyouthinkthisisastrengthanddeningwhatyouaddbywritinginthisway.
Thiscanbestimulatingforwritersandreadersalike,butyoumightwanttorehearseyouridea,briey,withthejournaleditor.
Howistherationale/problematicestablishedAsfarasyoucantellfromtheabstract,howisthepaperstructuredHowismethodologydenedandjustiedHowiscontribution'branded'58DISCIPLINARITYINACADEMICWRITINGInthefollowinganalysiswehighlight,inbold,whatwethinkarethekeypointsintheargumentandprovideacommentaryonthewayinwhichtheargumenthasbeenputtogether.
Thepurposeistodemonstratethelevelofanalysisthatyoucandoonyourowntargetjournals.
Indiscussionsofsuchanalyseswithacademics,wendthattherecanbearangeofreactions,andweincludesomeoftheseinourcommentary.
Journalabstract–example1Workingmemoryresourcesareneededforprocessingandmaintenanceofinformationduringcognitivetasks.
Manymodelshavebeendevelopedtocapturetheeffectsoflimitedworkingmemoryresourcesonperformance.
However,mostofthesemodelsdonotaccountforthendingthatdifferentindividualsshowdifferentsensitivitiestoworkingmemorydemands,andnoneofthemodelspredictsindividualsubjects'patternsofperformance.
Weproposeacomputationalmodelthataccountsfordifferencesinworkingmemorycapacityintermsofaquantitycalledsourceactivation,whichisusedtomaintaingoal-relevantinformationinanavailablestate.
Weapplythismodeltocapturetheworkingmemoryeffectsofindividualsubjectsatanelevelofdetailacrosstwoexperiments.
This,weargue,strengthenstheinterpretationofsourceactivationasworkingmemorycapacity.
(Dailyetal.
,2001:315)Theopeningsentenceofthisabstractidentiestheeldofstudy,makingageneral,relativelyuncontentiousstatementaboutit.
Thesecondsentenceidentiesanapproachtothateld,andthethirddenesthegap:assoonasyouseetheword'however'youknowthatthereisashift,inthiscasefromwhathasbeendonetowhatstillneedstobedone.
Immediately,theauthors'propose'analternative.
Usingtheword'propose'makesthepurpose,andperhapsscope,oftheirpaperexplicit.
Thereisnoambiguity.
Theproportionsoftheabstract,uptothispoint,arealsointeresting:almosthalfisaboutthecontextofthework,theotherhalfisabouttheworktheydid.
Theuseoftheterm'model'–earlyinthesecondsentence,inthethirdsentence,twice,andearlyinthefourth–makesdirectlinksbetweenphasesinthis'story'andmakesitslogicclear.
Thetechniqueofusingakey,linkingwordearlyinseveralsentencesworkstomakeconnectionsbetweensentencesveryclear,makingthewriting'ow',aqualitymanyacademicssaytheyseek.
However,someacademicssaytheyndthistypeofrepetitionirritating.
Ifthatisyourreaction,perhapsthisoptionforestablishinglinksandcoherencewouldnotbeavailabletoyou,evenifyouweretargetingthisjournal–althoughotheroptionsareavailablehere–oritmaymeanthatyoushouldreviewyourthinking:thereisnothing'wrong'aboutthisuseofrepetition,althoughsomeacademicssaytheyhavelearnedthatitis,ifANALYSINGJOURNALABSTRACTS59notexactlywrong,thenpoorstyle.
Theyfeeltheyshouldusevarietyratherthanrepetition.
Yetrepetitionisaneffectivelinkingstrategy,particularlyusedinthiswayandatthispointinapaper.
Moreover,inanydiscipline,keytermswillbeused–andmustbeused–throughoutpapers,perhapsevenmoreirritatinglytothosewhoareaversetothisstyleofwriting.
Inthisinstance,itisdifculttomakeacaseforavoidingthistypeofrepetition.
Whywouldyouchangeakeyterm,atermthatbydenitionyouhavetousefrequently,justforthesakeofvariationFinally,theauthorsofthisabstractdenetheircontributionintheirlastsentence.
Thewordsinboldshowthedirect,explicitlinkbetweenthethirdsentence–deningaproblem–withtheclosingsentence–providingasolution.
Towhatextentcouldyouusethisabstractasamodel,ifyouwerewritingforthisjournalYouranswertothisquestionmightdependonthetypeofresearchyoudo,butitmightalsobepossibletomapyourwritingoverthismodel:X.
.
.
is/areneededfor.
.
.
Manymodels/approacheshavebeendevelopedto.
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.
However,noneoftheseaccountsfor/canpredict/tellusabout.
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.
We/Thispaperproposesa.
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thataccountsfor/predicts/providesinforma-tionon.
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Weapplythismodel/Thismodelisapplied/Thispaperdescribestheapplica-tion.
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Wearguethatthis/Thisstrengthenstheinterpretationof/approachto.
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.
Thisisnottosaythatyoucanplagiarizeotherpeople'swriting–forclearlyyoumustnot–butitpointsoutwhatmightbeconsideredastheunderlyingdeepstructureofacademicwriting.
Itmaybe,inotherwords,thatthestructureofthispapercouldbeamodelforotherpapers,forotherjournalsandforotherdisciplines.
However,inthecontextofthisanalysis,therearefourotherpossibilities,thenextusingadifferentstructureforamoretheoreticaltypeofwork.
Journalabstract–example2Theworkpresentedhereinvestigatestheprocessbywhichonegroupofindividualssolvestheproblemofdetectingdeceptionscreatedbyotheragents.
Aeldexperimentwasconductedinwhichtwenty-fourauditors(partnersininternationalpublicaccountingrms)wereaskedtoreviewfourcasesdescribingrealcompaniesthat,unknowntotheauditors,hadperpetratednancialfrauds.
Whilemanyoftheauditorsfailedtodetectthemanipulationsinthecases,asmallnumberofauditorswereconsistentlysuccessful.
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Weexplainfailuretodetectdeceptionby60DISCIPLINARITYINACADEMICWRITINGmeansofperturbations(bugs)inthedomainknowledgeofaccountingneededtoapplytheseheuristicstothespeciccontextofnancialstate-mentfraud.
Wetestourtheorybyshowingthatacomputationalmodeloffrauddetectionthatemploystheproposedheuristicssuccessfullydetectsfraudsinthecasesgiventotheauditorsinthefourcases.
Wethenmodifythemodelbyintroducingperturbationsbasedontheerrorsmadebyeachoftheauditorsinthefourcases.
Theresultingmodelsaccountfor84ofthe96observations.
.
.
inourdata.
(Johnsonetal.
,2001:355)Theseauthorsuseadifferentstylefromtheoutset:insteadofusingthepersonalpronoun,atthispoint,asin'weinvestigate',forexample,theychooseamoreimpersonalstyle:'Thework.
.
.
investigates'.
Theproblemthatthisresearchaddressesisdenedearlierandmoreconciselythanintherstexample.
Heretheauthorsgetmuchmorequicklytothepointoftheresearch,providinglessinthewayofcontextandrationalefortheworkatthispointintheabstract,thoughpresumablytherewouldbemoreofthatinthepaperitself.
Thenextsentencesummarizestheresults.
Themainlineofargumentisarticulated,usingthepersonalpronoun'we'thistime:developinganexplanation,testingit,modifyingitandtestingitagain.
Theprocessofiteration,intheresearch,isdescribedconcisely.
Alinkingdeviceistheuseof'we',atthestartofthreeconsecutivesentences,showingstagesintheresearch:'explain','test'and'modify',although,interestingly,thelastsentencedoesnotbeginwith'we',perhapssuggestingamoreobjectiveinterpretationofthedataAthirdexamplecontainssomesimilaritiesanddisplaysfurtheroptionsforwriters.
Journalabstract–example3Currentviewsofthecontrolofcomplex,purposefulmovementsacknowledgethatorganizationalprocessesmustreconcilemultipleconcerns.
.
.
.
Motorcontroltheoristshavelongrecognizedtheroleofclassicalmechanicsintheoriesofmovementorganization,butanappreciationoftheimportanceofintrinsicinterlimbbiashasbeengainedonlyrecently.
Althoughdetaileddescriptionsoftemporalcoordinationdynamicshavebeenprovided,systematicattemptstoidentifyadditionalsalientdimensionsofinterlimbconstrainthavebeenlacking.
Wedevelopandimplementhereanovelmethodforexaminingthisproblembyexploit-ingtworobustprinciplesofpsychomotorbehaviour,thesymmetryconstraintandtheTwo-ThirdsPowerLaw.
EmpiricalevidenceisprovidedthattherelativespatialpatternsofconcurrentlymovinglimbsareANALYSINGJOURNALABSTRACTS61naturallyconstrainedinmuchthesamemanneraspreviouslyidentiedtemporalconstraintsand,further,thatapparentvelocityinterferenceisanindirect,secondaryconsequenceofprimaryspatialassimilation.
Thetheoreticalimplicationsofspatialinterferenceareelaboratedwithrespecttomovementorganizationandmotorlearning.
Theneedtocare-fullyconsidertheappropriatedimensionswithwhichtocharacterizecoordinationdynamicsisalsodiscussed.
(Walteretal.
,2001:393)Thestartingpointtheauthorschoseforthisabstractisageneralizationaboutresearchintheeld:thistellsuswhatthesubjectoftheresearchisanddenes,inmorethantheonesentencequotedhere,theunderlyingprinciples,indi-cated,presumably,bytheiruseoftheword'must',suggestingthatunderpin-ningtheorywillnotbechallengedinthispaper.
Thereisthenadistinctionbetweenthiswell-establishedtheoryandmorerecentthinking.
Asinthersttwoexamples,thedistinctionbetweenwhatisknownandwhatremainstoberesearchedismadequiteclear:thedifferenceisbetween'detaileddescriptions'and'systematicattemptstoidentify'.
Inthisabstract,theword'lacking',likethewords'donotaccountfor','nonepredict','problem'and'failed'inthersttwoexamples,identiestheneedandfocusfortheresearchreportedhere.
Similarly,arangeoftermsfor'branding'thecontributiontoresearchisusedinthesepapers:'accountsfor','strengthenstheinterpretationof','explain','accountfor','empiricalevidenceisprovided'and'theoreticalimplications.
.
.
areelaborated'.
Equallyimportant,inalloftheseabstracts,isthe'matching'ofthetypeofproblemidentied,thetypeofresearchconductedandthetypeofconclusionsdrawn.
Thepersonalpronoun,whilenotavailableinalldisciplines,isclearlyanoptioninthisjournal,althoughitisinterestingtonote,asinexample2,preciselywhereitisandisnotused,thatis,atwhichpointsintheargument.
Journalabstract–example4Fodorhasarguedthatobservationistheoryneutral,sincetheperceptualsystemsaremodular,thatis,theyaredomain-specic,encapsulated,mandatory,fast,hard-wiredintheorganism,andhaveaxedneuralarchitecture.
Churchlandattacksthetheoreticalneutralityofobserva-tiononthegroundsthat(a)theabundanttop-downpathwaysinthebrainsuggestthecognitivepenetrationofperceptionand(b)perceptuallearningcanchangeinthewiringofperceptualsystems.
InthispaperIintroduceadistinctionbetweensensation,perception,andobservationandIarguethatalthoughChurchlandisrightthatobservationinvolvestop-downprocesses,thereisalsoasubstantialamountofinformationinperceptionwhichistheory-neutral.
Iarguethatperceptuallearningdoesnotthreatenthecognitiveimpenetrabilityofperception,andthattheneuropsychologicalresearchdoesnotprovideevidenceinfavourofthe62DISCIPLINARITYINACADEMICWRITINGtop-downcharacterofperception.
Finally,Idiscussthepossibilityofanoff-linecognitivepenetrabilityofperception.
(Raftopoulos,2001:423)Thispaperbeginsnotwithanoverviewofgenerallyagreedprinciplesorunderlyingtheory,butwithasummaryofthedebate,withtworesearcherssetagainsteachother,andtheterm'attacks'suggestingthestrengthofthediffer-encebetweentwoapproaches.
Thisrepresentationofthediscipline–orthesub-disciplinewithinwhichthisworksits–maybeabouthowtheeldisconstructed,intermsoftheresearcherswhousedifferentapproachesandreachdifferentconclusions,oritmaybetheauthor'sconstruction.
Inotherwords,howyourepresentyourdiscipline,inyourwriting,maybeinuencedbothby'howitis'andby'howyouseeit'.
Thereare,afterall,differentwaysofrepresentingadiscipline,particularlyifthepurposeofdoingsoistocreateacontextforyourownwork.
Tosomeacademics,thisisacontentiousview:forthem,anacademicdisciplineiswhatitis,neutralandxed.
Thereisonewayofrepresentingit.
Inotherdisciplines,thereisapercep-tionthattherearenumerouswaysofrepresentingpreviouswork,andeventheprinciplesonwhichitwasbased:asasetofunderlyingprinciples,asacollec-tionof'currentviews'or'zoomingin'totheoppositionbetweentwodifferentapproaches,asinexample4above.
Unusually,forsomedisciplines,thecon-tributionissignalledherebytherepeateduseof'I':'Iintroduce.
.
.
Iargue.
.
.
Iargue.
.
.
Idiscuss'.
Theseassertionsaresomewhatoffsetbytheuseof'possibility'inthelastsentence.
Thefthandlastexamplefromthisjournalisthemostunusualofall,becauseitinterrogatesthejournalandthedisciplineitself,althoughinsomedisciplinesthisisacceptableandeven,inplaces,invited.
Journalabstract–example5TheaimofSchunn,CrowleyandOkada's(1998)studyistoaddressthequestionofwhetherthecurrentstateofcognitivescience,asrepresentedbyCognitiveScienceandtheCognitiveScienceSociety,"reectsthemulti-disciplinaryidealsofitsfoundation.
"Toproperlyinterpretandrespondtotheirresults,weneedtoaskapriorquestion:Whatiscognitivesci-ence'smultidisciplinaryidealThereareatleasttwoconceptions–a"localist"conception,whichseemstobeimplicitinSchunn,CrowleyandOkada'sdiscussion,anda"holist"conception.
Iarguethatwhilebothhavebeenendorsedbysomecognitivescientists,therearereasonsforpreferringtheholistconception.
IthenconsiderwhatSchunn,CrowleyandOkada'sndingstellusaboutthestateofcognitivescienceinlightofaholistapproachandreportonananalysisofthejournal'scontentswhichlooksatthedomain,subdomain,andcognitivecapacityinvestigated.
(VonEckardt,2001:453)ANALYSINGJOURNALABSTRACTS63Thesubjectofthisresearchistherefore'thecurrentstate'ofthedisciplineitself,andthispaperopenswithacommentonwhatotherscholarshavesaidaboutit.
Thatthispaperwillgobeyondthatviewisclearintheword'properly'.
Whiletheworkreportedhereconsistsof'analysis',theoutcomeofthatanalysisisnotspeciedattheendofthisabstract,thoughpresumablyitwouldbedenedinthepaperitself.
Foracademicswhohaveanalysedthisabstract,andotherslikeitinotherdisciplines,thisapproachraisesthequestionofwhatyouneedtoincludeinyourabstracts.
Someacademicsndexample5ineffective,sinceitdoesnotspecifythecontributionandthereforedoesnotencourageyoutoreadthepaper.
Thisjudgementisoftenrepeated;itisacommoncriterionappliedbyacademics–buthowrelevantisitThisisanotherofthemanyinstanceswhereacademicsbringtheirowncriteriatotheiranalysesofpublishedwork–understandably–ratherthanbroadeningtheirrepertoireofwritingstyles.
Thisisnottosaythatacademicwritersareunawareofwritingoptions;itseemstousreasonabletointerprettheirreactionsastheresultoftheabsenceofthistypeofanalyticalworkintheirwritingcareers.
Thisanalysisdoesrevealaspectsofwritingthatyoumaynotbeawareofataconsciouslevel.
Thisiswhatacademicsreport.
Eventhoughyourecognizethequalityofpublishedpapersinyourdiscipline,youmaybelessclearabouthowpreciselythatqualityisconstructed.
Manyacademicsarenotsurehowtodenethetechniquestheyseeinacademicwriting.
Onepotentialeffectofthislackofknowledgeisuncertaintyaboutwhatconstitutesexcellenceinwriting,andthiscanundermineawriter'scondence.
Anotherpotentialeffectisinsensitivitytothesubtledistinctionsmappedoutbydifferenttechniques.
Thatiswhyanalysisoftextsformsamajorsectionofthischapter.
Withoutthislevelofanalysis,thereisariskthattheywillnotmaketheadjustmentstoyourwritingsoastoproducefeaturesthattheyknowarecurrentlyacceptableintheirdiscipline.
Anotherwayofanalysingpublishedwork,buildingontheaboveanalyses,istofocusononepointintheargumentanddenethewayinwhichthatishandledineachabstract.
Forexample,youcanlearnalotaboutyourtargetjournalbyliningupalltheopeningsentences,thatpointwheretherationaleofeachpaperisestablished,orproblemtobeaddressedisarticulated:1Workingmemoryresourcesareneededforprocessingandmainten-anceofinformationduringcognitivetasks.
Manymodelshavebeendevelopedtocapturetheeffectsoflimitedworkingmemoryresourcesonperformance.
(Dailyetal.
,2001:315)2Theworkpresentedhereinvestigatestheprocessbywhichonegroupofindividualssolvestheproblemofdetectingdeceptionscreatedbyotheragents.
(Johnsonetal.
,2001:355)64DISCIPLINARITYINACADEMICWRITING3Currentviewsofthecontrolofcomplex,purposefulmovementsacknowledgethatorganizationalprocessesmustreconcilemultipleconcerns.
.
.
.
Motorcontroltheoristshavelongrecognizedtheroleofclassicalmechanicsintheoriesofmovementorganization,butanappreciationoftheimportanceofintrinsicinterlimbbiashasbeengainedonlyrecently.
(Walteretal.
,2001:393)4Fodorhasarguedthatobservationistheoryneutral,sincetheper-ceptualsystemsaremodular,thatis,theyaredomain-specic,encapsu-lated,mandatory,fast,hard-wiredintheorganism,andhaveaxedneuralarchitecture.
Churchlandattacksthetheoreticalneutralityofobservation.
(Raftopoulos,2001:423)5TheaimofSchunn,CrowleyandOkada's(1998)studyistoaddressthequestionofwhetherthecurrentstateofcognitivescience,asrepre-sentedbyCognitiveScienceandtheCognitiveScienceSociety,'reectsthemultidisciplinaryidealsofitsfoundation'(VonEckardt,2001:453)Lookingatthesesentencesseparatelyfromthepaperallowsyoutofocusonthedetailsofthedifferences.
Usingahighlighterpenforthistypeofanalysisisasimplebuteffectivewayofisolatingspecicfeaturesofacademicwritingacrossarangeoftexts.
Youcan,ofcourse,dothistypeofanalysisonotherpointsinthepaper–notjusttheabstract.
Youmight,forexample,nditinstructivetoanalyseacom-pletelydifferentstageintheargument,suchashowtheresearchreportedisrecontextualizedintheliterature,towardstheendofthepaper.
AsRederandSchunn(1999.
.
.
)havenoted,twodistinctapproachestostudyingindividualdifferenceshavebeenemployedintheeld.
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Ourworkisanexampleofthissecondapproachwiththeadditionalfeaturethatweusedacomputationalmodeltopredictandexplainthedifferencesinworkingmemoryperformanceamongindividualsubjects.
Itisinterestingtonotethesimilaritiesanddifferencesbetweenourapproachandthatdevelopedwithin.
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Thoughpreviousresearchhashighlightedthatindividualdifferencesexist,thesedifferenceshavenotbeenmodelledattheleveloftheindividualsubject.
Thatwewereabletodosospeakstothepowerofourapproach.
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.
(Dailyetal.
,2001:349)Inmanyjournals,inmanydisciplines,papersconcludewiththistypeofdirectcomparisonwithotherstudiesandanexplicitstatementofwhatthestudyhascontributedtotheeld.
Preciselywhichwordsyouusetoarticulatethis,whereANALYSINGJOURNALABSTRACTS65youputtheminyourpaper,andhowlonganddetailedyoumakethissectiondependnotonlyonthenatureofyourworkandyourconclusions,butalsoonthejournalyouarewritingfor.
Theseandotherconventionsmaybeinuseinjournalsinyourdisciplineatthistime,andtheymaybeveryfamiliartoyou,butitisusuallyworthinvestingsometimeindevelopingyourknowledgeofthejournalsfurther.
Inaddition,youcananalysehowthecontentsofabstractsaredevelopedinthepaperitself:1Howisthestructureoftheabstractmappedoutinsectionsofthepaper2Arethereverballinks–suchasrepeatedkeyterms–betweenabstractandpaper3Ismaterialprovidedinthepaperthatwasnotintheabstract4DotheproportionsoftheabstractmatchthoseofthepaperAnalysingjournalsintheseterms,acrossseveralpapersandperhapsseveralrecentissues,givesyouadetailedknowledgeandconsciousawarenessofaca-demicwritinginyourdiscipline.
Youmaynotgetthissimplyfromreadinginyourdiscipline,andyoumaytakelongertolearnasmuchfromreviewers'feedback.
Youcan,ofcourse,consultexperienced,successfulwriters:whataretheirperceptionsHowdotheydenethequalitiesofacademicwritingthatarecurrentlyvaluedinyourdisciplineHowdotheygoaboutproducingthoseHavetheyanalysedpublishedwritinginyourdisciplineinthis–oranyother–wayand/orhavetheyinternalized,overtime,thestructuresandstylesrequiredforpublishedwritinginyourdisciplineTheissueofthejournalthatwasthesubjectofanalysisinthischapter,CognitiveScience,notonlylookedacrosstheeld,includingdifferentapproaches,butalso,inthisissue,interrogateditself–inabstract5–wheretherewasdiscussionofinterdisciplinarityandtheroleofinterdisciplinaryworkandapproachesinthiseld.
Thisdiscussionisrelevanttootherdiscip-lines:interdisciplinarityisonnumerousagendas,asboundariesarebrokendownanddisciplinesworktogether.
Inthiscontext,thereisallthemorereasonforyoutostudyandacknowledgethevalueofrhetoricsandgenresinotherdisciplinesthanyourown.
Itmaybe,ofcourse,thatseveralgenresarealreadyavailableinyourdiscipline–asrepresentedinacademicjournals–andevenwithinjournals.
66DISCIPLINARITYINACADEMICWRITINGAnalysingjournals:whatcanittellyouaboutdisciplinarityHowcanyouusetheinformationaboutacademicwritingthatyoucollectinyouranalysesSomeacademicstellustheyndthisformofanalysisworksasadriverfortheirwriting.
Youmaynd,forexample,thatcertainrhetoricalmodes–orwaysofstructuringanacademicargumentorpaper–promptyoutothinkaboutyourownworkinsimilarterms.
ManyfeaturesoftheabstractsanalysedinthischaptercouldbeusedinotherdisciplinesthanCognitiveScience.
Havingmadesuchastrongcaseforthistypeofanalysis,wehavetoacknowledgethatsomeacademicsthinkthatitisoverstated,inthesensethattheyseeacademicwritingasvariable,andoursearchfornorms,formsandconventionsineachjournalassupercialandsimplistic.
Ontheotherhand,manyacademicsarequicktoassertthateachdisciplineisdistinctive,andthatacademicwritingmustthereforebe,ineverycase,discipline-specic.
Fromthisperspectivetheyoftenrejectwhattheyseeas'generic'approachesthatcrossdisciplinaryboundaries.
Someacademicsholdbothviews:maintainingthatacademicwritingintheirdisciplineshasspeciccharacteristics,althoughthesecannotbe'reduced'toasetofcommonelementsbymeansofrhetoricalanalysis.
Someacademicschallengetheoutcomeofthisanalysisinoneormorerhetoricalquestions:AreyousayingthatallthesewritersconsciouslychosetowriteinthiswayAreyousayingthatreviewersandeditorsofthisjournalonlyacceptpapersthatarewritteninthiswayDoyoumeanthatifIwriteinadifferentway,mypaperwillberejectedSurelytherearemanydifferentstylesineachjournalHowcanyougeneralizeWhatisyourevidencethattherearepatternsinthewritingpublishedinjournalsThesearequestionsthatsomeacademicsaskus,whenweanalysepublishedpapersinthisway,astheyassesstheimplicationsforacademicwritinggener-allyandtheirwritingspecically.
Thisusuallypromptsustorepeatthat,Howdisciplinarityisconstructed.
Whatformsofdisciplinarityareavailable.
Rhetoricalstrategiesyoucanusetorepresentdisciplinarityinyourwork.
Waysofinterrogatingdisciplinarity.
ANALYSINGJOURNALS:WHATCANITTELLYOUABOUTDISCIPLINARITY67rstly,wedonotarguethatallpapersforaspecicjournalareidenticalstyleand,secondly,thatouranalysis–andyours–constitutesabodyofevidenceonwhichtobuildadenitionofdisciplinarity.
Italsoprovidesasolidbasisforastrategicapproachtoconstructingdisciplinarityinyourwriting.
Ifyoudothistypeofanalysisonyourtargetjournals,youwillestablishnotonlywhatisexpectedofyou,butalsohowyoucansharpenyourwritingtostrengthenitinspecicways.
Thismaytaketime.
Youwillalsobebuildingyourexpertisethroughwritingoverthecourseofmanysubmissionsand,ofcourse,resubmissions.
Yourlearningprocessmaybeamatterofgraduallyrecognizingandincorporatingfeaturesofscholarshipinyourthinkingandwriting.
Atrst,therhetoricofyourdisciplinemayseemconstraining,butovertimeyoumayseeitasliberating,asithelpsyoutosiftthroughaspectsofyourresearch,toworkoutwhatisworthwritingaboutandtobecondentthatyouknowhowtogoaboutit.
Developingyourown'voice'Academicwritersoftensaythattheyworrythattheyarelosingtheirownvoice,orwonderiftheyareevergoingtodevelopone.
Theyspendsolongreadingandanalysingotherpeople'swritingthattheyfeeltheylosesightofwhattheywanttosayandhowtheywanttowrite.
Thisissucharecurringtopic,andgenuineconcern,thatitmightbesomethingyoushouldaddress.
Thedesiretondapersonalvoicemaystemfromafearofbeingover-whelmedbytheauthorityofpublishedwriting.
Isthereariskofyourideasbeingswampedbyothers',asyouwriteOr,giventhelevelofdetailwesuggestforyouranalysisofjournals,isthereapossibilitythatyouwillfeelthatthereisnoroomforyourown'rhetoric'Newwritersinparticularsometimeshaveanemotionalresponse:thatshapingtheirideasincertainways,soastobeabletojointhepublisheddebateinjournals,willcompromisetheirvalues.
Istheissueofvoiceassociatedwithndingyourownpositioninthedebateandarticulatingthatdistinctivenessinconceptual/intellectual,discipline-specictermsThismaybewhereacademicwritersbegintofeelthattheyarelosingtheirvoice.
Ifyouhavenotpublishedmuchoratallinyourdiscipline,youmaystillbeintheprocessofndingyourplaceinthedebate.
However,developingyourownvoicemaynotbeanachievablegoalinaca-demicwriting.
Fornewwritersparticularly,thereareothergoals.
Tryingtodevelopyourownvoicemaydistractyoufromthem.
Inaddition,yourauthor-ityinwritingisalwaysinquestion,seeminglyalwayscontingentonotherpeople'sevaluations,andwritinginyourown'voice'willnotchangethis.
Doesthesearchforavoiceoriginateinafearoflossofidentityinthe68DISCIPLINARITYINACADEMICWRITINGdisciplineWhilethequestionof'voice'inwritingmaytakeusintoadiscus-sionofstyle,perhapswecouldmoreusefullyfocuson'voice'inthesenseof'contribution'Perhapswriterswhofearlosingtheirvoicecouldrecon-ceptualize'voice'as'contribution';academicwritinginyourdisciplinedoes,presumably,requireyoutoarticulateyourviewoftheeldandyourowncontributiontoit.
Inasense,thisisyour'voice'.
ChecklistDenethecharacteristicsofwritinginyourdiscipline.
Analyserecentissuesofjournalsinyourdiscipline.
Focusonandcomparespecicpointsinseveralpapers.
Workouthowyoucanadaptyourwritingfordifferentjournals.
Decidehowyouwanttopositionyourselfinyourdiscipline.
Consideryouroptionsfor'voicing'thispositioninyourwriting.
CHECKLIST69PartIIIt'sallverywellcomingtotermswiththecharacteristicsandrhythmsofaca-demicwriting.
Andformany,thisisprobablyanecessaryprocess.
Butunlessyouarenaturallysupportedinyourwritingactivitiesatwork,writingcanbeaverydifcultthingtondthetimeandthemotivationtodo.
PartIIdescribesandevaluatesthreespecicinterventionsthatwehaveconductedmanytimesinacademicsettings.
Eachofthemisdesignedtosupportandnourishwritinghabitsindifferentways,andeachofthemhasafocusonhelpingparticipantstoproducescholarlyoutput.
Chapters5,6and7describethreesupportiveprofessionaldevelopmentinterventions:writers'retreats,writingforpubli-cationprogrammesandwriters'groups.
Ifyouareinterestedininitiating,participatinginordevelopingthesekindsofsupportswithinyourowninstitutionalsetting,thesechapterswillgiveyouenoughdetailtogetagoodpictureofwhattheyinvolveandwhatisneededinordertorunthemeffectively.
5RetreatingtoadvancePlanning,runningandparticipatinginwriters'retreatsforacademicsIntroductionThecontextforacademicwriters'retreatsWhatisawriters'retreatRationaleforawriters'retreatHowtoprepareforawriters'retreatDuringtheretreatAftertheretreatPositiveexpectationsConcernsOutcomesWriters'retreatandgenderVariationsonthebalancebetweencollectivewritingspaceandprivatewritingspacesVariationsontheve-day,residentialmodelKeymomentsandexperiencesfacilitatedbytheretreatenvironmentConclusionsIntroductionThischaptertakesyouthroughtheaims,processesandoptionsassociatedwithwriters'retreatsforacademics.
Itgivesyoualltheinformationandadviceyouneedtoconsiderrunningawriters'retreatinyourowncontextandpro-videsachecklistforplanning,deliveringandfollowinguponaneffectiveretreat.
Primarily,itshowshowthisparticularstrategycanbeanothersigni-cantpillarofsupportwhenitcomestodevelopingandenhancingacademicwritinginawholerangeofdifferentsettings.
Theretreatphase(exploredinChapter3)isdifferentfromtheretreatexperience,whichweoutlineinthischapter.
Thewriters'retreatexperienceisaspeciceventinwhichpeopleretreatfromtheirnormalworldinordertomakesignicantandfocusedadvancesintheirwriting.
Thecontextforacademicwriters'retreatsInacademia,aswellasinothercreativecontexts,originalideasareoftenremoteorfarremovedfromtheproblemthattheyaredesignedtosolve(seeforexample,Gruber,1988andRunco,2004a).
Sometimesacademicwritersneedtogetawayfromeverythingfamiliarandroutineinordertomakeposi-tivewritingprogressortoenhancetheirwritingtasks.
Itisthisbasicprincipleofcreativitythathasencouragedsomehighereducationinstitutionstoiniti-atewriters'retreats,aprofessionaldevelopmentinnovationthatisthefocusofthischapter.
Formanyyears,thenotionofcreatingsafespacesforwritinghasbeenusedbywritersasaseriousandlegitimateroutetowritingdevelopment.
Creativewritersallovertheworldhavebenetedfromtimethatisbothseparateanddifferentfromtheirnormallifeandworkingschedules.
Theexistenceofwritingsanctuariesisareectionofthefactthatgoodwritingisanimportant,specialandfocusedactivitythatatleastoccasionallyneedsspecialspacesandtimesinwhichitisn'tjustapriority,butinwhich,forevenashorttime,itistheonlyfocusofattention.
Academicwritersoftenneedtotrytottheirwritingtimesintorelativelyshortslotsaroundtheotheractivitiesoftheirprofessionallives.
InChapter1,weshowedhoweffectivewritingrhythmscanbecreatedrelativelysimplybydesigningshortwritingslots.
However,doingonlythiskindofwritingmayeventuallyservetoexacerbatethesenseoffragmentationthatacademicsoftenreportwhentalkingabouttheirprofessionallives(GrantandKnowles,2000).
Wehaveseenthatitisextremelyusefultomakedeliberateroomforlongerswathesofwritingatkeytimesintheacademicyearoratcrucialstagesinaspecicwritingproject.
Ofcourse,anyacademiccanindividuallytrytonegotiateasituationinwhichtheyretreatfromtheirworkingworldandnormalresponsibilitiesforablockoftime.
Thetraditionaluniversity-basedsabbaticalsystemprovidesanexampleofinstitutionalrecognitionoftheneedfortimeandspaceinwhichtopursueanddevelopideasinwriting.
Someuniversitiesdohaveestablishedpoliciesthatprotecttimeforacademicstowrite,butmanydonot.
Thesedayssabbaticalsandotherformsofprotectedwritingtimemaybemuchmoredifculttosecurethantheyhavebeeninthepast.
Besides,theextenttowhichtheyactuallydohelppeopletomakedramaticprogressinawritingtaskhasbeenquestioned(Boice,1987)andattheveryleast,variesradicallyfrompersontoperson.
Nevertheless,ifhighereducationinstitutionsexpecttheirfacultytodothekindofcreativeworkthatweargueispartofanywritingtask,itisnecessaryforthemtorecognizethatpeoplesometimesneedspecial,dedicated,supportedtime(see,forexample,Runco,2004b).
Bydescribingwriters'retreats,thischapterpresentsapracticalalternativeto74RETREATINGTOADVANCEextendedleaveforacademics,recognizingthatsuchextendedleavemaybeimpossibleformany,butalsothatacademicwriterscanbenethugelyfromdedicatedblocksoftimefocusingsolelyontheirwriting(GrantandKnowles,2000;Moore,2003;Murray,2004).
Introducingwriters'retreatstoacademicsettingshassometimesbeenviewedasaveryinnovativeandunusualstep,takenbyradicaleducationaldevelopersorextremelycommittedgroupsofacademicswhoreallywanttodevelopandprogresstheirwritingwhilealsohelpingoneanother.
Insteadofbeingseenasunusualorquirkyinterventionsinsomeacademicenvironments,wesuggestthatifwellsupportedandman-aged,writers'retreatscouldbecomeacommonplaceandeffectivemechanismforimprovingwritingprocesses,outputsandqualitybothonanindividualandinstitutionalbasis.
Wethinkthatsuchinitiativesshouldnotbeseenasanunusualorleftofcentreactivityforbleeding-hearteducationaldevelopers,orasremedialinterventionsdesignedtosupport'unproductive'or'non-research-active'faculty.
Rather,wewouldliketoseewriters'retreatsbecomeanormalpartofmanyacademiclandscapes,recognizingandsupportingastheydothesignicantpressuresbroughttobearonallacademicwriters,experiencedorotherwise.
Inaddition,writers'retreatsareaholisticmechanism,supportingacademicwritinginwaysthatcelebrate,sustainandtakecareofwritersinanintensiveandcompressedtimeframe.
Theyinvokecreativeresponsesandroutinesthatcankick-startorenhanceanindividualacademicwritingstrategy.
Theirregularexistenceandsupportmayalsoservetovalorizeandendorsetheinstitution'scommitmenttoacademicwriting,reectingthesignicantcon-tributionsthatacademicwritingmakestoacademia,notonlyintermsofpublishedoutput,butalsointermsofthevalueassociatedwithsharinginsights,helpingoneanothertoachievebreakthroughs,buildingeffectivestrategiesandcreatingnewandcollectiveorientationstowardstopicsandideas.
Writers'retreatsareoftentherstcontextswithinwhichmanyacademicshavediscussedandsharedtheirwritingstrategiesandprocesseswithothers.
Retreatsmaybeoneofthearenaswithinwhichacademicwriterscandeveloptheirworkinanoptimumenvironment.
Thesekindsoftemporaryenviron-mentshavethepotentialtobenetnotjustindividualsubjectsordisciplines,butalsoacademiaasawhole.
Sincewriters'retreatswereinitiatedattheUniversityofLimerickin2001,morethan150academicshavebenetedfromtheirexistence,andtheretreatinterventionhasbeenextendedandusedinIrelandbyinter-universitynet-works(seeO'Neill,MooreandMcMullin,2005).
Giventhedisproportionatenumbersofwomenwhochoosetoparticipate,theyareinitiativesthatseemtobemoreappealingtowomenacademicsthantheirmalecounterparts.
Thereasonsforthiswillbediscussedlaterinthischapter.
THECONTEXTFORACADEMICWRITERS'RETREATS75Whatisawriters'retreatAwriters'retreatisadevelopmentalinitiativethatis:Apragmaticwayofallocatingadedicatedblockoftimetoacademicwriting.
Aneventthatprovidesintensive,holistic,symbolicandpracticalsupportforallaspectsofthewritingprocess.
Aneventthatrecognizesthephysical,psychological,academicandcollegiateneedsofacademicwriters.
Aneventcharacterizedbyhardworkinthecontextofahealthy,stress-free,enjoyableweek.
Aneventthatenhancesoutput.
Aneventthataimstogiverisetomoreproductivewritinghabitsinthelongerterm.
Aneventthatencouragescreativeengagementinacademicwritingtasks.
Rationaleforawriters'retreatTherationaleforawriters'weekisbasedonpreviousevidencethatpeopleandthequalityoftheirideascanderiveenormousbenetsfromashort-termintensivewritingenvironment(GrantandKnowles,2000).
Writers'retreatshavealreadybeenfoundtofacilitatetheachievementofanexclusivefocusonwritingbycreatinganarenainwhichthenormaldistrac-tionsofworkandlifearetemporarilyremoved(Moore,1995).
Thiscanservetoinitiate,tonourishortoacceleratewriting,evenifstandardwritinghabitsneedtobesustainedindifferentwaysduringthenormalcourseofprofes-sionaldailylife.
Despiteoperatingineducationalenvironments,universityfacultyreportthatitisoftendifculttoachieveanexclusivefocusonwrit-inginawaythatcanbefacilitatedbyaretreatenvironment(Cameron,1999).
Thelogisticsofcollaboration,interactionandpeersupportoftendependonprivate,informalnetworksthatmanypeoplesimplydon'thaveaccessto.
Throughparticipationinwriters'retreats,suchsupportcanbecreatedmoredeliberatelyandwithmorebenecialeffects.
Theretreatenvironmentcreatesacontextwithinwhichacommunityofpracticecanbeinitiatedandenhancedmorequicklyandeasily,concreteoutcomescanbeachieved,andaprecedentforcollaborativedialogue(bothwrittenandspoken)canbeset.
Thisrationaleechoestheobjectivesorigin-allyassociatedwiththewriters'retreatsthathavebeenrunninginNew76RETREATINGTOADVANCEZealand,Australia,Ireland,theUKandinseveraluniversitiesintheUSA,thatis:tocreateanatmosphereoftrustandsafetyforproductivewriting;tohelpparticipantstolearnfromeachotherabouttheprocessofwriting;tocre-ateamultidisciplinarycommunityofwriterswhowouldprovidesupportandadvicetooneanotherbothduringtheretreatandbeyond;toexploretheimportantlinksbetweenteaching,research,writingandscholarship;andtohaveaproductiveworkingexperienceinwhicheachparticipantwouldcommittoaspecicwritinggoalandtrytoachieveit[withinthetimeframeoftheretreat].
(Moore,2003:335)Writers'retreatshavebeendesigned,then,tooperateastemporarywriting'sanctuaries'awayfromthenormalrhythmsofprofessionallife.
Someofthebenetsthatcanbemoreeasilycreatedinaretreatcontextincludetheachievementofexclusivefocusonwriting,totalimmersioninthewritingprocess,thecreationofanurturingenvironmentwhichgivespeoplethecour-agetofacetheirstrugglesanduncertaintieswiththewritingprocess,andthecreationofnormsinwhichpeoplewhotypicallydonotsharetheirworkbecomemoreaccustomedandinclinedtodoso.
Becauseitisstillanunusualandunconventionalwayofworkingandcol-laborating,itoftenfeelslikeadaringandsomewhatcomplicatedexperiment,andonethatrequiresmuchplanningandpreparationbothonapersonalandaprofessionallevel.
Despitethesecomplexities,theformattendstocontainrelativelysimpleelements.
Withtherightsupport,writers'retreatscanbeorganizedindependentlybyinterestedgroupsofacademics,orthroughhelpfromcentresofeducationaldevelopmentorinstitutionalunitsdesignedtopromoteorresourceacademicpractice.
Giventhatwriters'retreatsrequirenancialsupportandstillrepre-sentarathernovelwayofhelpingacademicstodeveloptheirwriting,itisveryusefultohaveachampionataseniorlevelwithinyouruniversity.
However,givenhowusefultheycanbeforindividualacademics,thissenior-levelsup-portshouldnotbeconsiderednecessarytoensurethattheretreatmodelisimplementedsuccessfully.
Wehaveorganizedretreatsthathavebeensupportedandfundedbysenioruniversitymanagement,aswellasthosethathavebeenrunonanindepend-ent,inter-university,voluntarybasis.
Bothmodelshaveproducedthesamekindsofpositiveresults,thoughthelatterdoesrequiremorecommitmentfromparticipantsintermsofplanning,fundingandorganization.
RATIONALEFORAWRITERS'RETREAT77Howtoprepareforawriters'retreatGoodwriters'retreatsneedgoodlocations.
Awriters'retreatshouldbewhatitsaysitis:acompleteget-awayfromthenormalacademicenvironment,farenoughawayfromtheusualcampuslocationthatparticipantsarenottemptedtonipbackintermittentlyasworkcommitmentslurethemawayfromthereasonstheyneededtoretreatintherstplace.
Becausearetreatisresidential,thelocationneedstooffercomfortableaccommodationinwhicheveryparticipantideallycansetuphisorherownprivatewritingspace.
Ahoteloraconglomerationofself-cateringhousescanworkwell.
WehavesometimesusedlargeB&Bs,aslongasthereareenoughroomstoaccommodateeveryone.
Therearepracticalrequirementsthatresidentialaccommodationshouldsatisfyinordertoprovidetheidealenvironmentforawriters'retreat.
Checklistforwriters'retreataccommodation1Peaceandquiet.
2Separate,privatewritingareas.
3Good-sizeddesksanddesklampsforallparticipants.
4Acommonseminarareaforwritingworkshopsandfacilitatedsessions.
5Plentyofplugsandorextensionleadsinthiscommonareatofacilitatecommunalwritingsessionsusinglaptops.
6Facilitiesthatcanbeusedexclusivelybyparticipantstoprintworkinprogress.
7Well-organizedbutexiblemealtimesthattakeintoaccountthewritingrhythmsofparticipants.
EquipmentInpreparationforawriters'retreat,organizersshouldbringthefollowingcommunalequipment:plentyofA4printingpaper,staplesandstaplers,aprinterandsparelaptop(ifthisisnotsuppliedonlocation),ipcharts,pens,notebooksandcolouredmarkersforcreativesessionsandideas,anda'library'ofhelpfulreferences,readingsandbooks(formanygoodsuggestions,seetheBibliographyattheendofthisbook).
Pre-retreatpreparationAswellasmakingdecisionsaboutalocationandbeingawareofequipmentrequirements,identifyingacriticalmassofparticipantsisofcourseanothercrucialstep.
Thiscanbeasinformalaprocessasaskingcolleaguesiftheywouldbeinterestedinjoiningacollectiveofacademicwritersforafewdaysof78RETREATINGTOADVANCEintensivewriting,oritcaninvolveadvertisingtheeventthroughinternalmailornetworks.
Wehaverunwriters'retreatswithgroupsassmallas10andaslargeas26.
Atsomeretreats,participantshaveallbeenfromthesameaca-demicdepartment,whileatothertimes,academicallydiverseindividualshaveformedaretreatgroup.
Themixofpeopledoestendtoaffectthedynamicsofthegroup.
Awholegroupofcompletelynewwriterscanformaretreat,butwehavefoundthatitisagoodideatohaveatleastsomeseasonedwriterswithintheretreatwhocansharetheirstrugglesandtriumphswiththerestofthegroup.
IdentifyingkeyfacilitatorsIdeally,everywriters'retreatshouldhaveatleastonekeyfacilitator.
Whilenotabsolutelynecessary,itisworthndingsomeoneoutsideofyouracademiccontexttoplaythisrole.
Youshouldtrytorecruitsomeonewhoisacredibleacademicwriter,whounderstandstheacademicenvironment,whoissupportiveandfacilitative,andwhoissensitivetothefearsandanxietiesthatareofteninvokedwhenacademicsdecidetotackleparticularacademicwritingprojects,particularlyinsuchanon-traditional,collaborativecontext.
Thefacilitatorshouldplantorunshortwritingworkshopsondifferentaspectsofthewritingprocess(seesuggestedprogrammelaterinthischapter)aswellastoreadandcommentonpiecesofwritingthatparticipantsproduce.
However,ifitisdifculttondasinglefacilitator,anotheroptionistoco-optparticipantsthemselvestoleadshortworkshopsondifferentthemes,skills,experiencesorprojectsthatrelatetotheiracademicwriting.
Boththeseformatshaveworkedwellinretreatsthatwehavebeeninvolvedin.
BriengandpreparingparticipantsWritinginaretreatenvironmentis,aswehavenoted,stillanovelwayofengaginginanywritingtask.
Thismakesitallthemoreimportantthatparti-cipantsprepareandorientatethemselvesinadvance.
Theycanassistoneanotherindoingthisbysettingspecicgoals,decidingontargetjournals,andmakingacommitmenttopursuingaparticularwritingoutcome.
Anappropri-ategoalforave-dayretreatmightbetheproductionofasinglewrittenart-icle.
Butthegoalsmayvaryfrompersontoperson.
Somepeoplecanachievesignicantlymore,workingonanumberofconnectedprojects,whileothersmayneedtosetoutmoremodestgoals.
Havingagoodwritingfacilitatorrunapreparatorysessionabouttwomonthsinadvanceoftheretreatcanhelppeopletosetgoalsthatareappropriatetotheirownstageofdevelopment.
Onceyouhaverecruitedtheretreatparticipants,youneedtomakesurethateveryoneprepareswellinadvanceoftheeventinordertomakethemostoftheintensivededicatedwritingtimethataretreatprovides.
Thismayinvolvequiteintensivepreparatoryworkincludingdata-gathering,research,readingandcollectingkeyliteratureandreferences.
HOWTOPREPAREFORAWRITERS'RETREAT79ChecklistsforparticipantsEachparticipantneedstohaveafullinformationpackexplainingbrieythepurposeandgoalsoftheretreat,suggestingkeyactivitiesthatneedtobecompletedbeforeembarkingontheretreat,providingpracticalinformationaboutthelocation,travelarrangementsandfacilitiesattheretreatlocation.
Summaryhandoutsforallparticipantsmightlooklikethefollowing.
Handout1:Gettingready:preparingforwriters'retreatReadpre-retreatinformationpackcarefully.
StartorganizingyourmaterialsNOW–data,references,importantarticles,anypreparatorywritingyouhavedone.
Startoutliningtheworkyou'replanningtodo.
Makekeydecisionsaboutyourworkwellinadvanceoftheweek:forexampletargetjournal/publisher/format/genre.
Handout2:Targetingajournal(adaptedfromMurray,2004)Expertsineffectiveacademicwritingstrategiessay:'Donotwriteandthenplantondanappropriate"place"foryourwriting–rather,analysetargetjournalscarefullyandthenwritewiththebenetofthisanalysis.
'Getseveralcopiesandscanrecenteditionsofyourchosenjournal.
Readfullinstructionsforauthors,checkwebsiteandprintoffallrelevantauthorinformation.
Workouthowyoucanmouldyourworktosuitthejournal'sagenda.
Writetotheeditorwithaninitialinquiry.
Emailingtheeditor'IamwritingapaperonXXXwhicharguesthatYYY.
.
.
Doyouthinkthiswouldbeofinteresttoreadersofthejournalatthistime'Ifyougetaresponse,replythankingtheeditorandlettinghim/herknowwhenthepaperislikelytobecompleted.
Thisrelativelyeasyexercisedoesseveralthings:Itexternalizesyourcommitmenttowriting.
Itmeansthatyouwon'tbe'writingintothedark',butthatyou'llhaveaspecicgoalinadvanceofthewriters'retreat.
Ithasthepragmaticeffectofdifferentiatingyourpaperfromthosethataresubmittedwithoutan'initialgo-ahead'fromtheeditor.
80RETREATINGTOADVANCEThesehandoutsshouldbedistributedatapre-retreatmeeting,ifpossible.
Ifareal-timemeetingisimpossible,thentheyareevenmoreusefulinprovidinggoodframeworksforeveryonetohelpthemprepareandfocusonwhattheywanttoachievebefore,duringandaftertheretreat.
DuringtheretreatSo,participantsgatherinanoff-campuslocationequippedwithideas,dataandliteraturetheyhavegatheredinordertobepreparedtocompleteapieceofacademicwriting.
Eachofthevedaysisdevotedtoindividualwritingtime,punctuatedwithopportunitiesforfeedbackfromcolleagues,grouporpairedmeetingstodiscussprogress,andopportunitiestoexchangesharedwritingexperiences.
Everydaybeginswithafacilitatedsessionthatprovidesstruc-turedadviceonwriting.
Participantsgatherintheeveningsforsocialinter-actionanddinnerinacentrallocation,andforfurtherdiscussiononthewritingprojectsinwhicheachofthemisengaged.
Handout3:BeforetheretreatPreparetotransportyourlaptoporarrangetoborrowone.
Prepareashortoutlineofyourwritingprojectandemailittoallotherparticipants.
Ifyouwish,includeacopyofyouremailinquirytoajournaleditor,andanyresponsesyouhavereceived.
Committokeepingarecordofthe'ecology'ofyourpaper(versions,cor-respondence,feedback,reviews,ideas,changesindirectionandsoon).
Thiswillbecomeahelpfulprofessionaldevelopmenttoolforyourselfandyourcolleagues.
Makeyourtransportarrangementswellinadvance.
Decideifyouaregoingtodrive.
CommittotheENTIREweek.
Itisfaraway.
Itisresidential.
Youneedtoensurethatyouarenotsostressedonarrivalthatittakes24hoursbeforeyouareintherightframeofmindtostartwriting.
Somereading:Apaperonthewriters'retreatconcept(Moore,2003).
AchapterfromRowenaMurray'sbook:WritingforAcademicJournals,Chapter2:'Targetingajournal'.
HOWTOPREPAREFORAWRITERS'RETREAT81AftertheretreatEvaluatingtheimpactoftheretreatOrganizing,designinganddeliveringwriters'retreatscostsmoney,timeandsignicantenergy.
Retreatsusuallybenetfromsupportofseniormanage-ment,andmustbe'worthit'frombothaninstitutionalandindividualperspective.
Realresultsmustaccruefromtheinterventioninwaysthatcanbedemonstratedthroughincreasedquantityandqualityofpublicationinacademicjournals.
However,themorequalitativetransformationsthatindividualsexperiencearealsovaluabletocaptureandreport.
Peopledon'tusuallybecomesuccessfulacademicwritersovernight.
Anywriters'retreatinterventionshouldalsoexaminetheinsightsandreectionsofparticipantsaswellasprovidingadditionalsupportandnetworkingwhenparticipantsSamplescheduleforave-daywriters'retreatSundayeveningParticipantsarrive,setuptheirwritingspacesandattendashortworkshopledbythefacilitatorontheaimsandvaluesofwriters'retreats.
Monday:Springboardsession1:Settinggoalsforyouracademicwrit-ing.
Twohoursofcommunalwritingandideaexchange;individualwritingtime.
Afternoon:sessiononideasforsharingworkinprogress;writingtime.
Tuesday:Springboardsession2:Targetingjournalsandcraftingyourwriting.
Afternoon:sessionsettingupwritingpartnershipsandsharingworkinprogress.
Wednesday:Springboardsession3:Dealingwithbadreviewsandnega-tivecriticism.
Communalwritingsessionfocusingonreviewingandenhancingrstdrafts.
Privatewritingtime.
Thursday:Springboardsession4:Developingalonger-termwritingstrategy.
Startingtoaddressalonger-termstrategyandreectonthewaysinwhichwritinginaretreatcontextcanbeinstalledintodaily,andweekly,writinghabitsinnormalworkenvironments.
Friday:Springboardsession5:Maintainingmomentumandmotivationinacademicwriting.
Finish.
82RETREATINGTOADVANCEhavereturnedtotheirnormalworkenvironments.
Views,insightsandoutputscanbecapturedusingpre-andpost-writers'weekquestionnaires,whichcontainqualitativeinsightsaboutthevalueandtheimpactoftheexperience.
However,whenevaluatingtheimpactoftheretreatexperience,itisimport-anttoemphasizethatoneofthecentralreasonswhysomeacademicsnditdifculttowritestemsfromthesenseofinstitutionalsurveillancetheyfeelisappliedtotheiracademicwriting.
Ifthereisanover-emphasisonmonitoringtheshort-termwrittenoutputsassociatedwiththewriters'retreat,thismayundermineoneoftheveryreasonsthatacademicsgiveforwantingtopartici-pate.
Thepressuretoproducewrittenoutputalreadyexistswithinmostuni-versities.
Webelievethatretreatscanbeprofessionaldevelopmentexperiencesthathelpacademicwriterstorespondmoreeffectivelytothatpressure,ratherthanbeingamechanismforcreatingmoreofit.
PositiveexpectationsWhileexistingresearchonthewriters'retreatformatshowsthatparticipantstendtoexpresstheneedto'getstarted',to'hitthegroundrunning'andtoinitiateawritingproject(GrantandKnowles,2000;Moore,2003),themotivesoftheparticipantscanvary.
Severalparticipantsatdifferenttypesofretreathaveexpressedaneedtofocusmoreoncompleting,onnishingandonpullingtogethermanyideasintheformofaseriesofwrittenpieces.
Thedifferenceinindividualretreatmotivesandgoalscanbeattributedtodiffer-encesinthestagesofwritingthateachparticipanthasalreadyreachedandalso(atleastinpart)todifferencesinthepre-workandpreparationinwhichmembershavebeenableorwillingtoparticipateinthemonthsleadinguptothewriters'retreat.
Volunteerparticipantgroupsarebydenitionself-selectingandmaybedif-ferentfromacademicsingeneralinsofarastheymayhaveaparticularlystrongneedforspaceandtimeinwhichtocontainandarticulatetheirresearchandtodeveloptheirvoicesasacademicwriters.
Whenaskedtohigh-lightthepredictedbenetsofwriters'retreats,themostfrequentresponseshighlighttheimportanceofcreatingspaceandtimeinwhichtowrite,afunc-tionoftheweektowhichparticipantsgenerallyseemtoattributethemostvalue.
Inarticulatingtheirexpectations,participantstendtotalkabouttheimportanceofsharingwisdom,ofgettingfeedbackfromtheirpeers,offorgingnewlinks,ofenhancing'seriouswriting',andoftheopportunitiesforcreativ-ity,collegiality,collaborationandenhancedcommitment.
Intermsofmoretangibleoutcomes,theytendtohighlighttheimportanceofproducingeffect-iveandpublishablewrittenoutputsinwaysthatwillbeusefulforbuildingtheirCVsandforensuringtheirownprofessionaldevelopment.
POSITIVEEXPECTATIONS83ConcernsLikealmostanynewendeavour,participantsdonotcometoaretreatenvironmentwithoutatleastsomeanxietiesandconcerns.
Theywonderiftheywillbeabletowriteeffectivelywithouttheframeworkofinfor-mationaccessthattheycouldavailofintheirnormalsettings,theyexpressconcernsaboutbuildingandmaintainingwriting-relatedmomentum,theyworrythattheymightgetside-trackedbydistractions,beunabletocoordinateandintegratetheirwriting,andthatevengiventheextremelysupportiveandproductiveenvironment,theywillstillstruggletowrite,ormoreparticularlystruggletowritewell.
Itisnormalthatthesekindsofconcernsarediscussedduringthecourseoftheweek,butalsoimportantthatwritingbreakthroughs,successesandstrugglescontinuetobeunderstoodanddiscussedoncetheretreatisover.
OutcomesInadditiontotangibleoutputsthatusuallycomeintheformofacompletedpaper/chapter/proposal,itisalsoworthnotingthebehaviouralandattitudinalchangesthatparticipantsreportintheirapproachbothtoacademicwritingandtoeducationaldevelopment.
Participantstendtoreporthavingdevelopednewstrategiesforproducingimportantwrittenworkwithintheirelds.
Theytendtohighlightthattheretreatexperiencehelpedthemtorene,tostruc-ture,toexpressandtodisplayideasinawaythattheyfoundsatisfyingandpersonallyempowering.
Generally,asenseofgroupcohesivenessamongparticipantsisoftenmentionedasbeinganimportant'by-product'oftheretreat,asisthelikelihoodofinteractingmorefrequentlywithothersabouttheirwriting.
Theseoutcomes,ifsupportedeffectivelyonalonger-termbasis,arelikelytoformthefoundationsforhealthy,pleasurableandproductiveinstitutionalwritingpatterns.
Writers'retreatandgenderFromthetimethatwehavebeeninvolvedinacademicwritingdevelopment,wehavealwaysbeenstruckbygenderedaspectsassociatedwithinterventionsdesignedtohelpacademicwriters.
Thisisparticularlytrueofwriters'retreats,inwhichfemaleparticipantshavealwaysbeeninthelargemajority.
Atthe84RETREATINGTOADVANCEUniversityofLimerickwriters'retreats,outofanaveragegroupof18partici-pantsperretreat,itisunusualtohavemorethantwoorthreemalepartici-pants.
Inmanycases,theretreatshavebeenallfemale,despitethefactthattheeventisadvertisedtoallfacultyregardlessofgenderoranyothercharacteriz-tic.
Bloom(1985)hasarguedthatwhilemaleacademicsarejustaslikelytostrugglewiththeiracademicwritingastheirfemalecounterparts,theyseemlesslikelyto'comeforward',perhapsfeelingthatdoingsorepresentsanadmissionofweaknessorinadequacy.
Othershavearguedthatwomenaca-demicsmaynditmoredifculttojustifytimeandspaceforwritingeitherintheirprofessionalorpersonallives,andthattheretreatisanewrouteforhelpingthemtodowhattheyhavefounddifculttodointhecourseofthenormalrhythmandscheduleoftheirlives(Nelson,1993).
Itmaybethatmenandwomeneitherexperienceorattributedifcultieswithwritingdifferentlyfromoneanother,assuggestedforexamplebyCayton,(1990)andthereforepursue(ordon'tpursue)differentkindsofsolutions.
Availingofwriters'retreats(orretreatingtoadvance)seemstobeastrategythatismuchmorelikelytoappearinawoman'srepertoireofwritingdevel-opmentoptionsthaninthatofmen.
Whateverthedifferencesbetweenmaleandfemaleacademicwriters,wehavefoundtwothingstobetrueoftheretreat.
Firstly,thatwomenaremorelikelytosignupandparticipate,butsecondly,thattheparticipatingmenreportjustasmanybenetsandpositiveoutcomesasdotheirfemalecounterparts.
Itmaybethatthisself-selectingminoritygrouphasexceptionalcharacteristicsthatarenotsharedbyothermen.
Butwesuspectthatoncemenareconvincedthatwriters'retreatsarerelevanttothemandtheirneeds,theycanderivethesamebenetsandsatisfactionfromtheirparticipationastheirfemalecolleagues.
VariationsonthebalancebetweencollectivewritingspaceandprivatewritingspacesWehaveexperimentedwithdifferentmodesofwritinginretreatcontexts.
Oneofthedecisionsthatitisusefultomakewhenplanningtheretreatschedulerelatestohowmuchtimeshouldbedevotedtowritinginprivatesolitaryspaces,andhowmuchtowritingtogetherinthesamespace.
Thereareadvantagestoboth.
Solitarywritingspaceprovidespeoplewiththeprivacytheysometimesneedtogetgoingortomakeprogressandtopacetheirwritingandtaketheirbreaksaccordingtotheirownrhythms.
Workinginacommonspace,though,cancontributetowhatoneparticipantreferredtoasa'greatsenseoftogetherness',oracommonalityofpurpose,and,possiblyforthosereasons,seemstogiverisetotheindividualproductionofmoretextthanpeopleproducewhenwritingintheirownspaces.
ThisisnottosaythatVARIATIONSONTHEBALANCEBETWEENCOLLECTIVEANDPRIVATEWRITINGSPACES85academicwritinginthisenvironmentbecomesamechanisticproductionlineortypingpool–but,particularlyforwriterswhondithardtostaymotivatedwhenwritingalone,thiscontextcangiverisetohigherlevelsofuencyandcondence.
Variationsontheve-day,residentialmodelPerhapsblockingoutvedaysforaretreatsuchastheonewehavedescribedaboveseemslikeanimpossibletask.
Ittakesplanning,organizationandtime.
Ifyoufeelthatitseemstoomuch,butyouwouldstillliketobenetfromthefeaturesofaretreat-likeenvironment,youmightalsoconsidersomeofthefollowing,lesstime-consumingretreattemplates:Aone-ortwo-day,non-residentialretreatTherearemanyacademicswhonditverydifculttocommittoave-dayresidentialprogramme,nomatterhowmuchtheywouldliketo.
Caringresponsibilities,heavyworkschedulesandotherfactorsmaymakesuchacommitmentprohibitive.
Alternativestotheresidentialmodelincludeaone-ortwo-daynon-residentialretreatwhereanintensive,exclusivefocusonwrit-ingoccursduring'normal'workinghoursona9amto5pmbasis.
Shorterfacilitatedspringboardsessionslikethoseoutlinedcouldpunctuatewritingactivityandfeedbackonworkinprogress.
Whilethesetypesofretreatexperi-encedon'tseemtofacilitatethesamelevelofimmersionthatresidentialretreatparticipantsreport,theydohavemanyofthesamebenets.
Inparticu-lar,participantsdoachieveconstructivefocusevenwithinthesomewhatmoreboundedtimeframesthattheyrequire.
SeveralpunctuatedretreatdaysoverthecourseoftwoorthreemonthsAnothernon-residentialapproachtowriters'retreatinvolvesschedulingfourorvefulldaysforretreating,overtheperiodofseveralmonths.
Thiscanbeparticularlyusefulforadoptingan'evolutionary'approachtowritingdevel-opment,duringwhichparticipantscantracetheprogressoftheirworkandbehelpedtodothisinanorganizedwaywiththeassistanceofdedicatedfacilita-tors.
Carefulplanning,monitoringandtrackingofparticipants'progresswillhelptoensurethateachsuccessivedaywillgiverisetomomentumandprogress.
86RETREATINGTOADVANCEAweekendresidentialretreatThisisamorecondensedformoftheve-dayresidentialmodel,andagainfacilitatedsessionsneedtobecarefullybalancedwithtimeforwriting.
Specic-purposeretreatsParticipantsreportthatimmersion,totalfocus,lackofdistractionandthecapacityto'bepresent'intheirwritingareallbenetsofthewriters'retreatmodel.
Itisalsopossiblethatsuchbenetsmightbeenhancedincertainwayswhen'specic-purpose'retreatsareorganizedinordertofocusonparticulartypesofacademicwriting.
Wehavedesignedanddeliveredretreatsthataredepartmentallybased,withparticipantsallcomingfromthesameacademicdepartmentandwritingbroadlywithinthesamediscipline.
Thisseemstoenhancesubject-specicdiscussions,andwhiletheremaybeariskthatsuchretreatgroupsmightsufferfromalackofinterdisciplinarityandself-consciouscompetitionbetweenparticipants,thishasnotbeenourexperience.
Otherretreatsmightalsobeorganizedspecicallyfor:collaborativewritingprojects(wheninteractionmaybeevenmoreimport-antthanwhenpeopleareauthoringtheirtextalone);thosewhohavebeeninvitedtoreviseandresubmitjournalarticles(whentheissuesofrespondingtochallengingfeedbackmightrequireparticularfocusandunderstanding);thoseconvertingtheirPhDresearchintoapublishableoutput(whencraft-ing,condensingandtargetingwritingmaybeofprimeconcern);thosepreparingresearchproposals(whenproposalconventionsandrequirementsshouldreceiveprimaryattention).
KeymomentsandexperiencesfacilitatedbytheretreatenvironmentForus,thewriters'retreathasalwaysbeenanenormouslysatisfyingandposi-tiveprofessionalevent.
Thatparticipantsgenerallyfeelthesameiscorrobor-atedbythefeedbacktheyprovide.
Thosewhohaverunwriters'retreatsinothercontextsseemtohavesimilarinsights(forexampleGrantandKnowles,2000;Schneider,2003;O'Neill,MooreandMcMullin,2005).
Someofthekey,recurring'moments'orexperiencesthathavecometocharacterizewriters'retreatsforusincludethefollowing:experimentationwithdifferentapproachestowriting,strippingawayofcommonlyusedexcusesfornotwrit-ing,thedevelopmentofaclearerunderstandingofthephysiologicalrhythmsKEYMOMENTSANDEXPERIENCESFACILITATEDBYTHERETREATENVIRONMENT87thatfacilitateorprohibitwriting,aligningknow-howwithactualpracticeandcelebrationofwriting.
Becausepeoplegivethemselvestheopportunitytobecomecompletelyimmersedinwriting,theyhavemoreofachanceinthewriters'retreatthantheyusuallydotoexperimentwithdifferenttimeslots,differentformsanddifferentwritingrhythms.
Theycancarveuptheirwritingdaysinwaysthatarenormallyimpossible,thusgaininginsightsaboutthetimesoftheday(andindeednight)thattheyfeelattheirbestforwriting.
Theycantryoutwhatitfeelsliketowriteinthesamespaceasothers,andbalancethiswithwritinginmoresecludedsettingsinordertoseewhatseemstoworkbestforthem.
Alloftheseexperimentsareeasierinaplacewhereseveraldaysofuninterruptedtimeforwritinghavebeenallocated.
Forthesamereasons,itbecomespossibleforpeopletoconfrontsomebarrierstowritingthatmaynot,inothersettings,besoobvioustothem.
Giventhatmanyacademicscitealackoftimewhenexplainingtothem-selvesandotherswhytheyhavenotmadeprogresswiththeirwriting,thetimeissuebecomesafocusofconsiderablereection.
Atwriters'retreats,largeblocksoftimestretchoutinfrontofparticipants,anexperiencethatisunusualformanyofthem.
Theremovalofthetimeproblemmakesitpossibletoseeotherbarriersmoreclearly,thosethatmayhavemoretodowithcon-dence,professionalesteem,entitlementandasenseofcompetence.
Butitalsogivesthemthetimeandspaceinwhichtoinventanddevelopeffectivewritingsupportsthroughtheestablishmentofnewroutines,insights,peerpartnershipsandthelike.
Thatwriters'retreatisaneventinwhichpeopleactuallywrite(notjusttalkaboutitorthinkaboutitorpreparetodoit)issomethingthatdifferentiatesitfrommanyotherformsofwritingdevelopmentinterventions.
Proventech-niquesproposedbyfacilitatorscanbetestedandappliedalmostimmediatelyinthecontextofparticipants'currentwritingtasks.
Thisalignmentofknow-howandpracticeisasignicantcharacterizticoftheretreatenvironment.
Butprobablythemostendorsingaspectofwriters'retreatiswhatpeoplesayanddowhentheyreachtheendofthisintensivewritingexperience.
Thenalnightofaretreatisoftencharacterizedbyasenseofrealdelightandcelebra-tion,revealedinparticipants'spontaneousarticulationofachievementsthattheyhadnotpredicted,breakthroughsthattheyhadnotexpected,andinsightsaboutwritingthatmighthavebeendifculttogainwithoutthiskindofimmersionintheirtask.
ConclusionsWriters'retreatsaredesignedtocreatetimeandspaceforwritinginwaysthatareseparatefromanddifferenttopeople'snormalacademicenvironments.
88RETREATINGTOADVANCEThischapterhasexploredsomeoftheessentialconsiderationsthatshouldbetakenintoaccountwhenplanning,preparingforandimplementingaretreat,eitherwithinorbetweeninstitutions.
Wehavefoundthatbothintra-andinter-universityretreatsworkwell,asdoretreatssetupformorespecicacademicwritingpurposes.
Characteristicsofeffectiveacademicwriters'retreatscanbesummarizedasfollows:Anintensivewritingsanctuaryprovidingadviceandsupportforpartici-pants'writingprojects.
Task-orientated,witheachparticipantidentifyingandaimingtoachievedenitewritinggoalsandoutputs.
Timecommittedtoexploringwritingprocessesaswellaswritingoutputs.
Asupportedinterventionthatremovesconcernsaboutsurveillanceanddestructivecriticismaboutacademicwritingthatpeoplemayhaveencounteredelsewhereintheirprofessionallives.
Adedicated,signicantperiodoftimeofbetweenoneandvedays'duration,thatbalancesfacilitated,structuredguidanceandindependentprivatetimeforwriting.
CONCLUSIONS896AwritingforpublicationprogrammeThechallengeofwritingforacademicjournalsRationaleStagesStructureWriting'buddies'MonitoringmeetingsAwritingmentorEvaluationsChecklistThechallengeofwritingforacademicjournalsManyacademicsreportthatoneoftheirmostdifcultwritingtasksiswritingtherstpaperforpublication.
However,eventhosewhohavepublishedinjournalssaytheystillndtheprocessverychallengingandmoretime-consumingthantheyfeelitshouldbe.
Thismaybebecausebothnewandrelativelyexperiencedwritersarestilldevelopingaprocessforwritingforacademicjournalsandstilllookingfora'formula'.
Academicswithlittleornoexperienceofwritingforpublicationregularlyreportthatwhiletheyhavebothexperienceandevidenceofsuccessinotherformsofacademicwriting,mosthavingcompletedadoctorate,forexample,whentheycometowritetheirrstjournalarticletheyfacearangeofproblemsforwhichtheyconsidertheyarenotsufcientlyprepared.
Eventhosewhohavepublishedcanstillbestrugglingtomaketheprocess'manageable'.
Asonenewwriterputit,writingtherstpapersdoesnotnecessarilyoccurasastraightforwardprogressionfrompreviousacademicwriting:Attheveryearlystagesofthewritingprocess,thestepbetweenanideaforapaperandactualpublicationisenormous.
However,asthetopicandthemesaredeveloped,targetdatesaresetandinitialdraftsaresubjectedtopeerreview,theenormousstepistransformedintoaseriesofmoregradualstepsinterspersedwithlandingsorstagesforreviewandreection.
Thewholeprocessbecomesmoremanageable.
Someoftheseproblemsmayoriginateinlackofcondence,orsimplyinthedifferencebetweenthiswritingtaskandothers,buttheymayindicateaneedforinformationaboutwhatwritingforpublicationentails.
Whatthewriterquotedabovedescribedasatransformationfrom'idea'to'paper'andfrom'enormous'to'manageable',canbeactivelymanagedbywritersthroughawritingforpublication(WfP)programme:itcreatesa'seriesof.
.
.
steps'forwritinganacademicpaper,andtherebyenablesparticipantstodenetheirownsteps,establishtheirownpaceandadaptthemfordifferentwritingpro-jects.
TheWfPprogrammedescribedinthischapterisonewayofenablingnewanddevelopingwriterstoconsiderwritingforpublicationasa'process'andtodevelopwritingprojectsastheydoso.
Inaddition,iftheprogrammerunsforanextendedperiodoftime,suchas6or12months,itgivesparticipantstimetorenetheirprocessesthroughbothinteractionwithotherwritersandreectionontheirownemergingprocesses.
Moreover,asareviewofliteratureonacademicwritingdevelopmentshows,thismodeismoreeffectivethanshort-terminterventions:Werecommendthatuniversitiessupportthedevelopmentofstructuredinterventionsfortheirstaffinordertoincreasetheirwritingforpublica-tion.
Aregular,ongoingarrangementseemstobemostbenecial,withaformatthatcanbeadaptedtomeettheneedsofattendees.
(McGrailetal.
,2006:34)Thischapterandthenextdescribeexamplesof'structuredinterventions'.
Ourexperiencesuggeststhatdevelopingwriterscanbenetfromstructuredandsustainedsupport.
Inaddition,directingresources–thatis,time–towritingsendsapositivesignaltowriters.
Astrengthofthistypeofprogrammeisthatitgiveswriterstimetoadaptinvariousdimensionsofwriting:beliefs,behaviours,skillsandapproaches.
The'structuredinterventions'thatunder-pintheapproachesweproposeareusefulinfacilitatingtheprocessofwritingforpublication.
Thischapterdescribestheprogrammeandothersupportstrategiesthatmayrunalongsideit,andproposesamonitoringframeworkfordevelopingwriters.
Observationsonthedevelopmentprocessesthatmaybeinvolvedareincludedthroughout.
Participants'commentsinevaluationsandfollow-upinterviewsareusedtounderscorekeychangesandbenets.
THECHALLENGEOFWRITINGFORACADEMICJOURNALS91RationaleWhileinsomecontextstheWfPprogrammemightseemaradicalapproach,ithasahistory,havingbeenruninnumerousuniversitiesacrosstheUKandinothercountries.
Ithasalsobeenadaptedforotherinstitutions,suchashealth-caresettings.
Theprogrammewascreatedinresponsetothestatedneedsofdevelopingwritersaimingtowritepapersforsubmissiontojournals.
Theaimwastodevelopaprogrammethatwouldbedevelopmental,ratherthanremedial,avoidingthestigmaassociatedatthattimewithwritinginstruction.
Buildingonmaterialsdevelopedforshortcoursesandworkshops,theWfPprogrammetookalongerview,offeringsupportthroughoutawritingproject,supportingwritersastheyadaptedtheirwritingpractices.
Initialresponsestothismodeincludedincredulity:surelyacademicswouldneverownuptoneedinghelpwiththeirwritingYetthereweresomeacademicswhorecognizedtheirneedforsupportandwerepreparedtoparticipateinaformalprogrammethatwouldhelpthemachievetheirwritinggoals.
Thetargetaudiencewerethosewhoconsideredthemselvestobeeithernewtothisformofacademicwritingorstilllearningaboutit,andthepurposewastoraisethestandardoftheirwriting,specicallyforpublication.
Theemphasiswasonhelpingthesewriterstostart,progress,completeandsubmitapaperduringtheprogramme.
Thiswasnot,therefore,acaseofseparatingtheoryfrompractice.
Fromtheoutset,eachparticipantwasencouragedtoidentifyaspecicprojectinordertofocusanylearningandwritingthatoccurredduringtheprogramme.
TheWfPprogrammeevolvedandchangedoverthepasttenyears,tothepointwherewecansaythatitseemstoworkbestwhencertaincomponentsareinplace.
DenedstagesinthewritingprocessGenerally,writersseemtonditusefultoexperiencethiswritingtaskasaprocess,withdenedstages.
Evenifwritersadaptthisstructureaftertheprogramme,itseemsthattheexistenceofadeniteseriesofsteps,whateverformthisseriesmaytake,isveryuseful.
Itseemstohelpwriterstomakeprogressindevelopingapieceofwritingforpublication.
Participants'responsestotheapproacharethefocusofregulardiscussions.
Thesediscus-sionshave,overtheyears,providedinsightsintoacademicwritingpractices,addingtoourunderstandingandthatofparticipatingwriters.
92AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMETheliteratureonacademicwritingThatthereissuchaliteraturecomesasasurprisetomanyacademics.
Gener-ally,academicsdonotlearnaboutacademicwritingbyreadingaboutit.
Oncetheyareawareoftherangeofmaterialinthiseld,theynotonlyadoptestab-lishedstrategies,butmanyalsoadaptthemfortheirteachinginordertohelpstudentswiththeirwriting.
TheWfPprogrammeintroduceswriterstoarangeofstrategies,someofwhichwillbefamiliar,othersnot.
Theprogrammeincludeswritingactivitiesfromtheoutset,sothatparticipantstryoutnewstrategiesforthemselves.
Thiscombinationofscholarlyandpracticalapproachesisprobablyimportantforacademicsinparticular,butitaddscredibilityandispersuasiveforotheraudiences.
'Tuning'writingskillsTakingascholarlyapproachtowritinghelpsacademics'tune'theirunder-standingbothofthecomponentsofgoodwritingandoftheprocessofpro-ducingit.
Sustainingtheprogrammeoversixmonthsmeansthatthereistimeforparticipantstoindividualizeandcontextualizenewknowledge.
JournalrequirementsWhileacademicsarelikelytobefamiliarwithjournalsintheireld,asreaders,theymaynothaveabsorbedthejournals'requirementsofwriters.
TheWfPprogrammeallocatestimeforanalysisofjournalsthatparticipantsaretarget-ing.
Theprogrammeincludesmoredetailedanalysisofjournalarticlesthanacademicsgenerallyperform.
TheaimsofaWfPprogrammeshouldclearlybeshapedbyparticipatingwriters,andtheframeworkdescribedinthischaptercanbeadaptedtodiffer-entgroups,butthecoreelementshaveworkedwellfordozensofgroupsofacademics(andforothersengagedinwritingforpublicationatotherinstitutions).
Theprogrammehelpswriterstoadoptarelativelylinearstrategyforawrit-ingproject,whilebuildinginatoleranceforiterationandreiteration,alongwithastructureforprogressingthroughthesestages,whichoftenseemprob-lematicandevendisruptivetodevelopingwriters.
Workinginthisway,theycanexperiencewhatwehavetermedthe'advance-retreat'modeofacademicwriting:thelinearstructurecharacterizeswritingaspersistingin'advance'mode,whiletherangeofwritingstrategiesemployedateachmeetingallowsparticipantstocontinuetowriteevenwhentheyfeelthattheirwritingisin'retreat'mode.
Thisadvance-retreatdynamicmaybeunavoidable,whichiswhyweusetheterm'toleranceforiteration'.
Althoughtheprogrammeislinear,itisunlikelythatparticipantswillprogressinalinearwayintheirwriting;instead,theprogrammehelpsthemtodevelopdynamicstrategies.
RATIONALE93TheWfPprogrammemaynotworkforeveryone.
Therehavebeendrop-outsineachprogramme,andthosewhocompletedtheprogrammedidnotndthatitsolvedalltheirproblems.
Somewritersdidnotsubmitacompletedpieceofwritingwithinthetimeframesetoutintheprogramme.
Insomeinstances,theprogrammemerelyhighlightedaneedforfurtherresources,andforsomewritersitservedasatesteitheroftheircommitmenttowritingorofthefeasibilityoftheirproposedwritingprojects.
However,formanywriters,theprogrammehadalastingpositiveeffectontheirwriting,raisingtheirawareness,facilitatingamoredeliberate,structuredapproach,andhelpingthemtoenhancetheirchancesofpublication.
StagesTheoriginalaimofthisprogrammefordevelopingwriterswastobringstruc-turetothewritingprocess.
Weconsideredtheliteratureonacademicwriting.
Inaddition,wediscussedwritingwithwritersinvariousdisciplinesandnotedthatmanyofthemhaddevelopedtheirownwritingprocesses.
Wealsoaskedintendingparticipants–whodidnotatthatpointknowwhatformthewritingprogrammewouldtake–whattheyexpectedtogainfromawritingforpubli-cationprogramme.
Hereareonegroup'sresponses,withspecicexpectationsinbold.
WhatdodevelopingacademicwritersneedImprovedwritingskills.
.
.
Improvedmanagementskills.
Tolearnmoreaboutthewritingprocess,gaininsightintodifferentwrit-ingstyleswithaviewtoperhapschangingoradaptingmyownmethod,whichisperhapsnotworkingtoitsfullpotential.
Tolearn,developandintegratestrategiesforincreasingtheoutputofmythinkingandwriting.
Toenjoywritingmorethanbefore.
Towriteregularlyforsustainedprojects.
Well-denedstructure.
.
.
moredisciplineandtheabilitytotalkthrough'stuff'withothers.
Iwanttoacquireskillinwriting.
Condenceinwriting.
Thehabitofwritingregularly.
.
.
.
Theabilitytoformjournalarticlesandconferencearticleswithgreaterfacility.
Condenceinmyownabilityasanacademicwriter.
Publishedpapers!
Inanutshell.
Amoresophisticatedapproachtotheformulationandexecutionofwriting,morefocusedonspecicjournals.
Todevelopapracticeofacademicwritingthatisregularandintegraltomyjobasanacademic.
Todevelopacollegiateapproachwithcolleaguestosustainthatwritingformeandfortheminthefuture.
94AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMETodevelopawritingstylethatmeetsneedsforacademicrigourbutretainsa'readable'quality.
Toclarifyobjectivesinmyprofessionalcareerandunderstandhowresearchwritingwillassist.
Tosucceedinthesenseoflearn-ingprocessandtechniqueratherthansucceedinthesenseofgettingarticlespublished.
Theseresponsesshowthatinonegrouptherewasawiderangeofinterestsandstatedneeds,andthisrangeoccurredinalargenumberofgroups.
Onefeaturethatrecurredinmanysuchlistsiswriters'dualfocusonoutputandprocess:theywantedto'publishpapers'butalso'learnmore'.
Theyalsoincludethedesireforbehaviouralchange–more'discipline',forexample–andsocialeffects–a'collegiateapproach'.
Theaffectiveandemotionaldimen-sionsofwritingarealsopresentin'enjoy'and'condence'.
Inotherwords,justabouteverycomponentofwritingappearsonthisonegroup'slist,andsomeofthewritersincludedmorethanonecomponentintheirbriefstate-ments.
TheimplicationsforthedesignofaWfPprogrammewerethatitwouldbeamistaketofocusonanyoneofthesetotheexclusionoftheothers.
Beforeeachprogramme,wealsoaskintendingparticipantswhattheirwritinggoalsare.
Thefollowingresponsesfromthesamegroupshowapre-dominant,butnotexclusive,focusonwritingjournalarticlesanddifferentinterpretationsoftheword'goal':Whataredevelopingacademicwriters'goalsToproduceacompetitiveorworkingconferencepaperwithaviewtopresentationforjournalpublication.
Mywritinggoalsaretwo-fold,orratheronegoalisaconsequenceoftheother.
MyrstgoalistowriteandcompletethePhDthesis.
Thesecondconsequentialgoalistowriteforpublication,journalsandconferences.
ToreworkmyMastersdissertationforpublicationasaresearchnoteinthe[journaltitle].
Mygoalperhapswouldbethatofactualachievement–abottomline,theendoftheroad–literaturereview,reviewarticle,whatever,butsomethingatleastmoretangiblethanjustagoal.
IntheshorttermIwouldaimtoproduceonepaperfor[journaltitle]focus-ingonaliteraturereviewrelevanttomythesisresearch.
Ajournalarticleby[month]for[journaltitle]on[topic].
Iamcurrentlynishingonepaper,andlookforwardtoatleastnishinganotheronebeforestartingthenextone.
Mywritinggoalistocompleteanarticlethatistforpublicationandcanbepresentedataconference.
Toproducepapertoworkwith.
Tolearndiscipline.
Todevelopmyownstyle.
Toincreasecondence.
Inthislistthereappearedtobemoreagreementinthegroup:therewasaSTAGES95clear,commonfocusonoutput.
TheimplicationswerethateveryparticipantshouldprogressthespeciedprojectinthecourseoftheWfPprogramme.
Inaddition,giventhisfocusonoutputs,itwaslikelytobeimportanttodevelopanddiscussarangeofdynamicsatdifferentstagesintheprogramme,notjustattheend.
Thissuggestedthatparticipantsshouldbeencouragedtodenetheirownoutputsforeachmeeting.
Takingallthisformalandinformal,publishedandunpublishedmaterialintoaccount,wedesignedaprogrammethatestablishedthreestagesintheacademicwritingprocess.
Participants'evaluations,innumerousprogrammes,indicatedthatfocusingonaspecicgoalwasimportantinhelpingthemmovebeyondintentiontowritetocompletingapaper:'Havingidentiedapublica-tionattheoutsetasatarget,thisremainsinfocus,ratherthanbeingjustavagueaspirationwithanunspecieddeadline.
'Mappingoutstagesandtasksinthiswayseemedlikeamodestadjustmenttosomewriters,butamajorimpositionforothers.
Forexample,while'Draftabstract'appearsasstep2intheprogramme,somewriterswereadamantthattheycouldnotwritetheabstractuntiltheyhadwrittenthepaper.
Thisisnottosaythatthereisonlyonepointatwhichtheabstractshouldbedrafted;instead,theactivityofwritinganabstract,andourdifferingunderstandingsofitspositionintheacademicwritingprocess,challengedsomewriters'assump-tionsand,intime,changedsomewriters'long-standinghabits.
Whateverthestructureimposedonthewritingprocess,andwhateverthestagesdenedforthatprocess,thekeystrengthoftheWfPprogrammeisthatAsix-monthwritingforpublicationprogrammeStage1:Months1and21Deningthewritinggoal.
2Draftingtheabstract.
3Outliningthepaper.
Stage2:Months3and44Outliningthepaperindetail:headingsandsub-headings.
5Writingregularly.
6Givingandreceivingpeerreview.
Stage3:Months5and67Draftingtheintroductionandreviewofliterature(withfeedback).
8Writingfulldraft(withfeedback).
9Revisingdraftsofallsections(withfeedback).
10Dealingwithandrespondingtofeedbackfromjournalsandresubmitting.
96AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMEitismappedoverrealtime.
Foreachprogramme'Months1and2'wouldlisttwospecicmonths.
Timeslotswouldbeallocatedforeachmeeting,inadvance,forthewholesixmonths,thusstimulatingwriterstothinkabouttheirwritingintermsofspecictimeslots.
TheWfPprogrammewasfoundedontheassumptionthatparticipantshavesomethingworthwritingabout.
Preciselywhattheirtopicswillbeisthefocusofseveralimportantdiscussionsofwriters'ideasandtheirtargetjournals.
Writersidentifythegapsandlinkstheycancreatebetweentheirideasandthecontentofpublishedarticles.
Thesegapswillbewideforsomewritersbutnarrowforothers,andmakingconnectionsbetweentheirworkandotherworkreportedinjournalswillbestraightforwardforsomewritersbutcomplicatedforothers.
Thisispartoftheworkofawritingprogramme:tohelpparticipants,atthestart,toestablishwheretheymighttintheworldofpublishedacademicdebateand,iftheyconsiderthatthereisnoplaceforthemthere,whattheymightdotondaplaceelsewhere.
Thismaymeanstartingahigherdegreeorwritingaresearchproposal,ratherthanajournalarticle,andtheseareimport-antoutputsforindividualsandinstitutionsalike.
Thisbringsparticipantstoanimportantdiscussionofthepurposeofaca-demicwriting:whataretheirpersonalandprofessionalaimsEachparticipantwillhaveaparticularviewonthis,anditisprobablyimportantthatthereistimetodiscusseachwriter'sindividualbalanceoftheprofessionalandthepersonal.
Forsomedevelopingwriters,thisisatimetoventfrustrationwithexternalassessments,forexample.
Withoutthisdiscussion,thereisariskthatsuchfrustrationcouldleadtodisenchantmentorcynicismaboutacademicpublishing.
Oneoutcomeofthisdiscussionmaybeabroadeningofwriters'interpret-ationsandusesoftheterm'research'.
Forexample,itispossibleforpartici-pantstodevelopwritingabout'applied'research(FurlongandOancea,2005),ortowriteaboutdevelopmentsinpracticeortowriteabouttheirexperience.
Forsome,thekeyissimplytondanoutletforthekindofwritingtheycando.
Thisprogrammecanbeusedtopromptwriterstomakeconnectionsbetweenwhattheywantto'say'intheirwritingandwhattheyseeinthejournals.
Whileexperiencedwriterswouldndthisdiscussionrelativelystraight-forward,developingwriters,includingnewresearchers,postgraduatesandthoseworkingindisciplineswhereresearchisanewactivity,havefoundthisdiscussiondemystifying,focusingandcondence-building.
Formanyaca-demics,discussingtheseissuesinagroupbroughttheaddedinterestofhear-ingaboutotherpeople'splans,revealedpotentiallinksbetweenprojects,andsometimeshelpedwriterstoexperimentwithnewapproachestowriting.
Itfrequentlyleftthemmorereadytoadapttheirexistingstrategies.
Thereisalsoaddedvalueindiscussionforacademicswhosaythattheynormallyhaveverylittletimetotalkabouttheirresearch,althoughwhentheydo,theyenjoyit,nditusefulandarestimulatedbynewsynergies.
However,discussionisonlypartoftheworkofanymeetingintheSTAGES97programme.
Theremustalsobetimeforwriting,evenasparticipantsareden-ingtheirtopics.
Thisiswhereacademicsinarangeofdisciplinesbegintoseethevalueoffreewriting(Elbow,1973)andgenerativewriting(Boice,1990)inhelpingthemtowriteinexploratory,evenuncertain,ways,soastomakeastart.
TheWfPprogrammecanbeanappropriatecontextinwhichtoapplytheprinciplesof'advance'and'retreat'thatwehaveoutlinedinchapters2and3.
Nevertheless,theindividualcanonlyachievesomuch.
Iftheculture–ofdepartment,facultyordivision–isnotsupportiveofwriting,theindividualacademic,particularlyonewhohasnotpublishedbefore,maystruggletoproduce.
Ithelpsimmenselytohavealocal'champion',particularlyifheorsheactivelyandvisiblysupportsdevelopingwriters:WhenIdidmyrstconferencepaper(andwonaresearchprize)hecongratulatedmeandencouragedmetopublish.
He'salwaysfollowingup.
Alwaysonemail.
Always'inyourbox'.
Hereadseveryone'spapers.
Inpractice,thepersonwhohasalreadytakenonthisroleisoftentheonewhoseeksoutorconstructsthistypeofprogrammeorndsotherwaystosupportdevelopingwriters.
StructureWhilethewritingforpublicationprogrammehastakenmanyforms,overmanyyearsofdevelopmentanditeration,themodeldisplayedbelowseemstobeoneofthemosteffective.
Withsixmeetingsoverasix-monthperiod,eachmeetinghasaparticularfocus,butallmeetingsincludetheactivitieslistedintheright-handcolumn.
Thesequenceoftopicswasdesignedtoleaddevelopingwritersthroughtheprocessofwritingapaper,stepbystep.
WritingforpublicationprogrammestructureTopicsActivitiesatthismeeting.
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atallmeetingsMonth1WritinggoalWritingtopromptsTargetjournalReviewingjournalsandideasWRITINGSupportforwritingDiscusswith'writingbuddy'Month2TargetandgoalDraftabstractStructureofacademicwritingOutlinepaperDISCUSSION98AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMEAttherstmeeting,participantsareintroducedtothestructureofthewholeprogramme(seeabove)andhavetimetodiscussit.
Theythendeneandsharetheirwritinggoalsforthisprogramme.
Thisoftenpromptsdiscussionofthepurposesofacademicwriting–bothpersonalandprofessional–aspartici-pantsidentify,andweighinthebalance,bothinternalandexternaldriversforwriting.
Thisdiscussionmaybecrucialforparticipants,asitisoneofthemomentswhentheyfocusontheirmotivationstowrite.
Theuseof'writingtoprompts'(Murray,2004:82),aformofadaptedfree-writing(Elbow,1973),ishelpfulatthispointinthepaper-writingprocess:itgenerallystimulateswriterstogeneratepotentialtopicsforpapersandtorec-ognizethatthey'havesomethingtosay'.
Thisstrategyforegroundstheirownideas,whilediscussionisbalancedbyconsiderationofthecontextfortheseideas,bringingacritical'edge'tothisdiscussion.
Akeyinitialstep,tobetakenasearlyaspossible–thatis,before,duringorshortlyafterthismeeting–ischoosingatargetjournal,sincethischoicewilldeneeachwriter'saudienceandpurpose.
Thisstepencourageswritersto'thinkrhetorically,thatis,tobalancethedemandsofthesubjectagainst[their]ownintentsandpurposesandtheneedsandexpectationsofreaders'(Rankin,2001:51).
Thus,thismeetingincludesdiscussionofbothpersonalwritinggoalsandthecontextsinwhichthesegoalsmayberealized–animportantcombinationthatcharacterizesfuturemeetings.
Ifparticipantsdodropoutoftheprogramme,theytendtodosoatthispoint.
Whilethecausesmayvaryandhavemultiplesources,itisalwaysareminderoftheneedtoencouragewritersatthisstageintheirrstwritingprojects.
Eveniftheyfallbehind,orfeelthattheyhave,itispossibletokeepthemonboard.
Itisneithernecessarynorfeasibleforeveryonetoprogressthroughtheprogrammeatthesamerate.
Fromthispointon,itislikelythatparticipantswillallbeatdifferentstagesinthepaper-writingprocess.
Some-timesthisobviouspointhastoberestatedfornewwriterswho,atleastinitially,maylackcondence.
Month3NewstrategiesFreewritingandgenerativewritingCriteriaandconventionsAnalysingpublishedpapersFEEDBACKMonth4ContentandargumentDraftingsectionsGivingandreceivingfeedbackPre-peerreviewPLANNINGMonth5ProgressingpaperDraftingandrevisingMONITORINGMonth6PeerreviewAnalysingreviewsandresponsesREVISINGClosureRevisingSTRUCTURE99Betweenthemonthlymeetings,participantsareencouraged,fromtheout-set,toholdinterimmeetings,perhapswitha'writingbuddy',inordertoprogresssub-goalsdenedatmeetings.
Atthesecondmeeting,thekeywritingtask,foreachparticipant,isdraftinganabstractforthepaper,using'Brown's8questions'(Murray,2004:111),wherewriterssketchthemainlinesoftheargumentfortheirpapers,fromrationaletocontribution,andsetlimitstothecontentsoftheirpapers.
Thedraftabstractcanthenbe'calibrated'withthenormsandformsofpublishedabstractsinthetargetjournalatthetimeofwriting.
Thisdraftabstractwillberevisedmanytimes,butitservesausefulfocusingfunctionatthisstageinthewritingprocess.
Italsohelpswriterstoshapethestructureoftheirpapers,anotherkeytaskforthismeeting,astheybegintooutlinethemainsectionsandsub-sections.
Again,writershavetobalancewhattheywantto'say'intheirpapers,whattheirtargetjournalswantto'hear'andtomapwritingsub-goalsinrealtime.
Theycanalsobegintoadopttheroleofhelpingeachothertodeneandachievegoalsandsub-goals.
Itisimportanttopromptwriters–andtoencouragethemtoprompteachother–toproducewritingplansfortherestoftheprogrammeatthisstage.
Sinceeverymeetingintheprogrammeincludeswritingtime,theycanplantoprogresstheirpaperinthisway,buttheyarelikelytoneedmoretimethanthis.
Sincewritingtimeisgenerallynotformallyallocated,timemayhavetobemadefordenedwritingtasks.
Useoftimeisanimportanttalkingpointamongwritersatthisstage,butitisimportantthatthisdiscussionproducesawritingtimetable,thattimetablesarereviewedanddiscussedwithpeers,andthattheyareapointofreferencewhenparticipantstalkabouttheirwritingbothatprogrammeandatinterimmeetings.
Participantshavefounditusefultostructureinterimmeetingsusingthemonitoringframeworkdescribedlaterinthischapter.
Thisframeworkisnotdesignedtoprovidedataformanagement;instead,itworkstosharpenwriters'focusontheirwritingsub-goalsandtolearntosetrealistic,incrementalgoalsforwriting.
Fornewwriters,thisiseasiersaidthandone,buttheprogrammehelpsthemtoadapttheirthinking,planningandpractices,inlightoftheirexperiencesandobservations.
Thethirdmeetingintroducestwotopicsthatsustainthedualthemesofindividualexpressionandcontextualizedwriting:freewriting(Elbow,1973)andgenerativewriting(Boice,1990),twostrategiesthatareusuallynewtoacademics,providemodesofdevelopingthinkinginwriting,buildcondenceanduency,andhelpwritersgetintothewritinghabit;bycontrast,analysisofpublishedpapersoftencreatesasenseofconstraint,sometimesinhibitionandintimidation,asrelativelyinexperiencedwritersrecognizethepowerstruc-turesassociatedwithcertaintopics,methodsorwritingstylesandassessthestandardrequiredintheirtargetjournals.
Discussionatthismeetingshouldalmostcertainlyincludethesetensions:writingwhatyouwanttosay,whichcanbeaconsiderablechallengeinitself,andwritinginawaythatispersuasive100AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMEtoaspecicaudience.
Individualwritersmustndtheirownresolutionstothedilemmasthesetensionsmaycreate.
Arguably,thesetensionsfeatureinallwriting,butnewwritersoftenattributethemtodecienciesintheirownwriting.
Thesecondhalfoftheprogrammefocusesondrafting,revisingandpeerreview.
Inadditiontotheabovekeytopics,participantssharesuccessfulstrategies,hintsandtips,andcompareaccountsofthewritingprocess.
Thesenarrativeaccountsareanimportantdimensionoftheprogramme,sincetheyprovidespecicinsightsonacademicwritingandallowparticipantstoindividualizetheirlearning.
Forfurther'tuning'oftheprogrammetosuitparticipants'needs,feedbackcanbegatheredbetweenmeetings.
Forexample,inoneprogramme,partici-pantsreportedatthesecondmeetingonwhattheyhadachievedsincetherst:SincethelastmeetingIhavefurtherresearchedtheliterature.
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and,intermsofcontext,theliteratureonwherethesubjectisgoing.
Ihavewrit-tenshortreviewsectionsonbothofthesetopics,andthesewillbeincorporatedintotheliteraturereviewsectionofthepaper.
Thetimespenthasprobablybeenspreadoveramonth.
Thenumberofwordspro-ducedisabout1000,andthesub-themesinvolvedarethoseindicatedabove.
Thesenotes,whentheyareallcollectedtogetherattheendoftheprogramme,allowparticipantstolookbackattheirearlierthinking,toviewthestagesinandpacingoftheirwritingprocessandtomonitortheiruseofwritingsub-goals.
Foroutputsotherthanjournalarticles,theseprocesseshavebeenadapted.
Thepacingoftopics,activitiesandoutputsdescribedabovehasworkedwellforarangeofdifferentacademicwritingprojects.
Theverydifferentresponseratesofjournalswillalsoinuencethepaceofpublication,andwhilethisisnotsomethingtheycancontrol,itmayaffecttheirchoiceoftargetjournals.
Earlyformsofthewritingforpublicationprogrammeconsistedoffourmeetingsoversixmonths.
Subsequently,inresponsetoparticipantfeedback,thisbecamesixmeetingsoversixmonths.
Morerecently,feedbacksuggeststhateventhisisnotenough.
Somendthatmonthlymeetingsaretoofarapart,andsuggestthattheywouldbenetfromadditionalmeetingstohelpthemreachtheirinterimdeadlines.
Writerswhodemandmoretimemaystillbelearninghowtousewritingtime;theymaystillbendingoutthattheycannotdoasmuchastheythoughttheycouldinthetimeavailable,orthattheyhavetousethattimedifferently.
Asolutionmaybetouseoneormoreofthefollowingstrategies:writing'buddies',monitoringmeetingsandawritingmentor.
Thesesupporttheprogrammeand,aboveall,progresswritingprojects.
STRUCTURE101Writing'buddies'Sincethelastmeetingtheprogressofthewritingprojecthasbeenslowintermsofwordoutput.
Thecurrentstageoftheresearchisstillintheread-ingstageandtheinterviewsareabouttobegin.
BearingthatinmindIhavecarriedoutaboutfourfreewritingsessionsforapproximately10minsandhavemetwithmystudybuddyon2occasions.
Throughtheseses-sionsIdohaveaclearerideaofthestructureofthepaperbutIhavetoadmititisstillingeneralterms,furtherclaricationandgoalsettingarerequired.
Ifeeluntilthesesub-goalsareconstructedthefreewritingandstudybuddymeetingsarenotallthatconstructive.
Thequestionarises'well,whatamIgoingtowriteabout'TheliteraturesectionisprobablywhatIshouldnowbeconcentratingonandagaintogetoutput,whichtodatehasonlybeeninscribbledparagraphs.
Notwithstanding,ajournalhasbeentargeted.
Thisemailshowsthatthedevelopmentofapaper,intermsofthinking,read-ingandinquiry,takestime.
Notallmeetingsorstrategiesseem'constructive',andoneofthepurposesofworkingwithawritingbuddyistokeeptheprojectmovingforward,workingthroughsuch'slow'stages.
Inaddition,relativelyinexperiencedacademicwriterstendtoforgetthattheyarestilllearning,andthatittakestimetoadapttheirknowledgeandskillstothisnewtask.
Workingtogether,theycanprovidepositivefeedbackonboththeprocessandtheemergingproduct.
However,iftheyaretotakeupthisrole,itisusefultohaveinitialbriengandperiodicreviewofthewritingbuddyrole.
Clearly,itwillnotbeashelpfultolistandanalyseinconsistencyandincompletenessinacolleague'swriting;thewriterislikelytobeawareoftheseproblemsalready.
Instead,buddiescanrefertotheWfPframeworktoadjusttheirfocus.
Eveninexperiencedwriters,whomaylackcondenceingivingfeedbackonwriting,canusetheframeworkasapointofreferenceforfeedbacksessions.
Inpractice,someoftheserelationshipslastwellbeyondthewritingpro-gramme,suggestingthat,insomeinstances,therelationshiphasbeenpur-posefulandenjoyable.
Evenwhenacademicscometowritetheirsecondorthirdpapers,theymaystillbelearningabouttheacademicwritingprocess.
Foreachnewjournal,theremaybedifferencesinthewritingtheyhavetopro-duce.
Inthemediumterm,buddiescan,forexample,remindeachotheroftheelementsoftheprogrammethatworkedfortheminthepast,and,overthelongerterm,workingtogether,theycanadapttheprogramme'spracticestosuittheirneeds.
Perhapsthemostimportanteffectofthewritingbuddyrelationshipisthatthecommitmentofworkingwithanotherwriter,andknowingthatacol-leagueiscommittedtowritingwithyou,helpswritersmaketimeforwriting.
102AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMEMonitoringmeetingsToenhanceanddevelopthe'buddy'approach,moredeliberateandstructuredmonitoringcanhelpwritersachievetheirgoalsduringtheWfPprogramme.
Writingbuddiesandsub-groupshaveusedthisframeworktostructuretheirinterimmeetings.
Thepurposeofmonitoringmeetingsisnottoprovidedataforformalreview–althoughwritersmayuseitforthatpurpose–buttopromptdevelopingwriterstouseinterimmeetingsasdeadlinesforsub-goals.
Theimportanceofthisprocessisunderscoredbyparticipantsinmanypro-grammeswhoreportedthatmonthlymeetingsweretoofarapart.
Thisapproach–andparticularlythesequestions–mayseemtogoagainstthe'non-surveillance'ethosofotherstrategiesdescribedinthisbook,suchaswriters'retreat,butitdependsonhowitismanaged:isita'miniresearchassessmentexercise',focusingon'hard'output,orareparticipantsmonitoring'soft'outcomes,suchasgrowingcondence,reducedanxietyassociatedwithwriting,orwriting-in-progressoutputsAlthoughtheemphasisinmanyaca-demicandresearchcontextsisontheformer,itisimportant,particularlyforrst-timewriters,tofocusonthelatter.
Thisisnottosaythatoutputsareunimportant;quitethereverse,themonitoringframeworkencourageswriterstoestablishoutputsforeverymeetingandtoseewhattheycanlearnfrommonitoringtheiroutputs.
Inordertopreparewritersforthisrole,self-andpeer-monitoringarebuiltintotheWfPprogramme.
PartofeachmeetingisspenttakingstockoftheextenttowhichwritersachievedthegoalstheysetthemselvesatthepreviousMonitoringframework1Tomakethisprocessproductive,bringtheoutlineofyourwritingtomeetings.
2Toprovidewritingpractice/warm-up,writeinsentences.
3Bespecic:numberofmins/hours,wordswritten/towrite,sub-headingsetc.
5mins'writingWhatwritinghaveyoudoneonyourprojectsincethepreviousmeeting10mins'writingWriteaboutthenexttheme/heading/topiconyourwritingagenda.
10mins'discussionDiscusswhatyouwrotewithyourpartner/group.
5mins'writingWhatisyournextsub-goalforyourwritingprojectMONITORINGMEETINGS103meeting,alongwiththesettingandresettingofgoalstobeachievedbythenextmeeting.
AwritingmentorLikethewriting'buddy',awritingmentorcansupportthedevelopingwriterthroughoutthewritingprocess.
Thosewithresponsibilityforresearchmentor-ingcanaddthestagesinthewritingprocesstotheirdiscussionswithwriters.
Thismaybeanewinterpretationofthementor'srole,andmaypresentanewchallengetomanymentors:'AsI'mtalking,I'mlearningatthesametime.
'Thesewordsprobablybestcapturetheapproachofaneffectivewritingmen-tor.
Certainlythepersonwhosaidthemwas,accordingtoevaluationsofoneprogramme,aneffectivewritingmentor,butthesewordsalsoremindusthatwhilesomepeopleareablementorsinonerole,becomingawritingmentormaymakenewdemands.
Insomeinstitutionsnewmentorshavemetwithacoordinatororingroups,orsharedissuesandstrategiesbyemail,inordertoreviewtheirexperiencesinthisnewroleandtolearnfromeachother.
Oneofthemainchallengesforwritingmentorsmaybemakingtimefortheirrole:Iamoneofthewritingmentors.
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I'msorry,butIwon'tbeabletoattendthegrouptomorrow–anemergencymeetinghasbeencalledinmydepartment.
Anotherchallengeforwritingmentorsismotivatingwritersintheearlystagesoftheirrstprojects:I'msorryIwon'tbeabletocomebecauseIneedsomemotivationtop-up!
Oneofmygrouphasdroppedout.
Iwasinweeklycontactwiththeothertwoaboutwriting,andonedidgivemesomethingtoread.
ButIhaven'tdonemuchatallsincethen.
Ithinkthatitbecomesdifcult,maybeoff-putting,whenthere'snotmuchsignofprogress.
I'mnotsurehowmuchtopush,andI'malltoosympathetictotheproblemsofwriting.
TheresponseofthepersoncoordinatingtheWfPprogrammeinwhichthismentorwasworkinghighlightstheneedforusingtheprinciplesoftheprogrammetostructurethementor'srole:Inanswertoyourquestions:thewritershavegoalsforthenextfewweeksandmonths,anditwouldbeusefulifyoudiscussedwiththem–face-to-faceorbyemail–howtheyareprogressingtowardstheirgoalsandanyblocksthatcomeup.
Onethingyoucanstressisthatitistooearlytosee104AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMEchangesintheirpracticesandoutputs.
Soyoucouldincludearemindertosetachievablegoalsandtogivepositivefeedbackassmallstepsaretaken.
Itmightbeusefultohelpyourgroupidentifyfailedgoals,butprobablyimportanttoendonapositivenote.
Dothisnow,beforewritinggetspushedintothebackgroundagain.
Thisresponsehighlightsakeyroleforwritingmentors:makingwritingatopicofregulardiscussion.
Thisisonewayofkeepingit'intheforeground',thatis,helpingwriterstheyarementoringtoprioritizewriting.
Inotherwords,thementorisnottheretocheckuponwriters,buttosupplyencouragement,positivefeedbackandasoundingboardforwritingproblems.
Whilemanynewwritingmentorsdonotfeelequippedtosolve'writingprob-lems',theycanpromptwriterstoadoptthestrategiescoveredinthischapterandintherestofthisbook.
Usingthesix-monthprogrammeoutlinedinthischapterhelpsmentorstoaligntheirrolewithstageswritersareworkingthrough.
Thefollowingoutlineofthewritingmentor'sroleprovidesaninitialguide.
Derivedfromexperienceswithmanygroupsofwriters,itspurposeistopromptdiscussionamongthoselearningtoplaytheroleandthosewhohaveexperienceaswritingmentors.
Thewritingmentor'sroleRemitThementorsupportswritersbetweenmeetingsinthewritingforpublicationprogramme.
Morespecically,theroleinvolvesthefollowing:supportingthedevelopmentofspecic,achievablegoalsandsub-goalsandmaintainingwriters'focusonthem;maintainingcontactwithwritersintheprogrammeinmeetingsoremails;providingsupportandadvicetowritersasrequired;monitoringwriters'progresstowardsachievingspeciedgoals;monitoring'writingbuddy'andothermentoringrelationships;encouragingwriterstomonitorthemselves;followingupdrop-outsfromtheprogramme.
Experiencesuggeststhatdifferentwritersrequiredifferentformsofsupport;thatis,alloftheseformswillnotberequiredbyallwritersintheprogramme.
Inaddition,therolecanbecustomizedbywritersandmentors.
TasksThementor'sactivitieswillprobablyincludethefollowing:AWRITINGMENTOR105Thisisnotjustaboutmentorsreadingnalversionsofpapers,butaboutthembeingpartofthewritingprocess.
Thismaybechallenging,evenforexperiencedwritersactingasmentors.
Evenmorechallengingmaybeactingasamentorwhilestillbeinganinexperiencedwriter,yettherehavebeencasesinwhichnewwritershaveplayedamentoringroleforothernewwriters.
Theaboveframeworkwillhelpthosewhoarepreparedtotransfertheirmentoringskillstothiscontext.
Therehave,ofcourse,beeninstanceswherethementoringrolewasnoteffective,wherethementorhadtoomanyotherresponsibilities,wheretheinterpersonaldynamicwasnotpositiveorwherementoringmeetings,foravarietyofreasons,didnotseempurposeful.
Inthesecases,itisdifculttoknowwhatwritersandmentorscanlearn;itisdifculttomeasuretheimpactofsomanyvariables,and,sincetheapproachisrelativelynew,itmaybeprematuretoanalysetheproblemonthebasisofsuchlimiteddata.
Akeyroleformentorsishelpingwriterstoidentifydifferencesbetweenassumptionsaboutacademicwritingandactualwritingpractices.
Ifmentorscanpromptwriterstoidentifytheirownsuccessfulandunsuccessfulpractices,theywillsavethemaconsiderableamountoftrialanderror.
Groupdiscus-sionsamongwritersshouldmakeitclearthattherearevariousroutestowrit-ing,eveninthesamediscipline,butwriterscanbeside-trackedbycomparingtheirmodestprogresswithanexpectedoutputthatmaybeunrealistic.
Men-torscanhelpwriterstofocusonwhattheyhaveachievedsimplybyaskingthemandpointingouttheextenttowhichtheyhaveachievedthegoalstheysetthemselves.
Mentorscanalsosupportwriterswhoaremembersofawriters'group,thesubjectofthenextchapter.
weeklyemailcontactwithwriters;occasionalone-to-onediscussionsasrequired;occasionaldiscussionswithsub-groupsoftwotofourwriters.
Ifappropriateandwithpermission:thementorcanloginteractionswithwritersinordertoprovidetrackingdata,inadditiontonaldata,forevaluationoftheprogramme.
TimeThetimecommitmentformentorsisapproximately15minutesperweek,or30minuteseverytwoweeks,perwriter.
106AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMMEEvaluationsEvenwhenparticipantswereinterviewedoneyearormoreaftercompletingtheprogramme,theirfeedbacktendstobeverypositive.
Evaluationsandndingsfromsmall-scaleevaluationstudiessuggestthatthosewhocompletetheprogrammeexperienceanumberofbenetsinbehavioural,cognitiveandaffectivedomains:Newdiscussions'hearingothers'experiencesofandviewpointsonwriting''givingamorecollectivereferencepoint''reassuring.
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inthatithasopenedupthetopicanddispelledsomeofthetaboosaboutthewholeprocess''feltlessisolated''letmeseethatI'mnotalone,neitheramIveryfarbehind'.
Newpriorities'theWfP[writingforpublication]programmehasputtheprocessofwritingontoaformalagenda''hadtoallocatetimetoattendmeetings'Newbehaviours'changesinparticipants'behaviouroverthecourse''writingin"bite-sizedchunks"''settingasidetimeforwriting''muchmoreorganizedandmanagedprocess'Newattitudes'morepositiveinmyattitudetowriting'Newknowledge'analysingpublishedwriting'Newculture'Willhelpconsolidatearesearchculture'ThisisnottosaythatallWfPprogrammesproducedalltheseimpactsforallparticipants;however,theseresponses,togetherwiththefactthateventhoseEVALUATIONS107whoattendedonlypartofaWfPprogrammewereequallypositive,suggeststhattheprogrammecanbeofbenet.
Moreover,thedurationoftheWfPprogrammemeansthatparticipantswereabletocommentonchangesthatoccurredintheirwritingbefore–sometimeswellbefore–theprogrammeended.
Inaddition,thereisevidencethatoutputincreases:'Itisdifculttoassess,butmyguessis[theWfPprogrammehas]doubledoutput',washowoneresearchcoordinatorwhohadparticipatedintheprogrammemeasureditsimpacton'hard'output.
WhiletheWfPprogrammehasmanypotentiallybenecialeffects,thereisevidencethatitonlytakeswriterssofar.
Forthedurationoftheprogramme,therecurringproblemofmakingwritingtimewassolvedforparticipatingwriters.
Whentheprogrammeended,however,writershadtondnewwaystomakeregularwritingtimeslots.
Inordertobecomeregularwriters,theyhadtoestablishawritingschedule:'Byallocatingtowritingaspecicdailyorweeklytimeslot,ascheduleensuresthatyouwillgettodoitonaregularbasis'(Zerubavel,1999:5).
Anidealwayofconsolidatingtheeffectsoftheprogrammeandsolvingthe'time'problemisawriters'group–thesubjectofthenextchapter.
Inmanyways,andformanywriters,awriters'groupprovidestheessentialfollow-onfromaWfPprogramme.
Itmaintainstheacademicwriter'sfocusonprocess,oneofthekeybenetsoftheprogramme:'Thebiggestimpacthasbeenonprocess.
ThefreewritingapproachhasfreedmywritingstyleandIamnowmoreabletowriteatlengthwithoutinterruptionbyotheractivities.
'Moreimportantly,ithelpswriterstomaintainthisfocusontheirwritingprocesses,whenthefocusofotherinitiativesissooftenexclusivelyonthenishedproduct.
ChecklistThinkaboutwhatthestagesinyourwritingprocessareorcouldbe.
Decideonyourwritinggoal–ifit'swritingapaper,chooseajournal.
Setupaseriesofmeetingsoversixmonthswithagroupofotherwriters.
Makeitaformalprogramme:put'meetings'inyourdiaryandbookaroom.
Writewhenyoumeet–don'tjusttalkaboutwriting.
Considerndingafacilitatortoprovidenewstrategiesandinformation.
Considerprosandconsofwriting'buddies'–fordiscussionsandfeedback.
108AWRITINGFORPUBLICATIONPROGRAMME7Writers'groupsIntroductionThepurposeofwriters'groupsHowdoesawriters'groupworkMakingtimetowriteProviding'pre-peerreview'TakingthestingoutofpeerreviewChecklistforwriters'groupsIntroductionThischapterdescribeshowawriters'groupcanhelpacademicsalreadyengagedinwritingforpublicationtodevelopproductivestrategiesandcon-tinuetogeneratepublishedoutputs.
Itdoesthisintwoways:rstly,byapply-ingpeerreviewintheearlierstagesofwritingand,secondly,bysubjectingtheprocess–notjusttheproduct–ofacademicwritingtotherigourofpeerreview.
Alongwiththisrigour,itmustbeemphasizedthatparticipatingaca-demicsreportthatawriters'groupisoneofthemostcollegialenvironmentsthattheyhaveexperienced.
Thecontentsofthischapterareunderpinnedbyourexperienceofrunningandparticipatingindifferenttypesofwriters'groupsinuniversitiesandotherinstitutionsinseveralcountriesovermorethanadecade.
Fromtheirdiscus-sionsandevaluations,weextractedprinciplesofgoodpracticeandidentieddifcultiesacademicssaytheyfaceinachievingit.
Ongoing,activespeculationaboutacademicwritingmaybeasensibleapproachforacademicstotake,particularlythosewhoarestilldevelopingtheirskillsinthisarea.
Moreover,likethewritingforpublicationprogramme,awriters'groupapproachisnotforeveryone,butissuesraisedinwriters'groupdiscussionsandevaluationsoftenshedlightonproblemsacademicwritersfaceandtherangeofindividualsolutionstheynd,sometimesquitequickly,inthewriters'groupcontext.
Inthischapterwepresentprinciplesandpracticesobservedovertime,recurringinwriters'discussions,cuttingacrossdifferenteducationalanddis-ciplinarycultures,andforwhichtherewasevidenceofimmediateand/orlast-ingimpact(MurrayandMacKay,1998;GrantandKnowles,2000;MorssandMurray,2001;LeeandBoud,2003;Moore,2003).
Thepurposeofwriters'groupsWhyshouldacademics'need'awriters'groupWhatisitspurposeThesequestionsareoftenaskedbyacademicswhoalreadyexperience'group'effectsintheirwritingintheirdepartments.
Forexample,insomeacademicdepart-ments,researchersworkingroupstoprogressreadingand/orwriting.
Inthesecontexts,writers'groupmaybeseenasredundant.
However,insomediscip-linesthesebenetsarenotavailable,andforacademicstobenetfromagroupeffect,theymustsetupgroupsthemselves,eitherindepartments,orwithcolleaguesinotherdepartments.
Forthosewhoseewritingasanactivityusuallyperformedinsolitude,agroupapproachcanseemstrange.
Academicswhohavenotseenawriters'groupatworkareoftencurioustoknowhowtheycouldwrite'inagroup'.
Manyassumethatitwouldbedistractingtowriteinthesameplaceasotherwriters,andthatfeedbackfromcolleaguesinotherdisciplineswouldhavelittlerelevance.
Mostofall,theyfearthatitwouldbeawasteofoneoftheirmostpreciousresources–time.
Whynotjust'getonwiththewriting',isaquestionaskedofwriters'groupparticipantsbynon-participatingacademics.
Aswiththeotherinterventionswehavedescribedtheremayalsobeafearofbeingstigmatizedassomeonewho'needshelpwithwriting'.
Theremaybeaview–orafearthatsomeonewilltaketheview–thatawriters'groupisaremedialinterventionforthosewhoseworkisnotuptoscratch.
Thereisdebateaboutwhethertheprocesseswedescribeinthischapterarealreadyavailablein'good'academicdepartmentsandperformedby'good'academics.
Weacknowledgethattheseprocessescouldandperhapsshouldbeprovidedin'good'academicdepartments–thoughweknowthat,inmanycases,theyarenot.
Wearelessconcernedwiththedebateaboutwhereandhowwritingskills'should'bedevelopedandmoreconcernedaboutprovidingframeworksforacademicstodeveloptheirwriting.
Thisisthepurposeofawriters'group:notsimplytoincrease'outputs'butalsotondwaystoimprovepractices.
110WRITERS'GROUPSHowdoesawriters'groupworkTherearemanywaystorunwriters'groups,andtheformatprobablyhastobeexibleandresponsive,asdoeseachparticipant,untilyouestablishhowyouallwanttowork,whoiscommittedtowritinginthiswayandsoon.
Sincethebestwaytolearnabouthowawriters'groupworksistotryit,thissectionexplainstheapproachbriey,providingenoughinformationandadvicetogetstarted.
(Formoredetail,seeMurray,2004.
)Onceyouhaveestablishedyourgroup,youcanadapttheapproachtosuityourselves.
Elementsofawriters'groupPrinciplesBasedonourworkwithacademicwriters'groupsoverthepasttenyears,wepropose,asastartingpoint,thattherearethreeunderpinningprinciples:1Writingisasocialactthatbenetsfromdiscussionwithpeers.
2Feedbackcanbehelpfulatdifferentstagesinthewritingprocess.
3Workinginagroupcanmotivatewriterstoinitiateandprogressprojectsandproducesuccessfuloutputs.
Alternatively,youmayidentifydifferentprinciples,oryourgroupmayvalueoneoftheseovertheothers,oryoumaydevelopothersafteryoumeet.
Itmightbeaswelltodiscussthisexplicitlyattheoutset,toseeifyouagree,oragreetodisagree.
Youcoulduseourthreeprinciplesasastartingpointforyourdiscussion.
Note:writers'groupdiffersfromotherformsofgroupworkwherethereisacommongroupgoal.
Unlessyouarewritingcollaboratively,youareinthegrouptoprogressanindividualgoal,andthismayaffectparticipantsdifferently.
ParticipantsAuniversitywriters'groupcanbeaself-selectinggroupofacademics,perhapsfromdifferentdisciplines.
Facilitator/chairThisshouldbesomeonewhocanchairdiscussions,promptgroupmemberstoarticulateviews,movethemonfromdiscussiontowriting,keepdiscussionfocusedonprojectsandpromptaproblem-solvingapproachtowritingbar-riers.
Anyonewhoiswillingtochairyourgroupwilldointherstinstance,HOWDOESAWRITERS'GROUPWORK111oryoumayndthatyour'group'consistsofthreeorfourregulars,hardlyrequiringa'chair'.
Alternatively,intheknowledgethatmanypeergroupsworkwellwithoutchairs,youmaydecidetogoaheadwithoutone,inordernottoputoffstarting.
PracticesWhileitisimportanttobeexibleandresponsiveinmanagingwriters'groupmeetings,ourexperiencesuggeststhattherearethreecoreelements:1Participantsidentifyaspecicwritingprojectfromtheoutset.
2Allmeetingsincludewritingtime,goalsettingandpeerdiscussion.
3Participantsdiscussbothwhattheywriteandhowtheywrite.
Wealertyoutonewparticipants'inclinationsimplytodiscusstheirwritingandtodeferthewritingitself,thusmissingopportunitiestowrite.
Writers'groupmeetingsarelikelytoseempurposefulifwritingisprogressed,thatisactuallyproduced,duringmeetings.
Wereassurenewwritersthatwhilewritingduringmeetingsmayseemoddatrst,itquicklybecomesroutine.
Broadlyspeaking,therearetwotypesofwritingthatyoucanusefullydoinwriters'group:(1)writingaboutwriting,whichactsasafocusingand'warm-up'activityand(2)writingfortheproject,inwhich,forexample,youchooseatopicfromyouroutlineorabstractandwriteasectionofthepaper.
WhatdoyouwriteaboutWritingaboutwriting1Whatisyourwritingproject2Whatstageistheprojectat3Whatisyournextwritingtask4Whatisyourimmediatewritingtask/topicfortoday'smeetingWriting/draftingtheproject1Thepurposeofthissectionisto.
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2Beginwritingasectionofyouroutline.
3Writesentencesthatdenethepurposeofyoursections/sub-sections.
4Writesentencestofollow/explicate/developthese.
Thewriting-about-writingtaskscanbedonein5minutes,whilethewriting-for-the-projecttasksshouldbeallocatedmuchmoretime,forexample30to50minutes.
112WRITERS'GROUPSThesearetheparameters,buteverygroupdevelopsitsownrhythms,goalsandnorms.
Themostimportantthingis,ofcourse,tomakesurethatthegroupfocusesonwriting,stimulatesparticipantstowrite–outlining,draftingorrevising–andhelpsthemtoproducetheirintendedoutputs.
Newgroupscanmonitortheirexperiencesbydiscussingtheseissuesandoutputs,andsuchdiscussionscanbehugelyrevealingandhighlyinstructive.
Theycanalsopro-videvaluablepeerreviewonwriting-in-progress.
Eachgroupcanreectonandlearnfromitsexperiences.
Itisprobablyimportant,therefore,tomaketimetoreviewthegroup'sactivitiesandpartici-pants'perceptionsofitsusefulnessfromtimetotime.
Whateveryourpositioninthedebateabouthowacademicwriterslearntodowhattheydo(HartleyandBranthwaite,1989),wesuggestthatawriters'groupcanprovidecrucialsupportatkeymomentsinyourwritingcareer.
Ourexperiencesuggeststhatawriters'groupsupportsacademicwritingthroughthreemainfunctions:1Makingtimetowrite.
2Providing'pre-peerreview'.
3Takingthestingoutofpeerreview.
Becauseparticipantsinmanygroupsidentiedtheseaskeybenets,wefocusontheminthischapter,withparticularemphasisonthelast:becausenegativepeerreviewcancauseacademicstostopwritingforpublication,thisisthesubjectofthelongestsection.
MakingtimetowriteThefactormostcommonlycitedbyacademicsasareasonfornotwritingis'time'.
Thisproblemisalleviatedbyawriters'groupbecauseitallowsparticipantstoprioritizeandlegitimizewritingtimeduringworkinghours,notjustinpersonaltime.
TimingsMeetingstypicallylastbetween60and90minutesandareheldonceortwiceamonth.
Alternatively,youmightndthatyouhaveaslittleas30minutesorasmuchastwohoursinanygivenweekormonth,andyoumaydecidetovarythetimingtosuit.
Fixingatimeforwriters'groupmeetingscanitselfbetime-consuming.
Ratherthanusinguptimeattheendofmeetingslookingforadate,itmaybequickertosetaregulardayandtime.
MAKINGTIMETOWRITE113Forexample,agroupcouldmeetonFridayafternoons,everytwoweeks,sothatitbecomesroutine.
Inthisway,writers'groupmeetingscometoberegardedlikeotherregularmeetings.
Thishelpswriterstostopmovingwritingtimearoundtomaketimeforothertasks,andstarttondwaysofmovingothertasksaround,soastomaketimeforwriting:'Iamtryingtomoveclassestoallowmetoattendthewriters'groupmeetingonWednesdayandwillconrmbyMonday.
'Thisoptionisnotavailabletoeveryone,butawriters'groupcanhelppartici-pantstoconsidertheiroptions.
Norwasthewriterquotedaboveimmunetotheambivalenceofthedecisionhemade,asherevealedsometimelater:'everyactivitythatisrelatedtoteachingstudentshas,inmymind,ahigherprioritythanthewriting'.
Thesetensionscanberesolvedinwriters'groupdiscussions.
Academicscanchangetheirattitudetotheirwritingandtheirapproachestodoingitinawriters'group.
Forexample,someacademicsstatetheyaretootiredtowriteonaFridayafternoon,yetwehaveknownseveralgroupstorunatthistime,overanum-berofyears,togoodeffect.
Participantsregularlyreportthatwhiletheyarriveattheirwriters'groupfeelingexhaustedanddemoralized,theyleavefeelingenergized.
Oncetheyaremeetingregularlytowriteinthisway,participantsreportthattheyshiftfromndingthemselvestoostretchedandstressedtowritetobeingrelievedwhenwriters'groupmeetingscomearound,or,asoneparticipantputit:'I'mhangingonbymyngernailshere.
Writers'groupistheonlythingthat'skeepingmegoing.
'Thiswriterwasatthatpointintheacademicyearwhenhisteachingloadwasatitsheaviest:withhundredsofscriptstomarkanddozensofmeetingswithstudents,hehadnotimeforwriting.
Fromhisperspective,thewriters'groupnotonly'created'twohours,everytwoweeks,forwriting,italsolethimgosomewaytowardsachievingapersonalpriority–writingforacademicjournals–whilestillmeetingothercommitments.
Withoutenteringintothedebateaboutwhataninabilitytomaketimeforapriorityis'really'about,wecansaythatawriters'groupprovidesnotonlyaforumforwriterstoengagewiththisquestion,butalsoasolutiontotheproblem.
Thisisnottosaythatawriters'groupresolvestime-tablingtensions,butitdoesseemthatgroupeffectshelpwritersshiftthelocusofcontrol:theybegintondwaysofbreakingthe'timebarrier'towriting.
Sinceawriters'groupprovidesshortwritingtimeslots,itallowsparticipantstotrythisnewmode,todiscussitsprosandcons,andtoperceiveitseffectinpractice.
Awriters'groupalsohelpsacademicssetbetterwritinggoalsandexperiencesatisfactionwhentheyachievethem.
Therecurringphenomenonofwritersreportingthattheyhavedone'verylittle'betweengroupmeetings,whentheyhavedonemorethantheysetouttodo,mayindicatethatacademicsaresettingthemselvesunachievablegoals,oritmaytellusthattheyare114WRITERS'GROUPSnotgoodatmeasuringtheirprogressintermsoftheirgoals.
Thisiswhyakeyfunctionofawriters'groupissettinginterimgoals,orsub-goals,ateachmeeting.
Inpractice,writers'groupdiscussionsofteninvolvethe'resetting'ofwritinggoals,asparticipantshelpeachotherestablishfeasiblegoalsandtimeslotsforachievingthem.
Thismaytakemorecondencethannewwritershave.
Italsorequiresparticipantstorepositionwhatseemslikea'failed'goaltoaresetgoal.
Awriters'groupisthereforeaforumwhereacademicslearnaboutgoalsettingforwritingfromeachother,andtheirowngoal-settingstrategies.
Thatthesemustadapt,iftheacademicistomaketimetowrite,ispartoftheworkofthewriters'groupforeachindividual.
Onlybyreviewingyourgoalscanyoulearntheselessons,specictoyourwritingandtotherealcontextsinwhichyouwrite.
Youcanlearnaboutthisfromtheliterature,butactivationandpracticeareneededbeforenewknowledgeaffectsyourwriting.
Youcanreadtheliteratureongoalsettingandimproveyourunderstandingofwritinggoals,butyoucanlearnmuchmorefrommonitoringyourownpractice.
Thegoalsarenotalwaysthesameforeverythingyouwrite.
Forexample,youmayndthatyouwritedifferentpapersindifferentways,andthatthesedifferencesmayhavetodowithhowyoubalanceothertasksatdifferentpointsintheacademicyear.
Alternatively,youmayndthatyoudoallyourbestwritingatthesamepointintheyear,andyourtaskisthentoensurethatyouhavesomeprotectedtimeatthatpoint,yearonyear.
Awriters'grouppromptsyoutotakeagoodlookathowyouusetimeandhowyousetanachievablegoalforthedurationofwriters'groupmeetingsorfortheperiodbetweenmeetings.
Whileintheshorttermawriters'groupAbouttimeKeepanopenmindabouthowtime'should'beusedforwriting.
Articulateyourviewsandpracticeson'writingtime'.
Engagewithotherwriters'viewsandpractices.
Shareandcompareconstructively.
Usebothlongandshortwritingtimeslots.
Writeinwaysthatdon'tinitially'feelright'.
Lookforwaystochangehowyoumakewritingtime.
Learnfromotherwritersinyourgroup.
Findouthowproductivewritersmaketimetowrite.
Makearegularwritingtimeslot.
Usewriters'groupmeetingsasdeadlines.
Articulate,discussandnotechangesinyouruseoftime.
Recordthewriters'grouponyourcurriculumvitaeandannualreview.
MAKINGTIMETOWRITE115helpsyoumaketimetowrite,overthelongertermithelpsyoundadditionalwritingtime.
Providing'pre-peerreview'Whilepeerreviewoccursafteryounishawritingproject,forexample,whenyousubmitapapertoajournal,pre-peerreviewoccursearlier,forexample,whenyouaredevelopingyourpaper,atthedraftingstageandjustbeforesubmission.
Thepurposeofpre-peerreviewistohelpyouanticipatecritiques,strengthenyourpaperandbuildyourcondence:Sowhatofthecondencethatisnecessarytoproduceapaperforpublica-tionHerewehaveaproblemofcommittingideasandviewstopaperandexposingthemtoawideaudience.
Furthermore,thataudiencewillincludepeoplewhohaveextensiveknowledgeofthesubjectofthepaperandmaydisagreewiththeviewsexpressed.
Pre-peerreviewcaneitherbeoralorinwriting,andthetypeofdiscussionitgeneratescanhelpwritersinanumberofdifferentways:Youcanrehearseargumentsandcounter-arguments,helpingeachothertoanticipaterefutationsandstrengthenyourarguments.
Youcandevelopapositiveviewofyourownwriting-in-progress.
Whenacademicstalkaboutthedifcultstagesintheacademicwritingprocess,theyusewordslike'messy','unfocused','clumsy','rough'andeven'cha-otic';inawriters'group,youmaystillusetheseterms,buttheywillhaveamoreprecise,lessemotive,meaning.
Youseethestagesinwritingprocess,andthechallengesthateachpresents.
Youbeginto'smooth'thehard-edgedjudgementsthatacademicsoftenmakeoftheirownwriting,shiftingyourfocusfromthegapsanddecien-ciesinwhatyouhavewrittentothenextrevision.
Awriters'grouphelpsyoureviewyourconceptionofwritingproblems:Therearemanyobstaclestothewritingprocess.
Theseincludeprioritiesofworkandhomelife,inappropriateconditionsforwritingandtheinabilitytogetstarted.
Thegreatestdifcultyformepersonallyisinovercomingtheneedtohavethe.
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paperfullyresearched,plannedandaframeworksetoutpriortostartingtowrite.
Thiswriterexplodesthemyththathavinganoutline–andtheotherstrategieshementions–isthekeytowritingpapers.
Inawriters'group,academicscan116WRITERS'GROUPSvoicetheirviewsonwriting,denewritingproblemsandprompteachothertondsolutions.
Oneyearlater,thiswriterdemonstratedthetypeofcon-ceptualshiftandsignicantbehaviouralchangethatawriters'groupbringsabout:Ihavenowmovedawayfromtheneedforcompletionofresearchpriortowriting.
Writingandresearchareiterative.
Regularwritingisnecessarytodirectthenextpartoftheresearch.
Regularwritingisalsonecessaryasameasureofprogress.
Thisisoneexampleofthekindsofchangethatawriters'grouphelpsacademicstomake.
Whetherthatchangetakesoneyearoronemonthwilldependontheindividualwriterand,perhaps,onthegroup.
Itisnotthepurposeofthischaptertoprescribeonewayforyoutogiveandreceivefeedbackinyourwriters'group.
Youandyourcolleagueswilldevelopacollectionofcommentstomakeatdifferentstages.
Overtime,youwillnoticepatternsinoutputsandfeedback.
Youmaydevelopgroupandindividualrep-ertoiresforfeedbackonwriting-in-progress.
Onceyouunpack,describeandanalysestagesinthewritingprocess,youndoutwhatconstituteseffectivefeedback.
Asastartingpoint,thinkaboutsomebasicbrieng(seealsoChapter3.
)Asforotheraspectsofawriters'group,theseareprocessesthatwendworkwithdifferentgroups,butyoumaydevelopyourown.
Soastohelpyourreadersgetasenseofwhetherornotwhattheysaytoyouisuseful,itisagoodideatohaveabriefdiscussionaftertheyhavegivenyoutheirfeedback.
BriengyourreadersTellthemwhatstageyourwritingisat.
Tellthemwhatfeedbackyou'dlike.
Identifytothemthepartofyourtext(notall)youwantfeedbackon.
GivingfeedbackTrylisteningwithoutinteracting–thusnotcontrollingthediscussion.
Highlightthebestfeaturerst.
PROVIDING'PRE-PEERREVIEW'117Youmay,forexample,thinkthatyourcolleaguedidnotgiveyouthefeed-backyouaskedfor.
Beforeyougoanyfurther,youmightwanttodiscussthat.
Youmayndthattheyarewellawareofthis,andthattheyhadtheirownviewsonwhatisneededinyourwriting,andthis,again,revealsthedifferentunderstandingsofmanyaspectsofwriting.
Thisarticulationofdifferentviewsisoneofthemostinterestingaspectsofawriters'group.
Somewillarguethatthisis'justmoretalk'whenagainyoushould'justgetonwiththewriting'.
Anotherviewisthatsuchdiscussionmakesyouawareofissuesyoumightnothavepreviouslyconsidered.
Itmayalsosaveyouandyourpeerstimeinthefuture.
Ifthefeedbackisconsideredinthisway,yourcolleagueismorelikelytogiveuptimetoreadyourwritingagain.
Thisdiscussionalsoconsolidatesyourcommitmenttoadvancingyourwritingprojectinspecicways,andthemorespecic,theeasieritistomaketimeforthem.
Atsomepointyoumayhavetopromptyourreviewertogiveyoumorerigorousfeedback,toaskharderquestions:'Whatdoyoumeanby.
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''Thereseemstobeabitofajumphere.
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''Howdoesthatrelatetoyourmainpoint''Whereisyourevidencefor.
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'Noteveryacademicwillimmediatelyseehowheorshecangivefeedbackonapaperinanotherdiscipline.
However,cross-disciplinaryfeedbacksessionshaveprovedextremelyproductive.
Forexample,scientistsandsocialscientistsreadingeachother'sworkwillnotbe'intune'witheachother'smethodology,andmaydene'rigour'differently.
Wherethescientistwillnotmakeaclaimwithoutevidenceorreference,asocialscientisthasmorespacetospeculate.
Thisgeneralizationmayseemtoosweeping,anditisnotourintentiontostereotypethedisciplines,buttheexampleistakenfromwriters'discussions.
Thereismeritinworkingininterdisciplinarygroups.
Havingtomakeacaseforyourmethodology,forexample,helpsyoutoarticulateandjustifywhatyoudid,andthisconversationmayfunctionasanother'rehearsal'foryourwriting.
Ontheotherhand,thatrehearsalmaybeverydifferent,DebriengyourreadersIdentifythepoint(s)thatyoufounduseful.
Saywhatyoulearnedfromthefeedback.
Describeanychangesyouwillmake/havemadetoyourwriting.
AnychangesyouwillmakewhenaskingforfeedbacknexttimeAnychangesyourcolleaguewillmakewhengivingyoufeedbackagain118WRITERS'GROUPSexpressedinquitedifferentterms,fromthetermsyouwanttouseinyourpaper.
Nevertheless,wecannotwithcondenceassertthatthiswouldhavenegativeeffects.
Thatitselfwouldbedifculttoevidence,anditmaybemoresensibletoconcludethat,sinceparticipantsinsomewriters'groupshavefoundthisprocessveryhelpful,othersmighttoo.
Thistakesusbacktoourrepeatedinjunctiontoyoutotrythisforyourself,inordertoseehowitworksforyouandyourcolleagues.
Inourgroups,someofthosewhowereinitiallyscepticalabouthowusefulfeedbackfromcolleaguesinotherdisciplinescouldbecametoseeitasmoreusefulthanfeedbackintheirowndisciplines.
Alternatively,itcouldbedamagingifthereisa'languagebarrier'betweenthedisciplines,orifonewriterassumesthesuperiorityofonediscipline,intermsofrigour,forexample,overanother,orifthereisanapparentlackofrespectexpressedabouttheworkthatisthesubjectofthewriting.
Forawriters'grouptowork,theremustbeacultureoftrust,asensethatthegroupiscollegialandfriendly,andaspiritofdebateandintellectualinquiry.
Whenthesefeaturesareinplace,participantscanrelaxinpeerreview,ratherthanndingitintimidating.
Ofcourse,therewillbewriters'groupsthatincludeacademicsfromthesame'family'ofdisciplines.
Inthisinstance,evenwhentherearewidephilosophicaland/ormethodologicalvariations,discussionscancreatestimulatingconnectionsandpotentialsynergies,thusdevelopingtheresearchculture.
Analysisofacademicwriting,asdiscussedinthepreviouschapter,canbeconductedandcontinuedinawriters'group.
Writers'groupdiscussionincreasesourawarenessofstylesandpracticesthatwillhelpustoproducewritingofthehigheststandardregularly.
Pre-peerreviewpreparesyouforpeerreview,whichcanbemoredaunting,challengingandevendestructive.
Ifyouhavebeenthroughseveraldebatesaboutyourwriting-in-progressandhavehadfeedbackfrompeers,thennotonlyshouldthepaperyousubmitbestronger,butyoushouldbepreparedforthekindsofquestionsjournalreviewersaskandquickertoseesolutionstoproblemstheyidentifyinyourwriting.
TakingthestingoutofpeerreviewWedevotespaceinthischaptertothistopicbecauseofthepowerthatreviewshavetomotivateandinhibitacademicwriting:weknowacademicswhostoppedwritingaftertheyreceivednegativeordestructivereviewsfromjournals.
Whiletheremayhavebeenadditionalfactorsatworkinthatdeci-sion,itisreasonabletosaythatpeerreviewcan'sting'andmaybeunfairoruneven:TAKINGTHESTINGOUTOFPEERREVIEW119Refereesarenotalwaysconsistentinwhattheyrecommend.
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Differentrefereeshavedifferentopinions.
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Andthereismuchresearchonthereliabilityandvalidityofthis'peerreview'system.
(Hartley,2005:16)Yet,howevermanyquestionswehaveabouttheconsistency,reliabilityandvalidityofreviewers'comments,wecanlearnfrompeerreviewtoimproveourwriting:thereisevidencethatthereviewprocessraisesthequalityofpapers(Lock,1986;Weller,2001;FletcherandFletcher,2003),andthesoonerweworkouthowreviewscanimproveourwritingthebetter.
Onewayofdoingthisistobringreviewstoawriters'group,inordertoanalysereviewers'commentsandworkouthowtorevisethepaper.
Itcouldbearguedthatifyourresearchisweakandyourwritingispoor,youshouldstopwritingforpublicationandfocusonotheracademicroles.
However,itisthecontentionofthischapterthatdevelopmentandsupportinawriters'groupcanhelpacademicsmakebestuseofpeerreviewstoimprovetheirwriting.
Itcanalsohelpthemovercometheinitialshockandresentmenttheymayfeelandtoshifttheirperspectivefrom'reviewee'to'writer'.
Thissectiondescribeshowwriters'groupscanhelpyouworkthroughandlearnfromeventhemostdestructivereview.
Whilesomereviewers'commentsarenegativetothepointofbeingdestructive,itisimportanttomovebeyondemotionalreactionstonegativereviewsandtoscrutinizeinterpretationsofthem.
Whileinawriters'groupwemayusenegativetermsaboutourwriting-in-progress,itisadifferentmatterwhenotheracademicsusethemtodescribeourwriting.
Inawriters'groupyoucandebateinterpretationsofareviewer'scomments,workoutwheretherevieweriscomingfrom,whichpositionheorsheistakinginthedebateyouhaveenteredinyourpaper,anddiscussdiffer-entwaysofrevisingyourwritinginordertoaccommodatethosedifferentpositions,withoutlosingtheessenceorimpactofwhatyouwanttosay.
Insomecases,thisisanebalancingactthatbenetsfromdetaileddiscussionwithpeers.
Toillustratethesepoints,weanalysethreereviewsreceivedbythreeauthorsinthreedifferentdisciplines.
Therecipientsofthereviewsgranteduspermissiontodoso,butwealtereddetailsinordertopreservetheiranonymity;nordoweseektoidentifythereviewers,andwethereforedonotspecifythejournalsinvolved.
Theseexamplescouldbethesubjectofwriters'groupdiscussion,perhapsfollowedbydiscussionofparticipants'ownreviews.
Aftermanydiscussionswithcolleagues–bothnewandexperiencedwriters–wedecidedtoquoteselectedcommentsfromthereviews,soastoconveytheirfullimpact.
Hadwesummarizedthereviewswewould,atleast,haveremovedsomeoftheirsting,and,atworst,failedtodenesomeofthefeaturesofdestructivereviewsand,moreimportantly,strategiesforcopingwithandactingonthem.
120WRITERS'GROUPSThisisnottosaythatallpeerreviewsarenegative,fortheyarenot;instead,thepurposeofthisdiscussionistoillustratehowmuchexcellentworkcanbeachievedthroughwriters'groupanalysesofcritiques.
Inallthreeexamples,thetermsofthecritiquearehighlightedinbold.
Thetemptation,particularlyfornewwriters,istofocusonthenegativeterms,althoughthese,bythemselves,donotgivethewritermuchinformation:'seriousdoubts.
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verythinatthelevelofsubstance.
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notparticularlyilluminating.
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analysisthatisveryremotefromitssubjectmatter.
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solittlespacelefttosaymuch.
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not.
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particularlyrevealing.
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not.
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makeasubstantialcontribution'Thesetermsdonothelpthewritertodenespecicweaknesses,andsuchcommentsaretoowide-ranging.
Moreover,awriterwhofocusesontheseterms,asmanyseemtodowhentheyrstreceivenegativereviewsorrejec-tions,isnotgoingtobeparticularlymotivated.
'Serious'suggestsmajorweakness,butdoesnotstrikeallwritersasamajorcriticism.
Infact,somewritersconsiderthatitisinevitablethatreviewerswillhavequestionsthatleadto'seriousdoubts'.
Thequestionforthewriterishowtoaddressthesedoubts,whethertheycanbeintegratedinthepaperitself,withoutlosingitsfocus,Peerreview:example1Ihaveseriousdoubtsaboutthesuitabilityofthispapertotheproposedspecialissueof[journaltitle].
Myrstquestioniswhetherthisfallswithinthecat-egoryof[thisarea]atall,evenlooselydened.
Itscentralconcerniswithdiscursivetraditions.
Discourseanalysisisconductedwithinpsychologybutcarriedoutinamannerthataddstoourunderstandingofpsychologicalpro-cesses.
Thisisnotthecasehere.
Signicantly,thebibliographycontainsnopsychologyreferences.
Secondly,evenifthepapercouldbedeemedtobeoneinpoliticalpsychology,itisverythinatthelevelofsubstance.
Thediscussionofthephilosophicalrootsof[thesubject](goingbacktoCicero)isnotwithoutinterest,butitisnotparticularlyilluminatingaboutcontemporary[subject]which–toputitmildly–hasbeenshapedbyrathermorethanaphilosophicaltradition.
Theoverallimpressionisofananalysisthatisveryremotefromitssubjectmatter.
Thirdly,itisnotuntilpage10ofa17pagepaperthatthepapergetstothediscoursesthatareitsmainfocus.
Atthatpointthereissolittlespacelefttosaymuchaboutanyofthem.
Ididnotndthediscursivethemestobeparticularlyrevealing.
Moreconcreteexampleswouldhavehelped.
Idonotthinkthispaperwouldmakeasubstantialcontributiontothespecialissueofthejournal.
TAKINGTHESTINGOUTOFPEERREVIEW121whetherthisshouldoccurearlyinthepaper,toengagewithorevenforestallgrowing'doubts',ornearertheend,toacknowledgethe'debatability'oftheconclusionsdrawnfromthework.
Thisispreciselythefocusofwriters'groupdiscussion,movingwritersfromemotionalreactiontoanalyticalwork,focus-ingonstrengtheningthepaper,whetherthatbepriortoresubmissionorforanewsubmission.
Thewriterwhoreceivedthisreviewremarkedthatwhileithadseemedverynegativeatthetime,'onlookingatitagainafteralongperiod–isnotasawfulasIrememberedittobe'andthenreectedonthatshiftinherperception:Maybethatsayssomethingaboutsensitivityonrstopeningtheletter,andtheneedtoallowabitoftimetoelapsebeforereplying.
Alsodevelopingone'sownwritingskillsandcondence.
IthinkIwouldbemoresanguineabout[this]reviewer'scommentsnowthanIwasatthetime.
Writers'groupdiscussioncanhelpyoumovetothis'sanguine'pointwithoutlettingsomuchtimeelapse.
Itcanhelpyougenerateoptions,asreviserofyourownwriting,andmayhelpyoutomodulateyourwritingsothatyoudonotdrawsomuchrethenexttimeyousubmitapapertoajournal.
Thisisnottosaythatyouhaveto'takethesting'outofyourpaper,playsafeorneverputyourheadabovetheparapet;instead,itmaymeanthatyouentertheexistingdebatebybothaligningyourworkwithothers'anddistinguishingyoursfromtheirs.
Forexample,wehavenoticedthatnewwriterssometimesoverstateeithertheircritiqueofpreviousworkortheirclaimto'contribution'.
Inawriters'group–ifthatwasnotspottedinthe'pre-peerreview'stage–youcandiscussreviewers'commentswiththisinmind.
Indiscussingreviews,youarelikelytodrawupyourownlistofcommonerrors,alongwithstrategiesforavoidingthem.
Withoutawriters'group,youhaveonlyyourownview,perhapswithoneortwocolleagues,whomaynotallocatetimeforsuchin-depthdiscussionandmaynothavebeeninvolvedindiscussionswithyouasyouwroteyourpaper.
Writers'groupdiscussionletsyoundoutaboutreviewsthatothershavereceived,howtheyreactedandhowtheyresponded.
Youndoutthatbothpositiveandnegativereviewingoccursinalldisciplines,andthatyouarecertainlynottherst,orthelast,toreceiveanegativereview.
Interestingly,discussionsofbadreviewsoftenrevealthateminentpeoplereceivethem–andexpectthem.
Whilethisishearsay–intheabsenceofadataset–ithelpstoknowthatitisnotjustyourwritingthatattractsthisresponse.
Thesecondexampleisareviewofabookproposal.
Thereviewrantoseveralpages,butthecommentsselectedherearethosetheauthormarkedastheonesshefoundparticularlydiscouraging.
Criticaltermsaremarkedinboldhereinordertofocusonproblemsidentied.
122WRITERS'GROUPSWhatwasmostupsettingaboutthisreview,whentheauthorrstreadit,wastherepeateduseoftheword'no',whichseemedoverstated,alongwiththeword'fail'.
Ifshehadprovidedliterally'no'evidence,herproposalwouldindeedhavebeenseriouslyweak.
Thestrength,andrepetition,ofnegativesapparentlyignoresthepossibilitythatthereissome,butperhapsnotsuf-cient,useofevidenceinherwriting.
Inaddition,thewords'narrow'and'fail'areequallydamning.
WhatcananauthormakeofthisWhataretheoptionsCollectmoreevidenceandprovideitinwriting.
Makeastrongercasefortheevidencesupplied.
Statethepurposeoflimitingtheevidenceprovided.
Givemoredetailofevidence–perhapsononeaspectonly.
Aligntheargument/proposalwithothers,intermsofevidencesupplied.
Strengthenthecaseforthesufciencyoftheevidencetomakethepoint.
Peerreview:example2Thereisnoevidencethattheassumptions[theauthor]makesabouttheneedsandexperiencesofherstudentaudienceactuallyengagewiththoseofover-seasstudents.
TheauthorcitesnoinformationaboutthecharacteristicsoftheglobalmarketandhowthesecomparewiththeUKonethatsheaimstocaterfor.
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Isuspectitwillbedifculttoaddressadequatelytheneedsofdifferentpost-graduategroupswithinonebook.
Thecurrentproposaldoesnotindicatethat[theauthor]candothisandanewproposalwouldneedtobesubmittedforreview.
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Ihaveseriousconcernsabout[theauthor's]approach.
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Theoutlineandthesamplechapterconrmformethatthebookspeaksfromaverynarrowbaseofexperiencetoaveryparticulargroupof.
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students.
Althoughtheauthorhasclearlyexperienceofpart-timepostgraduatestudyasastudentandcourseadministrator,thisexperiencebaseisverylimited.
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Thereisnoevidencethattheauthorhasanyresearchon[thesubject].
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todrawupontoinformherbook.
Thereisalsonoevidencethattheauthor'sadviceisinformedbyrelevantliterature.
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Thecircumstancesandneedsofdifferentgroupsofpart-timestudentsappeartobecompletelyneglected.
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Theproposalandsamplechapterfailtosatisfymethatthisisabookthatofferssomethingdistinctive.
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TAKINGTHESTINGOUTOFPEERREVIEW123Acknowledgeproblemswithlimitedevidenceandaddressthem.
Pointtowhereevidenceissuppliedelsewhereorbyothers.
Orreplaceitwithamoreprecisetermforwhatyouhave,suchas'indications'Distinguishmoreexplicitlywhatyoucanandcannotevidence.
Offsetweakevidencewithotherstrengths.
Inotherwords,thewriter'soptionsincludestrengtheningthework,thewritingorboth.
Byfocusingontheseissues,writers'groupdiscussiongeneratesawiderangeofoptions,supportsthewriterwhofeelsthattheworkisunderattackand,moreimportantly,savesvaluabletime–thewriterproceedswithrevisionswithouttheneedforanextended'coolingoff'period.
Writers'groupparticipantsarelikelytohavemorethanoneinterpretationofreviewers'commentsandmorethanoneoptionforrevision.
Inthisinstance,analysiscanremovesomeoftheinitial'sting'ofthenegatives.
Althoughthisproposalwasrejected,itneednotbetheendofwritingaboutitssubject–aproposalcanbeadaptedforotherpublishers–aslongastheauthorcannddifferentwaystowriteaboutitand,moreimportantly,cansummonthemotivationtodoso.
Example3mayseem,onrstreading,tobetheexception:howcantheauthortakeanylearningpointsfromthisreviewPeerreview:example3.
.
.
Iwouldbereluctanttosendmystaffto[anevent]organizedbytheauthor,whosewritingskillsareappalling.
.
.
.
TheveryuglyjargonissopervasivethatIhavenotmarkedit.
Thewritingisalsoprolixandrepetitive,andthusthearticleisfartoolong.
Itissolooselyorganizedthatitishard,whengoingbacktothearticle,toknowwheretolookforsomeoftheresultsandcomments.
.
.
.
Butafundamentalweaknessistheclaiminboththeabstractandthebodyofthearticlethattheresearch'providesevidenceofincreasedoutput'Thereisnoevidencethatthe[event]ledtoasubsequentincreasein[activity].
.
.
Idon'tconsiderthatthisarticleshouldbepublished.
Theironyofa[lecturer]producingsuchterribleprosewouldbeembarrassing.
Eveniftheprosewereimproved,andthearticleconsiderablyshortenedandbetterorganized,itisdifculttoseewhatitaddstoourknowledge.
.
.
Inditratherastonishingthatsuchtuitionisrequired–howdidthesestaffgetgoodrstdegreesandthenhigherdegreesIfanyfurtherhelpisrequiredinshapinganarticle,doesnottheheadofthedepartmentprovidethisforjuniorstaff124WRITERS'GROUPSThisexamplewasdiscussedinseveralwriters'groups,wherereactionsrangedfromshock,toexpletive,from'Thisreviewisintemperate'to'Thisissoslack.
.
.
andgauche.
.
.
.
Thelevelofrigourisnotthereinthereviewitself'.
Fortheauthorofthepaper,thisdiscussionwastherapeutic;andwithoutfurtheranalysisthismight,initself,beasufcientargumentforawriters'group.
However,anotherimportantoutcomeofthesediscussionswasthebroaden-ingofperspective:thiswriterwasnotaloneinreceivingthistypeofreview.
Thisisnottheonlytypeofnegativereviewthatacademicsshouldexpecttoreceive,norisittruethatnothingcanbelearnedfromevendestructivereviews.
TypesoffeedbackinnegativereviewsNon-specic,butscathing;scathing,butuseful;damningwithfaintpraise(rejection);redirecting(toanotherjournal);editorial(grammar,punctuation,etc.
);invitingrevisionandresubmission.
Awriters'groupis,ofcourse,nottheonlywaytoprocessnegativefeedback;anypeergroupmayhavesimilarimpact,butthestrengthofawriters'groupisitsfocusongettingpublishedandcontinuingtowrite.
Discussionmovesontohowthewritercanshapethepaperforanotherjournal,forexample,ratherthangettingboggeddownindebatesaboutinjusticeorpower.
Overtime–andperhapsinlesstimethanthewriterwholesnegativereviewsforamonthormore–writers'groupscandevelopabroader,lesspersonalizedperspectiveonnegativereviews,whilerecognizingthatbadreviewsstillsting.
Forexample3,therearelessonsthewritercanlearn:Thewritingreallyis'appalling'.
Claimtocontributionisoverstated.
Thestructureneedswork.
Alternativeviewsonthesubject/workmustbeaddedtothispaper.
LevelsofresponsetopeerreviewEmotionalresponseDepression.
.
.
embarrassment.
.
.
angerAnalyticalresponse'WhatcanIlearnfromthis'Strategicresponse'Don'twasteaword'–ndanotherjournalandrework.
TAKINGTHESTINGOUTOFPEERREVIEW125Therationalefortheworkmustbestronger.
Anothertypeofpaperaboutthisworkwouldbebetter.
Thispapershouldgotoanotherjournal.
Thisanalysisofthreereviewsisintendedtoshowhowtheprocessofsharingnegativereviewsprovidessomeofthekeybenetsofawriters'group.
Itcanquicklydirectyoutothepositionsomewritersonlyreachaftermonths,workingontheirown.
Attheveryleast,throughawriters'groupyoumakeregulartimeforwriting,createregulardiscussionsofyourwritingandgiveandreceivefeedbackonwritingbeforesubmission.
Youcanuseawriters'groupasaforumfortalkingaboutindividualprocesses,processesthatyouareactuallyusing,orplanningtouse.
Suchdiscussionisnotonlytheoretical,butisbasedonactualpractice.
Throughthisindividualization,youcanmakeyourgrouppurposeful,butitalsoraisesthequestionoftherelevanceofonewriter'sdifcultiestootherwritersinthegroup,andthattoo,likeothertopicsaddressedinthischapter,couldbeanimportantsubjectforwriters'groupdiscussion.
Onceyouhavecreatedregulartime,youmaydecidethatyoudonotneedawriters'group,forawhileorforgood,anduseotherstrategies,tacticsandpeopletodevelopasawriterandtomaintainyouroutput.
Awriters'groupcangoonindenitely,aslongasitprovespurposeful,enjoyableandeffective.
Aftersometime,youmayndthatitbecomessomethingelse–perhaps'researchgroup'wouldbeamoreappropriateterm–yettheterm'writers'group'hasthestrengthoffocusingonwriting.
Onceyouarefamiliarwiththeprocessesofawriters'group,youmaydecidetosetupawriters'groupforpostgraduatesorresearchers,sothattheycanfocusonthesiswritingand/orwritingforpublication.
Checklistforwriters'groupsAgreeacommonpurpose:describeyourwritingprojectstoeachother.
Tryworkingwithafacilitator,atleastfortherstfewmeetings.
Beexible:adaptmeetingtimes,agendasandformatstosuitparticipants.
Dosomewritingateachmeeting–don'tjusttalkaboutit.
Youcouldallbeatdifferentstagesinwriting–compareandcontrast.
Discussbarrierstondingwritingtimeanddevelopsolutionstothem.
Discusswriting-in-progressandworkthrough'clunky'stagesofwriting.
Readeachother'swritingatdifferentstages–giveandreceivefeedback.
Bepreparedtodebateeachother'swork.
Relaxandenjoyastimulatingexchange–bepositiveandconstructive.
Don'ttrytodoalloftheseateverymeeting!
126WRITERS'GROUPSAgreeaformatforeachmeeting,butkeepthetalking-writing-talkingsequence.
Agreetoreviewyourexperiencesofthewriters'groupataspeciedmeeting.
Ifit'snotworking,ifyou'renotwriting,moveon.
CHECKLISTFORWRITERS'GROUPS127PartIIIInthisnalsection,wesetoutourideasabouthowyoucanincludewritinginamoreintegratedwayintoyourlife.
Integratingwritingintoyourlifeinwaysthataresatisfyingandsatisfactoryissomethingthatmayrequirenewhabitsandroutines.
Wehavealreadysuggestedhowthesehabitsandroutinescanbeunderstoodandinitiated.
Thesenalchaptersfocusonhowyoucanadoptalonger-term,evenlifelong,approachtoeffectivewriting.
8RedeningacademicwritingpracticesIntroductionRedeningwritingthroughteachingRedeningwritingthroughcollaborationRedeningwritingthroughmentoringandnetworkingRedeningthecompetitivedimensionofacademicwritingRedeningtheacademythroughhealthy,functionalwritingdynamicsChecklistforanorganizationalapproachtosupportingwritingIntroductionAlloftheinterventionsoutlinedinPart2ofthisbookhavebeendesignedinsomewaytohelpacademicsandacademicdeveloperstothinkabouthowtheymightgoaboutwritingdifferentlyand,inparticular,morecollaborativelythantheymightotherwisehaveconsidered.
Wehaveencouragedwriterstothinkaboutusingdifferentmechanismsthanaretypicallyreectiveofstand-ardpracticeusedinacademicsettings.
Inexploringthealternativeroutestoproductive,effectiveacademicwritingwehavehighlightedthatsolitary,unsupportedwriting(whilenottheexperienceofallacademics,someofwhomhavebeeninvolvedinproductiveandsupportivepartnershipsandgroupsfromtheverystartoftheircareers)isarealityformany.
Itisthisrealitythatmakeswritingatleastoccasionallyfeelfraught,grimanddifcult.
Thischaptermakesexplicitthefeaturesthatwethinkshouldaccompanytheacademicwritingprocessinuniversities,featuresthatmighthelpustothinkaboutwaysinwhichwecanworktoredenewritingand,throughthatprocess,tomakesomepositivestepstowardsredeningorreconceptualizingacademia.
Webelievethatbyinstallingsupportiveprinciplesofwritingintoacademicenvironments,allmembersofthelearningcommunitystandtobenet.
Wedonotignorethatacademicwritinghasastronglycompetitivedimension.
Butwealsoarguethatifpeopleadoptanexclusivelycompetitivestancewhenwritinginacademia,theymissoutonsomeofthemostimport-antbenetsthatcanaccruebybeingpartofagenuinelearningcommunity.
Dysfunctionalcompetitionleadstoasituationinwhichafewindividualsbenetfromacademicwriting,sometimesattheexpenseofmanyoftheircolleaguesandstudents.
Functionalcompetitionprevailsinasituationwherewehavegoodrolemodels,willingtosharetheirexpertiseandtoexplorethejourneyfromnovicetoexpertforthebenetofeveryone.
Thecompetitive,individualisticparadoxthatprevailsinmanyuniversitiesisoneinwhichscholarsarebroughttogetherunderthesameinstitutionordisciplinaryumbrella,andthensomehowforcedtoworkapartfromandagainstoneanother.
Thisdynamichasbecomeincreasinglyproblematicineducationalinstitutionsacrosstheglobe.
Successfulwritersbecomemoreandmoreremotefromthelearningcommunitiestheyaresupposedtobeserving,andahighlyindividualistic,competitiveethosprevailsattheexpenseofcommunity,teaching,learning,mentoringanddeveloping.
Wehaveseenexamplesofsettingswherethisisnotthecase,andbelievethatitispossibletocreateanalternativeethos–onethatweexploreinmoredetailinthischapter.
RedeningwritingthroughteachingWritinginuniversitysettingsisapotentiallypowerfulleverforteachingandfordevelopingstudents'voices(Bean,2001).
Themoreawareanacademicisabouthisorherownwritingstruggles,insecurities,strengthsandachieve-ments,thenthemoreofafacilitatorheorshecanbeinhelpingstudentstodevelopthisskillinaself-aware,focusedandeffectiveway.
Usingfreewritingexercises,helpingpeopletobecomeawareofwhatmakeswritinggoodorbad,accordingtowhoserulesandbasedonwhichcriteria,encouragingstudentstoreectuponandtodeveloptheirideasinwriting,arealltoolsthatcanbeusedeffectivelyintheclassroom.
Inparticular,movingawayfromtheideathatwritingissimplythedisplayofideas,informationandfactsisanimportantshift(Elbow,1973).
Writingisaninherentlycreativeprocessinwhichknowledgeandideasarenotjustsharedortransmitted,butgenerated.
Itisthroughtheprocessofwritingthatknowledgecanbedeveloped.
Studentsinhighereducationenvironmentsoftenobservethatintheirlearningexperiences,theyhavefewopportunitiestotesttheirownskillsandtogetfeedbackonhowtheyaredoing.
Thisisespeciallythecaseinsituationswhereresourcesareconstrainedandclasssizesarelarge.
132REDEFININGACADEMICWRITINGPRACTICESEmpoweringstudentstounderstandthebenetsofconstructivecritiqueofoneanother'sworkcreatesasituationinwhichtheseresourceconstraintscangenuinelybetranscended,byinvitingmoreactiveparticipationfromstudentsthemselvesandinvitingthemintotheconversations,skillsdevelopmentarenasanddebatesthatarepotentiallyoneofthemostproductive,creativeactivitiesassociatedwithacademia.
Bygettingstudentsusedtowritingandbyhelpingthemtogaincondenceinandfamiliaritywithvariousformsofwriting,includingtherewritingdynamicthatstudentssooftendread,avoidorignore,youmayndthatyouhaveturnedthekeytothemore'self-directed'learningenvironmentsthathigherandfurthereducationcontextsarepursuing.
SomeideasforteachingthroughwritingManyofthereadersofthisbookhaveprobablyalreadytaughttheirstudentsthroughwriting.
Thesesuggestionsmayextendonorlegitimizesomeoftheteachingtechniquesthatyoualreadyuse.
Whetherthisisthecase,orthefollowingsuggestionsarecompletelynewtoyou,wehavefoundthatthesesimpleapproachescancreateenrichingandengagedlearningenvironments,notjustwithinaspecicclassroombutalsobeyondit.
Atthecentreofthesetechniquesistheideathatcreatingcondentstudentwritersisanaturalextensiontoallofthebenetsassociatedwithcreatingcondentfacultywriters.
Itsupportstheirlearning,setsastrongerfoundationforself-directedlearning,encouragesreectionandhelpswiththedevelopment,articulationandgenerationofideas(Bean,2001;Suchan,2004).
Inaddition,enhancingstudentwritingstrategiesandprocessesissomethingthatstartstoimprovecommunicationandunderstandingbetweenfacultyandstudentsinawaythattranscendstheproblemsthatareoftenassociatedwith'differentworldsinthesameclassroom'(Johnston,2000).
Allofthesebenetssupportsoundpedagogyinanumberofdifferentwaysandservetocreateacommunityofpracticeinwhichthenewestpractitionerslearntosharpenandstructuretheirthinkinginwaysthatcanhelpthemtonavigateacademiamoresuccessfully.
1.
FreewritingexercisesFreewritingisatechniquethathasbeenchampionedbothbywritersandteachersofwritingformanyyears(see,forexample,Elbow,1981andMurray,2004).
Itisatechniquethatcandevelopmoreuencyandcondenceamongyourstudents,canmakewritingamoreroutinehabitinwhichtheyaremorelikelytobepreparedtoengage,andcanprovideinsightsbothtoteachersandstudentsabouteachother'sassumptionsandideas.
Afreewritingexercisecanbeverybrief,embeddedasashortslotwithinastandardlectureortutorial,oritcanformthecentralactivityinanysingleteachingsession.
Itcanlastany-wherefromaboutveminutestoacoupleofhours.
Thebenetsoffreewritinghavebeenexploredearlierinthisbook,butinparticular,forstudents,itREDEFININGWRITINGTHROUGHTEACHING133removestheresponsibilitythattheyoftenfeel(andonethatwehavereferredtofrequently)forperfect,polishedwriting,andencouragesthemtoproducetextinwhatevermodeorsequencetheychoose.
Wehavefoundthatusingfreewritingmakesstudentslessself-consciousabouthowtheyexpressthem-selves,andmorelikelytofocusonrealideas,questionsandinsightsonwhichtheycansubsequentlybuild.
Giventhatstudentslearneffectivelywhentheycanlinkanewandunfami-lartopictosomethingthattheyalreadyknow,ausefulfreewritingexercisemightbebasedonthefollowingprompt:'Forthenext5minutes,writedownyourthoughtsontopicx[topicxcanforexamplebethefocusofyourlecture,atopictheyhaveexpressedinterestinorsomethingthatstudentshavehigh-lighteddifcultieswith].
Thisreectivewritingcanincludeanythingthatyouthinkmightbeassociatedwiththetopic,anythingyouthinkyoumightalreadyknowaboutit,oranythingthatyouthinkyoumightliketoaskaboutitsmeaningorfunction.
'Whatthepromptshoulddoisencouragestudentstodrawontheircurrentframesofreferenceandknowledgebasesbeforetack-lingtheparticulartopicthatyouaregoingtoteachthemabout.
Itprovidesthemwithmomentumbydemonstratingthatevenwhennothavingbeentaughtsomething,theyarestilllikelytohavequestions,ideasandinterestingattitudesaboutatopic.
Itcansetthescenefortheirlearninginamoremotiv-atedandfocusedway,anditcanallowthemtobringsomeoftheirownopinionsandideastobearmoredeliberatelyonalearningsession.
Allofthisismorelikelytocreateanactiveandengagedlearningenvironment.
Itcanbemademoredynamicandmorediscursivebyencouragingstudentstodiscusswhattheyhavewritteninpairsorsmallgroupsbeforefeedingbackandproceedingwithotheraspectsoftheclass.
Ofcourse,youcanchooseyourownpromptsorencouragestudentstoselectfromarangeofwritingpromptoptions.
Whateverformatyouchoose,ifyouurgestudentstowriteintheirownwords,nottoeditwhilewritingandtowriteinfullsentencesratherthanshortbulletpoints,whatyouareinvitingthemtodoistoengageintheirownproliferationofideasandtoarticulatethoseatleastinitiallytothemselves.
Thisisaskillandanorientationthatapplieswritingdirectlytolearningandhelpsstudentstodevelopastrongersenseoftheirownvoiceinadvanceofaformallearningsession.
Thistech-niqueworkswellinmanydifferentkindsoflearnercontextsandcancreateactivelearningorientationsevenamongverylargegroupsoflearners.
Ifyourtopicissomethingyouthinkyourstudentsarelikelytondverylittletowriteaboutspontaneously,thentakeafewstepsback–trytondsomethingthatyouthinkwillbeclosertotheirframesofreferencethatmightbeasteppingstonetotheideasandconceptsyouareabouttotackleinclass.
Ifyouaskyourstudentstowriteaboutsomethingsimplerormoreaccessiblethatisrelatedtoyourtopic,youwillachievetwoimportantpedagogicalgoals:rstly,itwillhelpyoutogetclosertowheretheyare,andsecondly,ithelpsthemtogetclosertowhereyouare.
Askingthemforpermissiontoreadtheirwrittenreectionsortohearwhatitistheyhavewrittenwillfurtherhelp134REDEFININGACADEMICWRITINGPRACTICESyoutogetinsidetheirheadsandprovideyouwithusefulinformationthatcanhelpyoutodesignyourlearningsessionswiththebenetoftheknowledgeororientationstheyhaveshared.
2.
GeneratingcriteriaforgoodwritingTakealistofinstructionsforauthorsfromajournalrelevanttoyourdisciplineandaskstudentsto'translate'theseinstructionsintoalistofcriteriathatmighthelpthemtothinkaboutthefeaturesofwritingtheycouldinstallintotheirownworktomakeitmore'acceptable'ormore'effective'.
Inviteadebateaboutthedifferencebetweenacceptabilityandeffectiveness,andthenhaveyourstudentsgenerateandnegotiateanagreedlistof'featuresofgoodwriting'thatcanactasawritingcharterwhichcanguidethemintheireffortstowritewell,notjustinyourareaofexpertisebutacrossallareasinwhichtheyarerequiredtolearnandwrite.
3.
MinicritiquesUsingthecriteriathattheymayhavedevelopedthemselves(seepoint2above),orcriteriathatyouspecify,askstudentstoreviewandcritiqueeachother'swork.
Guidelinesforreceivingandgivingfeedbackthatwehaveout-linedinChapter3couldbeusefulintheimplementationofthisexercise.
4.
Exploringrhetoric,argument,genreandgrammarHavestudentsanalysedifferentkindsofwriting.
Forexample,selectabstractsorextractsfromdifferentdisciplinesthatpresentideasusingdifferentkindsoflanguage,andaskstudentstoexplorethesedifferenceswithaviewtodevelop-ingagreaterunderstandingofissuesofdisciplinarityinwriting(usingthethemesweexploredinmoredetailinChapter4).
Thisexercisecanbeausefulandpracticalroutetointroducingstudentstophilosophicalideasaboutknowledge(epistemology)andhelpingthemtounderstandrhetoricaldifferencesorthoseassociatedwithwrittendebateandargumentindifferentdisciplines.
Givestudentsasimplelessoningoodgrammar.
Haveadebateabouttheimportanceofgrammar.
Explorethecon-ventionsassociatedwithclear,accuratewritingandencouragethemtoreadtheworkofgrammarenthusiasts(forexample,Truss,2003).
5.
ReectingthroughwritingHavingstudentskeeplearningdiaries,andreectontheirlearningthroughwriting,isanotherusefulwayinwhichteachingthroughwritingcanenhancelearningexperiencesandenvironments.
Studentsdon'talwaysseehowfartheyhavecomeatdifferentstagesintheirlearningjourney.
Writtenreec-tionscanhelpthemtotracetheirlearningandtodenekeymomentsandREDEFININGWRITINGTHROUGHTEACHING135stagesofdevelopment(see,forexample,MooreandMurphy,2005).
AlanClarkoncefamouslynotedthat'adaythatgoesunrecordedisadaythat'sdisappeared'(quotedinBrandreth,2006).
Keepingadiaryisaveryeffectivewayofcapturingimportantinsightsandexperiences,anddoingthesethingsrelatesprobablymostfundamentallytothereasonshumanbeingsstartedtowriteintherstplace.
Bringingthisactivitytoyourstudentsaswellaspractis-ingityourselfcanreframethewritingprocess,makingitmeaningfulandconcreteandagainfeedinguencyandcondenceintheactivityitrequires.
6.
StudentpaperseriesApowerfulactivelearningcontextcanbeachievedbydesigningastudentpaperseriessysteminawaythatmimicstheacademicpublishingprocess.
Itservestoeducatestudentsabouthowacademicpublishingworks,andhelpsthemtoconsidertheissuesofrigour,reviewandeffectivewritinginacademicsettings.
Inordertolaunchastudentpaperseries,youneedtoagreeonatopic,orseriesoftopicsthatyourstudentsshouldbepreparedtowriteabout,totakethemthroughasetofcriteriaforeffectivewrittenpapers,toassignaneditorandteamofreviewersandtohelpthemthroughtheprocessofselection,reviewandfeedbackinawaythatreectstheprocessofjournalwritingandpublishinginacademia.
Thisexercisegenerallygivesrisetorichandcomplexlearning,notjustaboutdisciplinarycontent,butalsoaboutcommunication,themoresubtlerules,routinesandpoliticsofwriting,thearticulationofarguments,theachievementoftasksaccordingtoscheduleddeadlinesandthegivingandreceivingofdifferentkindsoffeedback.
Itcanalsosustainlearningbyenablingbothstudentsandteacherstoengageinacriticalanalysisofthepoliticsofwriting,somethingthatcancreateanotherlayerofinsightandunderstandingamongthestudentsandteacherswhoparticipate.
Notonlydoesthisapproachempowerstudentstogenerateknowledgeandtondeffectivewaysofexpressingit,butitalsoenhancesfacultydevelopmenttoo.
Oneofthebestwaystoimproveandenhanceyourownwritingistoinstallcreativewaysofhelpingotherstodoso.
Insightsprovidedbystudentsaboutthewritingprocess,canbeawonderfulreminderofsomeoftheissueswithwhichfacultythemselves,albeitatanotherlevel,arestruggling.
Insteadofviewingstudentwritingasan'addon'totheirlearningroutines,writingismoreusefullyconductedasacentralandintegralpartoflearningprocessesandroutines.
Themoreyou'teach'writingwithinyourdiscipline,themoreofanexpertyouwillbecomeindeninganddeliveringonthattask.
136REDEFININGACADEMICWRITINGPRACTICESRedeningwritingthroughcollaborationLearningis,andalwayshasbeen,asocialprocess.
Learningtheoristshave,foralongtime,highlightedtheimportanceofinteractionandcollaborationwhenitcomestodevelopingcompetenceinparticulartasks.
Thismaybeparticularlytrueforthetasksassociatedwithacademicwriting.
Creatingcol-laborativelearningenvironmentsofthetypedescribedinPart2ofthisbook,maybeanimportantroutetothepositiveredenitionofacademicwritingtasks,challengesandgoals.
Treatingwritingasacollaborativeratherthanisolatedactissomethingthatisamajorthemeofthisbook.
Mostimport-antly,thisorientationhelpstoovercometheenormousdivisionsthatexistinmanyacademiclives.
Academicactivitiestendtodemandeitherhighlevelsofextroversion(teaching,attendingmeetings,networking,presentingatconfer-encesandsoon)orhighlevelsofintroversion(e.
g.
independentreading,studyandwriting).
Collaboratingonwritingprojectsisnotjustanimportantthingtodowhendifferentpeoplehavedifferentskillstoapplytoacertaintask(thoughitisalsoimportantforthatreason),butbehaviourally,itbridgesthedistancebetweenintrovertedandextrovertedtypeactivitiestypicalofmanyworkcontexts(KrebsHirshandKummerow,1996),ofteninveryeffectiveandpotentiallytransformationalways.
Collaborativewritingdoesnotmeanproducingtexttogether,aprocessthatElbowandBelanoff(2000)pointoutissomethingthat'willdriveyoucrazy'(p.
81).
Rather,usecollaborationasawayofgeneratingideasatthepreparatorystage,ofcritiquingandbuildingontheworkproducedbyindividualsinwaysthatcan'roundout'thewriting,andhelpindividualwriterstoconsidermorefullyissuesofeffectiveness,clarity,structure,evidenceandsoon.
Simplyput,collaborativewritingisawayofbroadeningyourbaseofwritingsupport,ofextendingandsubstantiatingyournetworkandofmakingrealthenotionof'communitiesofpractice'inacademicsettings.
RedeningwritingthroughmentoringandnetworkingMentoringrelationshipsareasignicantkeytocareerdevelopment.
Acrossmanycareers,theexistenceofamentor(orevenmoreeffectively,anetworkofmentors)hasbeenshowntoenhanceawholerangeofwork-relatedfactorssuchasjobsatisfaction,promotionchances,organizationalcommitment,roleclarity,senseofidentityandinterpersonalskills(deJanasz,SullivanandWhit-ing,2003).
Theimportanceofmentorsandnetworksincareerdevelopmentisevenstrongerforpeopleinminoritygroupsatwork(e.
g.
Lankau&Scandura,2002).
General,research-basedadviceaboutmentoringandsupportnetworksREDEFININGWRITINGTHROUGHMENTORINGANDNETWORKING137couldbeusefullyappliedtoourexperienceaswritersinacademia.
Literatureonmentoringsuggested,forexample,thatmentoringandnetworkingrelationshipsgiverisetopositiveresultswhenthoserelationshipsare:Trust-basedand'powerfree',focusingonagenuineinterestinmutuallearning.
Multi-sourceandmulti-level–sothatmentoreesgetadvicefromdifferentpeople,withsometimesverydifferentperspectivesonissuesandproblemsrelatingtotheirwork(Ensher,MurphyandSullivan,2002).
Monitored,nourishedandadaptedovertime.
Researchershavefoundthatitisinadvisabletorelyonlyonasinglesetofmentorsasyouencounterdifferentproblemsandchallenges(VincentandSeymour,1994).
Differentkindsofwritingtasks,requiredifferentsetsofmentors.
Lookingforsyner-giesbetweenpeoplewhocanhelpyouandviceversamaybeanessentialpartofthepre-writingorincubationprocess.
Writingmentorsarepeoplewho:listentoyourideas,readyourworkinprogress,helpyoutodevelopyourwriting,encourageyouwhenyourenergyorself-beliefisagging,criticizeinordertoenhanceandsharpenyourideas,exploremorepossibilitiesthanyoumighthaveconsideredonyourown,expandonanddevelopideassothatyoucandevelopawritingstrategybeyondanyindividualwritingtask,givefeedbackinthevariouswaysthatwehaveoutlinedinChapter3,askquestionsthatmightnothaveoccurredtoyou,remindyouaboutpossibiltiesorideasthatyouhaveforgotten,andcelebrateyourwritingsuccesses.
TrustasanassetinthewritingprocessTrustisnotonlyessentialtoemotionalwell-being,italsoplaysacentralroleinthedevelopmentofgoodrelationshipsamongpeopleatwork.
Nowhereisthismoretruethaninacademicenvironments.
Theliteratureontrustinorganizationsshowsthathigh-trustgroupsaremuchmorelikelytocreatehigh-performanceenvironmentsinalmostallsettings(Morleyetal.
,2004).
Andwe,aswritingdevelopers,havecertainlyseenhowgroupsofpeoplewhotrusteachotheraremorelikelytocreateproductiveandmutuallyassistingwritingpatternsthanthosewhodon't.
Youcancreateconditionsoftrustbydismantlingsomeofthebarriersandboundariesthatareoftenfeaturesoflargebureaucracies.
Simplybyremovingthenormalstructuralbarriers,eventem-porarily(asinwriters'retreatsandwritinggroups),youcanbuildbridgesbetweenpeopleandtheirdisciplinesthatmakeitmorelikelytheywillworktogethertoensurebetterresultsforeveryonethanmightbeachievedwhenpeopleworkbothaloneandapart(LeeandBoud,2003).
Bygivingpeoplepermissiontoadmittheirconcernsabouttheirownwrit-ing,yougrantthesamecouragetolargergroupsofpeopleandcreatean138REDEFININGACADEMICWRITINGPRACTICESenvironmentinwhichpeoplehelpeachothertoovercometheirblocksandweaknessesratherthanconcealingandfrettingaboutthem(GrantandKnowles,2000).
Academicenvironmentscharacterizedbymentorsandwritingnetworkswillworkbetterinpursuitofallacademicgoalsthanthosewithoutsuchsupports.
RedeningthecompetitivedimensionofacademicwritingNomatterhowcollaborativeandsharedourapproachestowritingmightbecome,itissimplynotpossibletoignoretheercelycompetitivedimensionofacademicwriting.
Asitiscurrentlyconstructed,academicwritingisindeedaninherentlycompetitiveprocess.
Wecompeteagainstotherstogetpub-lished,tohaveourideasorndingsheard,tolegitimizeourorientationsamonganincreasinglyinternationalnetworkofscholarsandwriters.
Morespecically,though,wecompetewithoneanotherfortherewardsassociatedwithcareerprogressionandpromotion.
Sometimesthiscanmakeusfeellikeplayingwithourcardsveryclosetoourchestsandcauseustofeelthattherearereasonstoconcealandhideourworkratherthanshareanddiscussitwithothers.
However,webelievethattheseinstinctsarebecominglessandlessrelevant(ifindeedtheyeverdidserveafunction).
Itistheincreasinglyglobalnatureofacademiccompetitionthatmakeslocalsupportandhelpmorerelevantthaneverbefore.
Aspublishingandwritingbecomemoreinternational,bothgivingsupporttoandreceivingitfromourowncolleaguesinourowncontextmakesmoreandmoresense.
Theremaycomeatimewhenyouandacolleaguecompeteforasinglepostorpromotionthatonlyoneofyoucanget,butitisunlikelythatyourcollaborationandmutualsupportwillhavedamagedeitherofyourchances–anditisindeedinnitelypreferablethanthetendencytoconcealandwithdrawfromoneanotheratatimewhenyouneedeachother'shelpmost.
Despitethecompetitiveterrainonwhichweallstandintheacademicworld,itisthoseacademicswhohavedevelopedtrustingnetworksofsupportivecolleaguesthatderivethemostpleasureandpurposefromtheirworkinglives(see,forexample,Anand,GlickandManz,2002).
Itisworthremember-ingthiswhenyou'reconsideringtheideasandinterventionsthatwehaveexploredinPartIIofthisbook.
Aswesaidattheverybeginning,what,howandforwhomyouwritecanhaveanenormousimpactonyourownindividualcareertrajectorywithinacademia.
Itisinrecognizingthatcompetitiverealitythatpeopleoftenwith-drawfromdialoguewithothersabouttheirwritinggoalsandstrategies.
Weadviseyoutodotheopposite.
AcollaborativecompetitionrisesallboatsREDEFININGTHECOMPETITIVEDIMENSIONOFACADEMICWRITING139whereasindividualisticandsometimesdysfunctionalcompetitioncreatesunhealthydynamicsthatunderminethespiritandpurposeofeducationandofacademia.
Redeningtheacademythroughhealthy,functionalwritingdynamicsGiventhatwritingisusuallyarelevantandimportantworkgoalforalmostallacademics,theachievementofwritinggoalsislikelytocreatehealthierandmoreemotionallypositiveworkdynamics(seeforexampleHarris,DanielsandBriner,2003).
Bycreatingsupportivenormsforacademicwriting,wecanenhancetheentireacademyinfocusedandeffectiveways.
Theemotionalchallengesthatpeoplefacewhenattemptingtobecomecondent,recognized,legitimatescholarsintheireldhavestartedtobedocumentedinliteratureonwritingingeneral(see,forexample,Holkeboer,1986;Freidman,1993)andonliteraturerelatedtoacademicpractice.
Recognizingtheemotionalaswellasthecognitiverequirementsofacademicwritingiscentraltotheworkbothofindividualsandtheirinstitutions,andindoingthis,itmaybepossibletoredeneuniversitiesandotherhighereducationinstitutionsinmuchmorepositiveandsynergisticways.
Writingisaconcreteanddemonstratableactivitythatcan,ifconductedeffectivelyandwithself-awareness,leadtoimprovementsinteaching,research,collaborativelearningandscholarlydialogue.
Itisintheinterestsofourstudents,ourcolleagues,ourinstitutionsandoursocietiesthatapproachestoacademicwritingbecomemoredemocratic,moreaccessible,moresupportedandmorenourished.
ToputitinthewordsofLeeandBoud:Thecontemporarychallengeforacademicleadersisincreasinglytobringacademicsintoproductiverelationshipswitheachother,toidentifyandsupportfundamentalvaluesandactivities,includingresearch.
(LeeandBoud,2003:187)CreatingculturesthatsupportpositiveandcollaborativeacademicwritingHofstede(1982,1991)hasshownhowanorganizationalculturecanbeunder-stoodbyexaminingheroes,rituals,symbolsandvalues.
Wehaveseenhowacademicculturescanbechangedandenhancedbyanurturingorientationtoacademicwriting.
140REDEFININGACADEMICWRITINGPRACTICESHeroesInsteadofjustvalorizingindependentresearcherswhostay(orarekept)atadistancefromstudentsandnovices,universitiesneedtovalorizethoseexpertswhoarepreparedtosharetheirstruggleswithresearchandwritingasmuchastheydisplaytheirtriumphs.
Exploringtheblocks,barriers,conundrumsandlearningobstaclesthatarepartofeveryone'swritingexperiencescanhelpindi-vidualsandgroupstomakeenormousleapsmorequicklyinacademia.
Weneedmorereective,andmorehumble,heroes–itisthroughthiskindofleadershipthatnewlearners,studentsandnovicewritersdevelopthecouragetousetheirownintellectinambitiousandcreativeways.
Inaddition,supportingpeopleormechanismsthatactasfacilitatorsofwritingwithinacademicenvironmentswillhelptogenerateamorepositivewritingethosamonggroupsofacademics.
SymbolsSuchsupportcanbesustainedandreinforcedthroughtheuseofsymbolsandsignalswithinuniversityandotherhighereducationalsettings.
Signsondoorsthatsay'writers'groupinprogress',thecordoningoffofwritingcornersandspacesinvisibleandwell-resourcedpartsofthephysicallearningbuildingstarttotransmitamessagethatwritingiswhatwedo,bothapartandtogether;andsuchspaces,ifwelldesignedandwelcoming,invitepeopletojoinintheprocess.
Ifyourinstitutionwantstosendamessagethatthewritingprocessisimportantforlearning,knowledgedevelopmentandscholarship,itmightalsodisplaypicturesandsymbolsofgreatwritersbothcreativeandacademic,pro-videfacultywithessentialwritingtoolsoratleasthelptosubsidizetheirpur-chase,andshareinterestingtechniquesandstrategiesthatothershaveused.
Organizationalsymbolsareeverywhere,andtheyhaveapowerfuleffectonthepsycheofaninstitution.
Writingenvironmentsareenrichediftheyincorporatewritersinresidence,scribesorwritingfacilitatorswhocanhelptheacademiccommunitytotranslategoodideasintoarhetoricwithwhichtheymaynotyetbefamiliar.
Theexistenceofwritingcentrescanalsohelpbothfacultyandstudentstodevelopandenhancetheirwriting.
Allofthese(aswellasprovidingsubstantialandpracticalhelp)willworksymbolicallytounderlinethatthewritingprocessisimportantandvalued,nourishedandchampioned.
Itisinvaluingtheprocess,aswellastheproduct,thatwecanreapthebenetsofwritingforallareasoflearningandscholarship.
WritingritualsTherhythmsandritualsofacademiclifeareanotherwayofcreating,sustain-ingandreinforcingpositive,collaborativewritingroutines.
Traditionally,uni-versitiesrewardwritingbyexaminingsomeone'sCVduringselectionandpromotiondecisions.
Whilethismighthaverationalwisdomononelevel,itdoeslittletocreateasharedunderstandingofthedifferentwritingjourneys,REDEFININGTHEACADEMYTHROUGHHEALTHY,FUNCTIONALWRITINGDYNAMICS141successes,andachievementsthatcolleagueshavenavigated.
Positivewritingritualstocreateagreatersharedunderstandingofwhattheprocessinvolvescouldinclude:writers'meetingsforsharing,updatinganddevelopingwork;regularwriters'retreatsliketheonedescribedinChapter5;writers'prizesadministeredregularlyandwithclearcriteriaforshortlistingandselectingwinners;writing-relatedcelebrationsinwhichkeyachievementsbyeitherindividualsorgroupsareendorsedandrecognized.
Alloftheseinterventions(orevensomeofthem)canenhancethevaluesofacademicpracticeinwaysthatgetclosertotheessenceandpurposeofhighereducation.
Byintroducing,supportingandrewardingvaluesthatsupportwrit-ingthroughcollaborationanddialogue,institutionscommunicateanimport-antmessage:thatsharingyourwritingactivitiesandpracticesisimportant,thatbeingandhavingmentorsmakesadifference,andthattheprocessofwritingisapositive,creativeandcelebratedone.
Webelievethatthesevaluescancreatemuchmorepositiveandhealthywritingdynamicsinawholerangeofacademicenvironments.
ChecklistforanorganizationalapproachtosupportingwritingCreatinghealthyandfunctionalwritingdynamicsinhighereducationmeanscreatingorganizationalculturesthat:Value,cherishandnourishthewritingprocessaswellasthewritingoutput.
Haveabuilt-inorganizationalnormsupportingthediscussionandenhancementofearlywritingdrafts(suchaswritingclinics,scheduledpeer-supportedinteractions,aswellasactivitiesandrewardsthatvaluethisnorm).
Haveabuilt-intoleranceforwriting'failures'–recognizingthat'rejected'workcanbebuildingblocksforenhancingwriting,notshamefultesti-monialsofinadequacy.
Subjecttheprocessofwritingtoanalysisandreectionbothforstudentsandtheirteachers.
Recognizethatwritingissomethingthatcancreate,notjustdisplay,know-ledge–therebybridgingthegapbetweentheteachingandresearchfunc-tionswithinuniversityandotherhighereducationcontexts(thisideawillbedevelopedfurtherinChapter10).
Recognizethecompetitiveelementofwriting,butnotattheexpenseofcollaborativeprocessesthathavebeenproventoenhanceoverallwritingnormsandpatternsamonggroupsofacademics.
142REDEFININGACADEMICWRITINGPRACTICES9IntegratingwritingintoyourlifeMotivationtowriteBehaviourchangeAn'emailtrail'IntegratingyourwritingChecklistIfyoudon'thaveaprogramme,youhavetoinventaprogramme,andpeopleshouldbuildthatintotheirlives.
Thisquotationwasprovidedbyawritingmentorwhohadcompletedauni-versitywritingforpublicationprogrammeandwasreectingonitsimplica-tionsbothforhimself,asawriter,andforotherwritersinthedepartment.
Whetherthereis,orwas,orneverhasbeenawritingprogrammeorwriters'retreatinyourdepartmentorinstitution,onlyyoucangenuinelybuildwritingintoyourlife.
Thischapterdescribesaprocessthatweargueislikelytosupportsustainedwritingactivityoverthelongterm.
Thisprocesscanincreasetheimpactofotherinitiatives.
Academicsdonothavetorelyonaspecicprogramme,butcandevelopwhatonewritingmentorcalleda'rollingprocess'.
Thisisonewayforyoutoputwriting'highontheagenda'inawaythatissustainableinthecontextofyourownprofessionalandpersonallife.
Thischapterhasrelevanceforthosewhohavenotparticipatedinanytypeofwritingprogramme.
Oneapproachistodevelopawritingschedule:'Schedulinghelpsustointegrateourwritingmuchmoreeffectivelyintotherestofourlife'(Zerubavel,1999:5).
Yetisthesolutiontotheproblemofintegratinganactivityintoourlivesassimpleas'scheduling'itIfitweresimple,surelywritingscheduleswouldroutinelybeinplaceindepartmentsSurelyacademicsknowhowtoscheduletheirwork,soastomaketimeforwriting,asforanyotheractivityTheprinciplesofschedulingare,afterall,relativelystraightforward,yetacademicsacknowledgethatcreatingawritingscheduleandputtingitintoactionaretwoseparate,anddifcult,processes.
Whatdoesnotappeartobestraightforward,amongwriterswetalkto,isthechangeprocessrequiredforacademicstoprioritizetheirwriting.
Thissuggeststhattheintentiontowriteaspecicpieceorgenerallytopublishmore–andincreasedknowledgeabouthowtogoaboutit–maynotbesufcient.
Althoughintentionisclearlyanimportantfactor,changemustoccurforthatintentiontoberealized.
Change,andmoreparticularlyhowwriterscansustainit,isthethemeofthischapter.
Evidenceforthismaybefoundinacademics'reportsthatdevelopmentinitiativesandschedulesactedasafocusforfurtherchange.
Forexample,thewritingforpublicationprogrammeledoneacademictotherealizationthatifhecouldmanagehistimedifferently,outputwouldfollow:'Writingtimeisalreadythere.
Ijusthavetomanageitbetter.
'Hereferredtochangeshewouldhavetomaketohiswritingprocess.
Thistypicalexamplesuggeststhat'time'isnotreallytheproblem;changinghowweusetimeisthechallenge.
Ifyouwanttomaketimeforwriting,youmayhavetochange,acomplexprocessthatrequiresanalysisandreectiononotherdimensionsofyourprofessionalandpersonalcontexts.
Again,someacademicswonderwhythisisnotmorestraightforward.
Perhapsitisbecauseinwritingprogrammes,whereyouadvanceyourwritingbypractisingcertainstrategies,theendofaprogrammecomesasatransitionalmoment.
Thisiswhenyoustartapplyingprocesseslearnedinoneenvironment–awritingforpublicationpro-gramme,forexample–inanothercontext–youracademicdepartment,forexample.
Thedifcultymaylieinthefactthatacademicswho'retreated'fromthecontextinwhichtheywerestrugglingtowriteinorderto'advance'theirwriting,thenhavetoforeground,quitedeliberately,processestheylearnedintheprogrammeinthecontextoftheirprofessionalandpersonallives.
Inthecontextofacademicwriting,acognitiveapproach,suchasprovidinginformationaboutplanningandschedulingofwriting,forexample,willonlytakewriterssofar.
Foracademicstochangetheirwritingpracticesrequiresmodicationonanumberoflevels.
Integratingwritingintoyourliferequiresyoutoreviewandadaptnotjustprogrammesandactivities,butyourvaluesandbeliefsaboutwriting.
Wesuggestthatasensiblestrategyistotakeatriedandtestedapproachfromanotherarea–healthpromotion–andadaptitforacademicwriting.
Thestrengthofthisprocessformanagingchangeinhealth-relatedbehaviour–suchastakingupexerciseorgivingupsmoking,forexample–isthatitengagesallaspectsofchange:cognitive,behaviouralandpsychosocial.
Havingtriedthisapproachwithacademicwriters,wesuggestthatyouuseittointegratewritingintoyourlife.
144INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFEMotivationtowriteInordertopreparetointegratewritingintoyourlife,youhavetolookatyourmotivationandweighyourmotivationtowriteagainstyourmotivationtoperform,andprioritize,otheractivities.
Balancingcompetingpriorities,andthedifcultyofprotectingwritingtime,isarecurringissueinwriters'discussions.
If,asacademicsrecognize,thisisnotsimplyaproblemof'time',butlinkedtofactorsthatshapeourmotivation,thenitissurelyimportantthatyouconsidertheseissuesanddevelopastrat-egyforworkingonthem.
Thiswill,ofcourse,dependonyourreadinesstoengageinachangeprocess.
Whileyourimmediateaimmaybe,forexample,tocompleteonepieceofwriting,the'biggerpicture'isaboutproducingarangeofwrittenoutputsoverthelongterm.
Inaddition,motivationmayoscillateovertheyears,andyouhavetobeskilledatmanagingthehighsandlowsofwritingdiscussedinearlierchaptersofthisbook.
Theliteraturetellsusthattherearemanywaystoimproveacademicwritingpracticesandoutputs.
However,ifyouaretolearnaboutthesewell-establishedstrategiesand,induecourse,adoptthem,youmusthave,ordevelop,astrongmotivationtowrite.
Thismayseemillogical;surelyallacademicsaremotivatedtowriteforpub-licationHowever,theexternalrewardsassociatedwithacademicwritingarenotautomatic,resultsofwritingeffortsarenotimmediateanddedicationtowritingdoesnotnecessarilyguaranteedesiredoutcomes(suchaspublication,promotionorenhancedacademicprole).
Thissuggeststhatother'bridges'betweenwritinganditsoutputsmayhavetobeunderstood,valuedandcon-structedbytheindividualwriter.
Theinitiationandmaintenanceofproduct-ivewritingbehavioursmayrequireotherfactorstobeinplaceforthebehaviourtobecomeroutineinyourlife.
Inaddition,researchsuggeststhatnotallacademicspractisewritingbehavioursthatarelikelytoleadtopublication(Boice,1987).
Discoveringandmaintainingproductivewritinghabitsisnotastraightforwardprocessforall.
Furthermore,researchassessmentexercisesindicatethatnotallacademicsareabletopublishtothesamelevel.
Eveninpre-researchassessmentdays,itisdocumentedthatproductivitywaslimitedtoafewacademics:'Mostpapersareproducedbyfewacademicstaffand.
.
.
manyfacultyproducelittleornothing'(Ramsden,1994:207).
Theextenttowhichpublicationdependsonwritingskillsalone–anargu-mentthatwould,inanyevent,bedifculttosustain–isnotthesubjectofthischapter.
Instead,thefocusisonthosewhowanttowrite,areengagedinresearch,butrecognizethattheycouldimprovetheirpublishedoutput.
Inaddition,wesuggestthatitistimelytoexploretheimportantrelationshipbetweenmotivationandtheuseofeffectivewritingstrategies.
ThismightMOTIVATIONTOWRITE145begintoaddtoyourunderstandingofhowwritingofthehigheststandardisproduced,andinformationgatheredcould,inturn,behelpfulinthedevel-opmentofnoviceresearchers.
Forexample,insomeclinicalsubjects,itisimportantthatbestpracticebecommunicatedasquicklyandaswidelyaspossible,andthatndingsaretestedinthepeerreviewprocess.
Itisnotthepurposeofthischaptertodebatethequestionsofwhetherornotacademicsalreadyhavetheprerequisiteintellectualacuity,writingskillsandqualityofresearchtowriteabout.
Instead,theaimistofocusonbehavioursthatarelikelytoleadtowritingforpublicoutput.
Thisisnottosaythatacuity,skillsandresearcharenotimportant;rather,itistoexploretheextenttowhichwritingbehaviourscanhelpyoutorealizeyourpotentialinacademicwriting.
BehaviourchangeThereisawell-developedliteratureonbehaviourchangeinthehealthprofessions,relatedto,forexample,healthpromotion,wheretheaimistoenablepeopletoadopthealthybehavioursintheinterestsoftheirownhealth.
Itiswellknownthatsuchbehaviourchange,forexamplesmokingcessationorexerciseadoption,iscomplexandcanbeextremelydifcult.
However,healthprofessionalshavefoundthataddressingthebeliefsandvaluesthatunderpinmotivationisaneffectivewayofhelpingpeoplechangetheirbehaviours.
Theaimsofbehaviourchangeinrelationtoacademicwritingmaybedenedas:Toinitiateandsustainbeliefsandbehavioursthatsupportwriting.
Todevelopastrategythatyoucansustainoverthelongterm.
Toensurethatyouhavesupportforchangesyoumakeinyourlife.
Thebehaviourchangeprocessthathasbeenadaptedfromthehealthprofes-sionalcontextforacademicwritingconsistsofsevensteps:1Assessingyourreadinesstochange.
2Usingdecisionalbalance.
3Usingawritingconsultation.
4Identifyingbarrierstowritingandinventingstrategiesforovercomingthem.
5Settingrealisticgoals.
6Relapseprevention.
7Actionplanning.
146INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFEIthasbeenknownforsomeconsiderabletimethatsustainingaspecicbehaviourrequiresmorethanexistingornewknowledgeofit(Bandura,1977).
Inaddition,behaviourchangebringswithittheriskoflapseorrelapsetotheoriginalbehaviour.
Themodelwehaveadaptedfocusesona'cycle'ofchangeinrelationtobehaviour.
Itidentiestheneedforpeopletoengagewiththebeliefsthatunderpintheirbehavioursandtoaccesssupportandstrategiestomaintaintheirnewbehaviour.
This,inturn,maintainsandincreasestheircondenceintheirabilitytochange.
1.
AssessingyourreadinesstochangeWeadaptedthe'stagesofchange'modelforacademicwriting.
Youcanusethismodeltoestablishwhereyouareinthechangeprocess.
Thinkaboutwhereyouareonthefollowingscale.
WhichofthesesoundsmostlikeyouatthistimeAssumingthatsinceyouarereadingthisbook,youhaveanintentiontowrite,youmayndthatthersttwostages–'pre-contemplation'and'contemplation'–donotapplytoyou.
Alternatively,theremaybetimeswhenyouknowthatyouwillnotbeabletowrite,and,forthatperiod,youmayplaceyourselfatstageone,'pre-contemplation'.
Itislikelythatindividualwritersareatdifferentstagesofchange.
Theaimhereisnottothinkaboutdevelopingoneprogrammeorscheduleforall;norisitamatterofndingonesolutionforallwriters.
Thisstepisnotsimplyaboutstatingintention,butistherststepinthechangeprocess.
Thosewhostopatthispointandpromisethemselvesthattheywillactontheirintentioninwaysthattheyhaveinthepast,mayormaynotintegratewritingintotheirlives.
Moreover,anindividual'ssenseofself-efcacyincreaseswitheachforwardmovementinastageofchange.
Forfurtherchangestooccur,otherstrategieswillneedtobeinplace.
Withinthismodelpeopleoftenmovebetweenstages,anditisnormalforpeopletolapseandrelapsefromthedifferentstages.
Foracademicwriterstheaimistomovetowardsandstayinthe'maintenance'stage.
ThismodelStagesofchangePre-contemplation'Ihavenointentionofwritinginthenext6months'Contemplation'Iamthinkingaboutincreasingmywriting'Preparation'Idosomewriting,butnotenough'Action'Ihavebeenwriting,butonlyinthelast3–6months'Maintenance'Ihavebeenregularlywritinginthelast6–12months'(AdaptedfromMarcusandSimkin,1994)BEHAVIOURCHANGE147providesthesupportiveframeworktohelpyoumoveinthedesireddirectionofchange,andtoidentifythetimesatwhichyouaremostlikelytolapseorrelapseinto'non-writing'.
2.
UsingdecisionalbalanceUsingdecisionalbalancemeanscomparingtheperceivedcostsandbenetsofwriting.
Onceyouhaveidentiedthestageofchangethatyouareat,adecisionalbalancehelpsyoutoweighuptheprosandconsofwriting,thushelpingtoreinforcethebenetsandadvantagesofwriting.
Forthisstep,intwocolumnslistthebenetstoyouofwritingandthedrawbacks,foryou,ofnotwriting.
Thissteppromptsyoutoexplorethebeliefsandvaluesthatunderpinyourbehaviourinrelationtoacademicwriting.
Forexample,herearethebenetsanddrawbacksidentiedbyoneacademicwriter.
Itmaybemoreusefultomakethisbalanceoftheprosandconsofacademicwritingthesubjectofpeerdiscussion,andhereagainwecandrawonanestablishedmodelthatisbackedupbyawell-developedliterature,includingabodyofempiricalresearch.
3.
UsingawritingconsultationLoughlanandMutrie(1995)developedaone-to-oneMotivationalConsult-ationProcess(MCP)asaprocedureforpromotingactivityandexercise.
Thisconsultationusesabriefinterviewandnegotiationtofacilitateandsupportapersontochangeormaintainbehaviour(MillerandRollnick,2002).
Thereisevidencethatthistypeofconsultationhasanimpactonbehaviourchange(Hughes,KirkandMacIntyre,2002;Kirk,MutrieandFisher,2004).
TherelevanceoftheMCPtoothercontexts,andotherbehaviours,hasbeenestablished.
ItwasrstadaptedforuseinthecontextofacademicwritingattheUniversityofLimerickWriters'retreatin2001(Moore,2003),whereitwasappliedintheformofa'writingconsultation'.
Forawritingconsultationyouworkwithacolleaguewhoispreparedtoactasconsultant.
Theconsultant'sroleistohelpyoutobothidentifyissuesandDecisionalbalanceBenetswhenyouwriteDrawbackswhenyoudonotSatisfactionFeellikeafailureCVproleMisssubmissiondateGetapaperinforconferenceMaygetagrant148INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFEplanprocessesthatarecentraltothesuccessofyourwritingbehaviour.
Thefollowingarekeyfeaturesfortheconsultantaimingtodevelopanempatheticrelationshipwithyouforthewritingconsultation.
(ThesecouldalsobehelpfulforthegeneralfeedbacksessionsmentionedinChapter3.
)Youcanprobablythinkofcolleagueswhowouldbewillingtoworkwithyouthroughthisprocessandcolleagueswhowouldnot.
Havingsaidthat,youmaygetitwrong–youmayndthatyourchosenpeer,whileeffectiveinothermodes,isnotasuitablepartnerforthisprocess.
Theremaybelessonsyoucanlearnfromthisexperience,butthemainpointistokeeplookinguntilyoundsomeonewhoiswillingandabletoadoptthisprocessandworkwithyouasyougothroughit.
Ithastobeemphasizedthattheliteratureonthisapproachadvocatesworkinginaone-to-oneset-up.
Persevereuntilyoumakeitworkforyou.
Whenwersttriedthewritingconsultationwithacademicwriters,oneintriguingoutcomewasparticipants'identicationofthebenetsofnotwriting,afeaturethatwasnotincludedintheexistingmodel:Whetherornotitisusefultoincludethissubject,aspartofwriters'behaviourchangeprocessisnotyetclear,butitdidresonateforacademicsparticipatinginthisinitialtrialoftheprocess,doesidentifybarrierstoaca-demicwritingandisrelatedtowriters'valuesandbeliefs.
Oneacademicwhoreadaboutourapproachaskedwhethertherewereanypitfallstowatchoutfor.
Themostobvious,andperhapslikely,iswritersAwritingconsultation:thewritingconsultant'sroleSitinaquietplacewithyourpartner.
Adoptanopenbodyposition.
Keepgoodeyecontactwithyourpartnerandactivelylistentothem.
Attend,reectbackandparaphraseforthewriter.
Haveanopen,honestdiscussion.
BenetsofnotwritingNothavingtotestyourself.
Nothavingto'faceyourdemons'.
Notsubjectingyourselftocriticism.
Notfacing'things'youdon'twanttoface.
Avoidingthestruggleofmakingtimetowrite.
Nothavingtodealwithcolleagues'reactionstoyourwriting.
BEHAVIOURCHANGE149xatingonproblemsandbarriers,ratherthannegotiatingstrategiesforover-comingthem.
Wehaveheardofwriters'meetingswherethishappened.
Thewritingconsultationisdesignedtomovewritersbeyondthisxation,promptingyoutoreviewyourvaluesasarststepinthechangeprocess.
Thenextstepistoworkthroughthefollowingsectionswithyourcolleaguestillactingasawritingconsultant.
4.
IdentifyingbarriersandinventingstrategiesforovercomingthemThisisakeystepinthenegotiationofwritingintoyourlife:identifyingbarrierstoyourwritingandndingwaystoovercomethem.
Thismaytaketime.
Yourwritingconsultantmayhavetobepatientorpersistentorboth,promptingyoutothinkofnewstrategies.
Listbarrierstowritingandstrategiesforovercomingthem.
Hereisoneacademicwriter'sexample:Again,theemphasisisonovercomingbarrierstochange.
Theseshouldberelatedtoyourvaluesandbeliefs,whichyouidentiedinapreviousstep.
5.
SettingrealisticgoalsThenextstepistosetshort-andlong-termgoalsthatarerealisticandtimebound.
Academicsoftenknowonlytoowellwhattheirwritinggoalsare,butfrequentlywendthatthesegoalsarenotveryspecic.
Inmanycaseswritingsub-goalsarenotdenedatall.
Whatwedoknowisthatintheabsenceofaspecicgoalforwritingitisdifculttousewhatlittletimethereisusefully.
Evenwhentimeisusedforwriting,youmaysometimesbeleftfeelingdiscontentedwithyouroutputortextbecausethereisnowaytomeasuretheextenttowhichyouhaveprogressedtowardstheultimategoal.
Overtime,thiscanbedemoralizing,andcanundermineyourintentiontowrite.
Thatiswhythisstepissoimportant.
Stillworkingwithyourwritingconsultant,listyourlong-andshort-termgoals:Whatis/areyourlong-termwritinggoal(s).
.
.
Whatis/areyournextrealisticshort-termwritinggoal(s).
.
.
BarriersStrategiesFearTalkandcompareexperienceswithtrustedothersWritingblockUseyour5-minutewritingandpromptsPoorreviewsAnalyse,deconstructanddeviseapositiveresponse150INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFE6.
RelapsepreventionHowever,evenwell-denedgoalsdonotensurethatnewbehavioursareimmediatelyadopted.
Relapseispartofthechangeprocess.
Inthecontextofacademicwriting,'relapse'meansrevertingtooldwritingbehavioursandabandoningnewbehavioursthatsupportwriting.
Thisisakeyinnovationintheadaptedbehaviourchangemodeldescribedinthischapter:anticipatingrelapsesituationsforthestageofwritingyouarein,andidentifyingstrategiesforpreventingrelapse.
Thisisacrucialpartofchangeprocess;younotonlyanticipatewhereyournewbehaviourislikelytofail,butalsoplanastrategytopreventthathappening.
Whathigh-riskrelapsesituation(s)willstopyouachievingyourwritinggoalWhatareyourlikelyrelapsesituationsWhenareyoulikelytogiveupyourwritingtimeWhichtasksdoyouhavecomingupthatarelikelytointerferewithyourplansHowwillyoupreventthisWorkthroughthesequestionswithyourwritingconsultant.
Discusswhatyoucandotoavoidrelapsingtoyouroldbehavioursandmaintainyournewbehaviours.
HereisoneexamplefromthegroupthattriedthewritingconsultationforthersttimeattheLimerickUniversitywriters'retreat:Notehowspecicthesestrategiesare.
Theseparticipantsinventednewstrat-egies,indicatingthattheprocessofchangehadbegun.
Thestrategieswerenewtothesewriters–theyhadnotconsideredthembefore.
7.
ActionplanningThenalstepiscreatinganactionplan,includingmeetingforreview,supportandencouragement.
Thesearenecessarytosustainyourchangeprocess.
Takeeachofyourwritinggoals,bothlongandshortterm,andplanyouractionsforachievingthem.
Actionsyouwilltakeinordertoachievelong-termgoals.
.
.
Actionsyouwilltakeinordertoachieveshort-termgoals.
.
.
RelapseStrategyTeachinginsemester1Monday:givestudentsdirectedreading(3hrs)MothernotwellGetbrothertolookafter(2nights/week)MarkingMarkvepapers,thenbreakandwriteBEHAVIOURCHANGE151Thosewhohavemostexperienceofworkingwithpeopleusingthismodel–thoseworkinginthehealthprofessions,forexample–tellusthatpeopleusingthischangeprocessforthersttimeoftenconfuse'actions'and'goals'.
Itisthereforeworthclarifyingthatinthiscontext'goals'arewhatyouwanttoachieveinyourwriting,while'actions'arethestep(s)youwilltakeinordertoachievethem.
Ifyoundthatyourgoalsandactionsoverlap,itmaybebecauseyouhavenotdenedyourintendedactions.
Yourwritingconsultantmayspotthis,but,iftheylackexperienceinusingthismodel,theymightnot.
Itisprobablyagoodideatodiscussthisgoals/actionsdistinctionwiththem.
Onceyouhavediscussedandnotedyourplannedactions,setadateandplaceforyournextmeetingwithyourwritingconsultant.
Thisstepisimport-antbecausethemodelismorelikelytoworkifyouhaveasystemofreviewingandrecordingyourachievements.
Withoutthat,youmaylosefocusonyourprogress.
An'emailtrail'Onewayoftrackingyourperformanceandprogresstowardsyourgoalsistouseanemailtrail.
Thisisonewayofmonitoringyouractions,usingthechangeprocessdescribedabove,overaperiodoftime.
Constructinganemailtrailofyourwritingmeans,rstly,decidingthatyouhavereachedapointwhereyouneedtoanalyseyourwritingactivityinordertochangeitand/orconsolidatethechangeprocessbymonitoringitmoreclosely.
Youmayalsowanttogetabetterpictureofyourwritingprocess.
Inotherwords,itcomesbacktoyourmotivationnotjusttowrite,buttolearnhowtoimproveyourwriting.
Onceyouhavedecidedtotrythis,yournextstepisndingsomeonewhowillreceiveyourregularemails,perhapsonceaweek,inwhichyouwillreportonyourprogresswithyourwritingproject.
Thespeciccontentofyouremailsisuptoyou,exceptforthestipulationthatyouwriteaboutyourwriting.
Yourtimecommitmentis,onaverage,tenminutesperweek,producingemailsofaroundtwohundredwordseach.
Therecipientofyouremailscandecidehowmuchtimetoallocatetoreadingandrespondingtothem,andyoucanagreethisbeforeyoustart.
Theemailtrailwillheightenyourawarenessoftheintegrationprocesswithinthecontextofyouractualwritinglife.
Thisisdistinctfrommonitoring,orconcordancing,yourwritingbyanalysingdiscoursefeatures(Coniam,2004).
Whileconcordancinginvolvesanalysingyourwritingintermsofthesentencestructuresyouuse,forexample,anemailtrailinvolvesanalysingyourwritingbehaviours,attitudesandoutputs.
152INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFEThismaymeanwritingaboutyourintentionstowriteortheorizingaboutwriting,butitmustinclude,foratleastsomeofthetime,describingyourwritingactivities,expressingyourfeelingsaboutyourwritingandmonitor-ingyourprogressintermsthatseemappropriatetoyou.
Therecipientofyouremailsdoesnothavetoreplytothemall,althoughyoumayoccasion-allyaskforaresponse,justtoreassureyourselfthatsomeoneisattendingtowhatyousay.
Thereisnoonusontherecipienttohelpyoutosolveyourwritingproblemsorprovidefeedbackofanykind,sincethatmightbegintoshapethecontentofyouremails.
Thepurposeistocreateavirtualspacewhereyoucanreectfreely,inyourownwords,onyouractualwritingpractices.
Overtime,inthecourseofayear,forexample,youremailswillrevealaspectsofyourwritingpracticethatyouhadnotnoticedbefore.
Takentogether,youremailscanshowyouwhereeventsandpatternsaffectyourproductivity.
Theycreateabodyofinformationaboutyourwritingthatyoucananalyse,withsomedistanceandperhapslesssubjectivity.
PurposesofanemailtrailArticulatingthehighsandlowsofacademicwriting.
Deningthereal-timedynamicsofthewritingprocess.
Revealingrelationshipsbetweenwritingandothertasksandactions.
Unpackingiterationsinthewritingprocess.
Youremailsmayshowyouthatyouhaveawritingcrisiseachtimeyouhaveasetofpaperstomark,orahealthcrisiseverytimeyoupresentataconferenceinDecember,ordipsinyouroutputormotivationwhenyoutrytowriteatthesetimes.
Someofthisyoumighthavenoticedalready,butyournoticingmightnothavetriggeredanyaction.
Youmayhavetodeciphertheprecisecombinationoffactorsthatledtotheseeffects,sinceitisnotthewritingitselfthatisthecause.
Itisyourapproachtoit.
Youremailscanalsorevealthefactorsandconditionsthatallowyoutowriteproductively.
Decipheringthesepatternscanpromptyoutochangeyourwritinghabits,setmorerealisticgoalsandgiveyourselfpermissionnottowriteatcertaintimes.
Thisinturncanimprovebothyourmotivationtowriteandyourabilitytoactonthatmotivation.
Attheveryleast,writingtheseemailsconstituteswritingpractice,butlook-ingatyouremailsasanemailtrailistoengageinadialogue,asmuchwithyourwritingselfaswiththepersonwhoagreedtoreceiveyouremails.
Theemailtrailpromptsyoutoreectonthespecicsofyourpractice,yourmotiv-ationsandpatternsinyourpersonalandprofessionallives.
Itcreatesavirtualspacewhereyoucan'actoutdifferentattitudesandvalues'(BoudandWalker,1998:199).
Itallowsyoutocompareyourwritingpracticeswiththoseofexperiencedwriters(HartleyandBranthwaite,1989).
AN'EMAILTRAIL'153Theemailtrailisanotherwayinwhichacademicwriterscaninventaformofregulardialogueaboutwriting,ifthatisnotavailableinanotherform,andweknowthatinmanyacademiccontextsitisnot.
Inpractice,inacademicsettings,thereislittleofthisin-depthreectiononprocess.
Noristheregener-allyaforumforexpressingwhatmightbemultiplesubjectivitiesrelatedtowriting.
Toillustrate,hereareextractsfromonewriter'semailtrail,writtenoveraperiodof16months:Isupposethegreatestobstacletowritingatworkismyownattitude.
IhavearealprobleminconvincingmyselfthatthewritingispartofwhatIamemployedtodo.
Iregarditassomethingthatisformyownbenetandfeelabitguiltyaboutbeingpaidtodoit[5April].
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Therearemanyobstaclestothewritingprocess.
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prioritiesofworkandhomelife,inappropriateconditionsforwritingandtheinabilitytogetstarted.
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thereislackofcondencethatthepaperwillbeofasufcientlyhighstandardtowithstandscrutinybyexperts[18May].
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IhadbeenputtingoffsendingyouamessagebecauseIhadachievedsolittlethisweek[15December].
Thiswriteralsosentanemail,atanotherpointintheacademicyear,whichwasonlyonelinelong:'Theseexampapersaredrivingmemad'.
Muchlater,whenhelookedbackoverhiscollectionofemailswrittenduringayear,hewasabletoreectonhisearlierpractices,consolidateperceivedchangesindis-positiontowardswritingandidentifyaspectsofhiswritingthatpresentedpersistentchallenges.
Thisemailtrailshowedthatspecicwritingstrategieshadprovedsuccessfulforthiswriterduringthisperiod.
Inaddition,therewasanacceptanceofcertainconstraints,whichhadnotbeenthereatthestart,andhehadadoptedaproblem-solvingapproach:Ihavetoacceptthat[marking]willeatintotimesetasideforwriting,andIwillthereforehavetotrytondanequalamountoftimeatworkforresearchtocompensate.
Thisisnottosaythathehadsolvedallhiswriting'problems',nordotheseemailsconstitute'evidence'ofproductivity,norcantheemailtrailbetakenasacomprehensiverecordofperformanceorpractice.
Whattheemailtraildoesisshedlightonwritingpractices.
Somewillargue,again,thatthisisnosubstitutefor'justwriting',but,again,thecounter-argumentmustbethatnoteveryonemanagesthat.
Forsomeaca-demics,writingisnotassimpleasjustsittingdownandgettingonwithit,andweknowthateventhosewhohaveexcellentwritingskillsmaystillhaveproblemsndingtimetowrite.
Giventheinsightsthatanemailtrailcanprovide,itisagoodinvestmentofyourtime.
Youcanscrutinizeyourvalues,154INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFEbeliefsandpracticesusinganemailtrail.
Itmightotherwisebedifculttoseetheseasclearly.
Youmaybegin,forexample,toseewhatformsthenecessaryiterations–thataresomuchthesubjectofthisbook–looklikeinthecontextofyourownpractice.
Thisisnottosaythatthesewillbeconstants,inanysense,butyoucanestablishtherangeofprocessesyouuseandassessyouruseofthem.
Youcanalsomonitoryourreactionstoiterationitself.
Itmaybethatonlyonceyouhavebeguntoreectoniterationsinyourwritingprocessdoyouseethatwhileiterationsometimesseemstobeapointofretreat,itisoftenapointofadvanceinawritingproject.
Withthisinmindyoucanbeginactivelytomanagesuchiterations,secureintheknowledgethattheyareasensible,workableandeffectivedimensionofyourwritingprocess.
If,ontheotherhand,youjudgethattheyarenoteffective,thenyoucanadaptthem.
Similarly,youmaybeabletotrackthe'advance-retreat'dynamic,andthisinturnmayhelpyoutosetmorerealisticgoalsandtomanageyourwritingtimebetter.
Theseideasarelikelytoremainabstractionsuntilyoucanrelateyourownwritingexperiencestothem.
Thismaybewheremuchofthe'prob-lem'ofwritinglies:thewriting'product'–thepublication–hassomuchvalueattachedtoit,whilethewritingprocesshassolittlerelativevaluethatitrou-tinelyreceivesmuchlessattention.
Withoutsuchreection,itisdifculttomodifytheprocesswithanycondence.
Thisiswhyitissoimportant,aswasexplainedintheprevioussection,toanticipaterelapsesituationsand,iftheystilloccur,toreectonthestrategiesyouhavebeenusing.
Theemailtrailcanhelpyoudothis.
Thestrategiesweproposethroughoutthisbookwilltaketimeto'bedin',andtheemailtrailwillallowyoutotrackyourdevelopingwritingprocess.
Thiscanbeaneffectivedeviceformonitoringyouradoptionofnewstrategies,allowingyoutoreview,reshapeandretune.
Perhapsmoreimportantly,itcanhelpyoutoask'why'certainstrategiesworkandothersfail,foryou.
The'why'questionisoftenthemissinglinkinourreectionsonwriting.
Aboveall,thereisvalue,potentiallyonseverallevels,inregularlywritingtosomeonewhoseesyouareawriter.
Perhapsmoreimportantly,thereisvalueinpositioningyourselfasawriter,andthen,lookingbackatyourcollectionofemails,toseeyourselfasthetypeofacademicwriterwhoismanagingtheadvance-retreatdynamic.
IntegratingyourwritingHavingexploredthepsychologicalprocessesthatcanhelpyouintegratewrit-ingintoyourlife,wenowprovideaconcreteexampleofintegration.
Writingabookisonewayofintegratingyourwriting,inthesensethatitallowsyoutoINTEGRATINGYOURWRITING155bringyourideas–andperhapsyourpublishedpapers–together.
Gordon(2004)representspublishingasaformof'cross-promoting':Rememberthatifyouintendtomakeprofessionalpublishinganintegralpartofyour.
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career,youareunlikelytostopwithonebookorarticle.
Cross-promoteyourownwork;drawuponandciteyourpreviouswrit-ing.
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Justasallprofessionalcommunicationismutuallyreinforcing,sotoodoyourprofessionalactivitiesandyourwritingworktogetherinbuildingyourcareerandpromotingyourwork–andyourself!
(Gordon,2004:113)Integratingwritingintoyourlifemayinvolvecreatinginternalintegrationinyourbodyofwork.
Itisunlikely,andprobablyunwise,toaspiretotacklingacompletelynewsubjectineverypaper.
Instead,youcanplotseveralconnectedpapers.
Whilewritingabookmayseem,tothosewhohaveneverdoneitbefore,tobeamonumentalundertaking–andinsomeresearchassessmentexercisesabookmay'count'forlessthanapaper–itcanpromptyoutondwaystowriteregularly.
Perhapsevenmorethanwhenyouarewritingjournalarticles,whenyouarewritingabookyouhavetoinventwritingprocessesthattintoyourlife.
Since,insomedisciplines,andforsomepublishers,writingabookletsyouwritemoreinyourownvoiceandaboutyourownviewsthanispossibleforjournalarticles,thismaybemoremotivating.
Yourbookmaybemorecloselyalignedwithyourvaluesandbeliefs,and,asweknowfromtheliteratureonbehaviourchangereferencedabove,thiscansupportyourintentiontobecomearegularwriter.
Writingabookisrepresentedbelowasaprocess,sothatthesestepscanbescheduledintorealtime.
Fromideatobook:aprocessReviewpublishers'andcolleagues'websites.
Findcommissioningeditor(s):name(s)andemailaddress(es).
Email:an'initialinquiry'.
Completepublisher'sproposalform(readguidancenotes).
Discussyourquestionswithcommissioningeditor(s),e.
g.
booklength.
Submitproposal,chapteroutlineandothermaterial.
Checkthatitarrived.
Yourproposalgoesouttoreviewers.
Checkdateforfeedbackfromreviewers('dateforyourdiary').
Reviewscomeback–reviseproposal.
Contractsigned.
Usepublisher'sstyleguide.
156INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFEYoucanengageininformaldialoguewithpublishersasyoudevelopyourpublicationplans,atalmostanystageinthebookwritingprocess.
Ifyoudecidetowriteabookproposal,youwill,ofcourse,usethepublisher'sform,butagenerictemplate,includingmostofthekeyheadings,isprovidedinMurray(2006).
Theprocessesdescribedinthischaptermayconstitutethenecessarynegoti-ationsfordevelopingyourwritingstrategytotheextentthatyounotonlywritemore,butalsointegratewritingintoyourlife.
Researchsuggeststhatthesestepswillhelpyouachievethis,sothatwritingremainsonyouragenda,alongwithallyourotheractivities:On-goingdiscussionofwritingwanedwhentheprogrammenished,exceptforoneortwopeople.
It'snotashighontheagenda.
It'slikeeverythingelse:whentheprogrammestopsthefocusislost.
Researchhasbecomemorecloseted.
(Writingmentorinauniversitywritingforpublicationprogramme)Thisquotationdenesarecurringproblemthatisaddressedinthischapter:whileinitiativesdescribedinpreviouschaptersareeffective,intermsofposi-tiveimpactonacademicwriters'outputandprocesses,whentheprogrammesend,someacademicwriterssaythattheylosemomentum,aswritinggiveswaytootheractivities,andthecultureforwriting'wanes'.
Thiseffectmayindicatethelimitedimpactofsuchprogrammes,althoughparticipantsreportthattheyhelpthemtogettheirwritingunderwayand,inmanycases,tobecomeregularwriters.
Alternatively,itmaytakeusbacktothestartingpointofthischapter:onlytheindividualwritercanbuildwritingintohisorherlife.
Insmall-scalestudies,usingfollow-upinterviewsdesignedtoexploreindividual'sprocesses,attitudesandnegotiations,itemergedthatthosewhocontinuetowritehadfound'places'forwriting:Writemanuscript,submitbydeadline.
Askforextensionswellinadvance.
Checkcopy-editedtypescript.
Checkproofs.
Writeindex(orpaytohaveitdoneforyou).
Completepublisher'sauthorquestionnaire(maybeearlier).
Writeblurbforthebackofyourbook.
Checkpublicationdate.
Planabooklaunch–sendoutinvites.
Sendcopies/yerstocolleagues.
Attendaconferencewhereyourpublisherhasadisplay.
INTEGRATINGYOURWRITING157WhereiswritingInformalandinformaldevelopmentactivities.
Inpeerrelationships.
Intheacademic'sprofessionallife.
Inclassroomactivities.
Integratingwritingintoyourlifemayalsomeanndingtimeswhenyoudonotwrite,ifyouremailtrail,orotherprocess,revealsthattherearespecic,recurringtimeslotswhenyouknowthatyourwritinggiveswaytootheractiv-ities.
Ifwritingisintegratedintoyourlifeyoucandothisintheknowledgethat,induecourse,otheractivitieswill,intheirturn,givewaytowriting.
Forthistooccur,forsomeacademics,thereisaneedforsustainednegoti-ationbetweendifferentacademicroles,andnegotiationbetweenthetwomainacademicroles–teachingandresearch–isaddressedinthenextchapter.
ChecklistDecidewhetherornotyouwanttotwritingintoyourlife.
Assesshowimportantwritingistoyou.
Integratingwritinginyourlifemaymeanchangingyourwritingbehaviours.
Behaviourchangecanbemanagedasaprocess.
Startbyarticulatingyourbeliefsandvalues,inrelationtoacademicwriting.
Newknowledgeaboutwritingisunlikelytoproducebehaviourchange.
Documentyouractualwritingpracticesinsomeform,e.
g.
anemailtrail.
Integrateyourwritingbymakingconnectionsbetweenyourwritings.
Clarifythedistinctionbetweenyourwritinggoals,plansandactions.
158INTEGRATINGWRITINGINTOYOURLIFE10Usingwritingtoreconcileteaching–researchtensionsAcademicwriters'experiencesoftheteaching–researchtensionTeaching–researchsynergiesChecklistWhilethepreviouschapterdealtwithstrategiesforintegratingwritingintoyourlife,thischapterfocusesononepotentialbarriertowritinginmoredepth.
Academicstellusthatamajorbarriertoresearchisteaching;teach-ingandresearchseem,forsomeatacertainpointintheircareers,forothersmorepermanently,tobeinconstanttension,andthisoftenplacesplannedwritingtimeindirectoppositiontotheteachingtimetable.
Someacademicsndthatthistensionstopsthemfromdoinganyresearchatall,whileothersndwaystoresolvethetension.
Evenacademicswhohavepublishedbefore,whohavetherequisiteresearchskillsandabodyofmaterialtowriteaboutreportthatcreatingtimeforresearchisaconstantprocessofnegotiation.
Fewacademicsreportthattheyhaveneverperceivedatensionbetweenteachingandresearch.
Theideaofateaching–researchtensionmayhaveitsoriginsinaperceptionofthetwoactivitiesasbeingfundamentallydifferent.
Forsome,thedistancebetweenthetwoactivitiesseemsimpossibletobridge.
Inaddition,thereisaperceptionthatteachingandresearchdonothavethesamevalueinacademiclife,thatresearchisassumedtohavemorevaluethanteaching.
Atthesametime,teachinghaspriority.
Thiscancreatehugetensions.
Someacademicsfeelthattheresimplyisnotimeforresearch,noroomtomanoeuvreandnowaytonegotiatechange,andsomedoindeedhavetooheavyateachingload.
Thispositionmayrelatetothetypeofcontractonwhichtheyareemployed.
Itisnotourpurposeinthischaptertominimizethisproblem,butwedowanttoencourageacademicsinthispositionnottoseethemselvesasthe'sacriciallambs','dogsbodies'or'teachingdrones'ofthesystem.
Wehaveheardsuchtermsused.
Wehaveheardaccountsofaca-demicswhofeelthat,ondayswhenmanyoralloftheircolleaguesareawayfromthedepartment–doingresearch,writingorexternalwork–theyfeelthattheyhaveto'bethere'forthestudents,sincenooneelseisavailabletodealwithstudents'inquiriesandproblems.
Thiscutsintotheirresearchtime.
Beingpositionedinthiswayisakeymechanismoftheteaching–researchtension,particularly,butnotexclusively,foryounger,newerstaff.
Newaca-demicstellusthattheyareoftenallocatedrst-yearclasses,leavingthemnotonlylittletimeforresearch,butalsonoopportunitytomakeconnectionsbetweentheirteachingandtheirresearchandnohopeofdevelopinganareaofexpertise.
However,whilesomeacademicsportrayteachingastheenemyofresearch,otherspointtosynergiesbetweenthetwo.
Somemaintainthattherearedirectlinks:goodteachersareintouchwith,ifnotactivein,research,andgoodteachingisinformedbyresearch.
Inpractice,suchsynergiesbetweenteachingandresearchmaybemorecomplexthansomewouldhaveusbelieve.
Inthischapterwearguethat,ratherthanaddingtotheteaching–researchtension,writingisonewayofresolvingit.
Teaching,regularlydenedasabarrier,canbeusedasalever.
Ifyouwanttowrite,itseemsinevitablethatyouwillhavetodevelopstrat-egiesfornavigatingtheteaching–researchtension.
Evenwhenyoufeelthatyourteachingworkloadleavesyounotimeforwriting,youstillhaveoptions.
Youcandevelopastrategyfordealingwiththesetensions,sothatwhentherearethose'magicmoments',whenteaching–researchsynergiesemerge,youknowthatwhiletheteaching–researchtensionmayresurface,youhavewaystoresolveit.
Thismaybethroughteaching–researchsynergies,suchasthosedescribedinthischapter(seealsoChapters6and7).
Thepurposeofthischapteristohelpyoudevelopapproachesforintegrat-ingteachingandresearchthroughyourwriting.
Thisintroductionhasexplainedwhywefocusontheteaching–researchtension:becauseitissofrequentlyinvokedbyacademicswhostruggletomaketime–orasmuchtimeastheywouldlike–fortheirwriting.
Thenextsectionanalysesacademics'experiencesoftheteaching–researchtensioninordertoshedlightontheunderlyingfactors,akeyfactorbeingthetensionbetweenperceivedinstitutionalvaluesandpersonalvalues.
Whiletherearemanywaysinwhichperceivedinstitutionalvaluesdifferfromper-sonalvalues,acrossinstitutions,thegapappearstobeparticularlyacutelyfeltattheteaching–researchnexus.
Thenalsectiondescribescopingstrategies:potentialteaching–research160USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONSsynergiesthatcanhelpyoutoresolvetheteaching–researchtensionthroughwritingaboutteaching.
Academicwriters'experiencesoftheteaching–researchtensionTheteachingrolehaschangedinrecentyears:inadditiontoputtinginanagreednumberofteachinghours,academicsarerequiredtobecompetent,perhapsmorethancompetent,inteaching.
Beyondinitialqualicationinteachingandlearninginhighereducation,thereareotheractivitiestoprovidecontinuousprofessionaldevelopment.
Thisalltakesupmoretimeand,poten-tially,increasesthepressureonresearchtime.
Itmaybethatthebalanceisshifting,intermsofthetraditionaldifferencesbetweenteachingandresearch,nowthatthevalueofascholarlyapproachtoteachingismorewidelyunderstood.
Alternatively,youmayfeelthatteachingandresearchremainradicallydifferentactivities:Traditionallyithasbeenassumedthatthereisacleardistinctionbetweentheworldsofresearchandtheworldsofpolicyandpractice–thatthereare'twocommunities'.
Ontheonehandthereistheworldofresearch,basedonexplicit,systematicworkaimedatthegrowthoftheoreticalknowledge.
Practiceandpolicyontheotherhandareseenastakingplaceinthe'realworld',aworldbasedondifferentformsofknowledge–forexampleontacitknowledgeandonpracticalwisdom.
(FurlongandOancea,2005:5)Whilethisquotationidentiesthepolarizationofresearch,ontheonehand,andpolicyandpractice,ontheother,thepaperfromwhichitisextractedmadethecasefornewdenitionsofresearch.
Indoingso,itraisedsomeoftheissuesthatmaylieattheheartoftheteaching–researchtension.
Teachingandresearchhaveforsometimeseemedtoconstitute'twocommunities',eachwithitsownvalues,prioritiesanddiscourse.
Perhapsitistimetoanalysethissenseofdifferenceinordertoexplorethesourceofthetension.
Theteaching–researchtensionIsitaboutlackoftimeIsitcausedbyoverloadinteachingdutiesIstensioncausedbydifferencesinphilosophyorconceptionsof'research'Arethere'twocommunities',withacademicsforcedtotakesidesACADEMICWRITERS'EXPERIENCESOFTHETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSION161Sinceaperceivedteaching–researchtensionisrepeatedlyidentiedbyaca-demicsasabarriertowriting,weexploredthistensioninsomedepthbyinterviewingaselectionofacademics.
Wewantedtondoutwhatformstheteaching–researchtensiontakes,howitinteractswithotherfactorsandissuesandwhetherornotiswaspossibletodeneitfurther.
Aboveall,wewantedtoexploreacademics'perspectivesonteaching–researchtensions.
Whatwefoundisthatthebalancingactiscomplex;managingtheteaching–researchtensionwasnot,fortheacademicsweinterviewed,simplyamatterofimprovingtimemanagementskills–arecurringresponsetoacademics'complaintsthatthereisnotimeforresearch.
Weregularlyinterviewacademicswhoparticipateinwriters'groupsorpro-grammes,inordertodevelopourunderstandingoftheirexperiencesandofsuccessfulandunsuccessfulpractices.
Forexample,weoftenfollowemergingnarrativesoftheirwritinglives,usingone-to-oneinterviewsofaboutanhour.
Ourintentionisnottoevaluateeitherwriters'outputsorthelong-termimpactofthewriters'grouptheyattended.
Instead,wewanttondoutwhattheythinkaboutresearchandwriting,whatisontheiragendas,notours.
Weaimto'activatenarrativeproduction'byacademics(RitchieandRigano,2001:755).
Any'themes'thatemergefromtheseinterviewsareintroducedanddevelopedbytheacademicsthemselves.
Althoughitwasnotourintentiontoputteaching–researchtensionsontheagendaoftheseconversations,interestinglyteaching–researchtensionswereraisedbymostinterviewees,inrelationtotheirownresearch.
Aselectionofrecurringcommentsrelatingtoteaching–researchtensionsaredealtwithhere.
Whilewerecognizethattheacademicswithwhomwehadthesediscussionswereaself-selectinggroup,andwhilewedidnotattempttoadjustforbias,weconsiderthatwecan,nevertheless,presenttheirinsightshere,atleastasstartingpointsforour–andyour–explorationofteaching–researchtensions.
Thesmallminorityofacademicswhodonotmentionteaching–researchtensionduringsuchdiscussionstendtodiscussprevious,currentandongoingprojects,suggestingthattheyarewritingregularlyandhaveresolvedtheten-sioninsomeway.
Aslightlylargerminorityraisetheteaching–researchten-siononlytodismissit;itisnot,forthem,abarriertoresearchorwriting.
Theyrecognizethatitisanissueforothers,butnotforthem.
Themajorityofacademics,unprompted,identifyteaching–researchtensions,andtheseseemtobeofthreetypes:Hasresearchinsomedisciplineslosttouchwiththe'realworld'HasthatnotchangedinthepasttenortwentyyearsinmanydisciplinesIstherestillahierarchy:researchoverteachingIsthatwhatunderminesacademics'motivationtowriteforacademicjournals162USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONS1Theteaching'buzz'.
2Theteachingimperative.
3Thetheory–practicedivide.
1.
Theteaching'buzz'Icanbeashighasakite,gettingthestudentslaughingoneminuteorgoingallquietwhenIwasreadingthemsomethingtoday.
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thinkingtomyself,'I'mreallyperforminghere'.
Researchdoesn'tgivemethattothesameextent.
Forsomeacademics,theteaching–researchtensionisexpressedintermsofthedifferentlevelsofsatisfactionthatcomewitheachactivity:researchissometimesnotapriorityforthembecauseteachingismoremotivatingandmorerewarding.
Academicsmaybecondentintheteachingrole,butlesssoaboutresearchoraboutwritingtoastandardacceptableforacademicjournals.
Teachingprovidesanimmediateresponse;withresearch,youmightnotknowformonthsoryearshowyourworkisreceived.
Theteaching–researchtensionisoftenidentied,withoutanypromptingonthesubject,asacurrentissueinacademicdepartments,affecting,forexample,how'anhour'ofworkisdened,withcolleaguesdebatingtherelativedifcultyofteachingatdifferentlevels,orcomparingthelevelof'difculty'inteachingwiththatof'sittingwritingandthinkingforanhour'.
Insomecontexts,certainactivitiesareperceivedtobemorehighlyvaluedthanothers:'Itevencomesdowntocourses–teachingoncertaincourseshasmorestatusthanteachingonothercourses.
'Thiscanbedivisive:'It'sforcingfolktoalmosttakesides'.
However,manyacademicsacknowledgethisasafeatureoftheirworkinglifegenerally,ratherthanofteachingandresearchexclusively:'Thehierarchiesaretherewithotherissues.
'Therelativevalueattachedtoteachingandresearchcanalsoaffecttheper-ceptionandself-perceptionofacademicsperformingtheseroles,and,sinceweknowthatself-perceptionandvaluesarecentraltoanacademic'smotivation,thismayinuencetheirdecisionsabouthow–orwhether–tomaketimeforresearch.
Mostacademicsseemtobeawarethatitistheindividual'sresponsibilitytonavigateawayinthisculture–'Thereisanelementofputupandshutup'–,acknowledgethattheydohave'choices'inhowtheirtimeisallocatedtodifferentduties,andcouldmakeacaseformoreresearchtime.
Apparentambivalencetowardsthis'choice'couldbetakenasanindicationofunwillingnesstodoresearch,oritmayshowalackofunderstandingofwhatitinvolves.
Yet,evenacademicswhohaveexperienceofandinsightintoresearchandacademicwritingstillexperiencedtheseproblems.
ACADEMICWRITERS'EXPERIENCESOFTHETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSION1632.
TheteachingimperativeWritingandresearchtimewerepromised,butit'salwaysthersttogo.
EventhoughIhaveacknowledgedwritingtime,itisseenasexibletime.
Youcanstillbegiventeaching.
Theprincipleofhavingablockoftimeisapplied,butit'snottreatedassacrosanct,whichishowitshouldbe.
Researchisregardedbymanyacademicsasan'atrisk'activity,inthesensethatworkloadallocationsdonotseem–ordonotseemtothem–toincluderesearchtime.
Inonedepartmentastrategyforallocatingtime–awriters'group–hadbeenformallyagreed,buthadneverbeenputintoaction.
Inthisperceivedcontext,negativeresponsestotheirworkseemstohaveanevenmoredamaginganddemotivatingeffectonsomeacademics,andtheperceptionofthecultureinonedepartment–'everyoneisbusyontheirownthings'–couldbeinterpretedasaneedforsupportand/orvalidation.
Someacademicsseemtolosetheabilitytointervene,oncethisprocesshasstarted:'Iallowedmyjobtoswampme,particularlytheteachingside.
'Thisacademicdidnotattributethisproblemtotheteaching–researchtensionspecically,nordidheorsheattributeittootherexternalfactors.
Thepointwasthat,inhindsight,thisacademiccouldseethattheteaching–researchtensionwasafactoflife.
Whiletheyacknowledgetheirresponsibilitytoorganizetheirtime,aca-demicsoftenndthatevenifteachingcomessecondtoresearchinsomesense,teachingholdsa'premium'whenitcomestoscheduling.
Thisdiffer-entialvaluationisperhapsattheheartofteaching–researchtensions,andmightexplainacademics'apparentself-contradictions,astheyfrequentlyappeartoshifttheirevaluationofthetwoactivities.
Thisrevealswhattheyseeastheoperationallycontradictoryrequirementsofteachingandresearch.
Inaddition,teachingisperceived,insomecontexts,ashavinga'premium'thatresearchdoesnot:'Thenewworkload.
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newmasterscourse.
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develop-ingnewmodules.
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Thisisthedriveratthemoment.
Youhaveclassessittinginfrontofyoutogetonwith.
'Thisseemstobeawidespreadproblem:whenyouhavebeenallocatedacertainnumberofteachinghours,andyouknowthatstudentsaregoingtobesittinginfrontofyou,youhavenoexibility.
Thereisnowayofnding'extra'timeforresearch.
The'teachingimperative'isaccentuatedbythefundingmechanism:ifyoudonotteach,youhavenoincome,andifyoudonotdiversifyyourprovision–bydevelopingnewmas-terscourses,forexample–youloseyourshareofthemarket.
Itisintheseterms,academicstellus,thatteachingispositionedasthe'driver'inawaythatresearchisnot.
Theimperativetodevelopnewcoursescomesupfrequentlyinourdiscussionswithacademics.
Asnewcoursesarelaunchedthereare,usually,164USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONSsignicantincreasesinteachingload,withnorealcompensationintermsofresearchtime.
Manydepartmentsdonotappear,accordingtotheseaccounts,tobalanceteachingandresearch.
Asbefore,academicsacknowledgethattheyarenotionallyinchargeoftheirowntime,butsomeseemtolose,orgiveup,controlasnewcoursesaredevelopedandmakenewdemandsontheirtime.
Thelackofaccountabilityforresearch,comparedtoteaching,isaproblem.
Researchassessmentexercisesonlymonitoroutputseveryfewyears.
Whatemergesfromourdiscussionswithacademicsisthattheyknowthattheyareexpected'justtogetonwith'research,andyettheycanstillndthemselvesunabletoprogress.
Wecanspeculatethatthismayresultfromtheirinternalizingthedevaluationofresearch.
Ifthisseemstobeamis-representationofmatureacademicsasoverlypassive,asiftheywerecolludinginthemarginalizationoftheirresearch,thenwecanonlyremindyou,ifitneedstobesaid,thattheinuenceofdepartmentalculturescanbepowerful.
Thewords,'Pullyourselftogether'or'Juststartwriting'havebeensaidtoacademicswhoraisetheseissues,and,whilethesemightbewellintentioned,theymissthepoint–thatitiseasiersaidthandone.
Besides,manyacademics,inspiteofheavyteachingandadministrativeloads,dosuccessfullycompleteresearchprojects,butstillfaceproblems.
Theexpectationthatacademicswillconductresearchisbasedontheassumptionthattheyknowhowto,andthosewhodonotknowfeelthattheyarefallingshortandlosecondenceeithertotryortoaskforsupport.
Thebroaderproblemliesinlackofresearchtraining–insomedisciplines–asmuchasintheteaching–researchtension.
Thisanalysisreinforcespointsmadeinearlierchaptersofthisbook:thatmakingtimeforresearch,andforwriting,isnottheproblem.
Establishingthattheseactivitieshavevaluetotheindividualacademicistherststep.
Ifthatpersonalvalueisunderminedbyexternalfactors,otherformsofsupportmaybebenecial.
Thislendsfurtherweighttotheargumentforwriters'groupstosupportevensomerelativelyexperiencedacademicwriters.
3.
Thetheory–practicedivideOurabilitytoinuencepracticeisless.
WeproduceallthiswritingforjournalstofeedtheRAE[ResearchAssessmentExercise]need,and[professionals]becomeincreasinglyhostileatwhattheyseeasemptytheory.
Thisisarealissueforacademicsinsomedisciplines,andlesssoinothers.
ForsomeacademicsinthedisciplineofEducation,forexample,thisissuehaspreventedthemfromidentifyingthepurposeandbenetofdoingresearch.
Forthem,workingwith,andwritingfor,practitionershasmuchmorevalue.
InEducationthisishowtheyimproveteaching:ACADEMICWRITERS'EXPERIENCESOFTHETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSION165I'mveryproudofthese[publications]becausetheytieupalotoftheideasI'minterestedinandwillaffectpractice,andIhadtoovercomewritingbarrierstodothem.
Similarly,inthehealthprofessions,youimprovepatientcarebydevelopingpractice.
Theextenttowhichthisviewischaracteristicofthosewhoarenewtoresearchisnotclear.
Whatisclear,however,isthattherearepotentialteaching–researchtensionsintheperceivedmeaningofresearchandwritingforacademicjournals.
Forsomeacademicsthisisanexplicitchoice,astrategicdecisionalignedwiththeirownvalues.
However,evenhavingmadethischoice,theystillvoiceconcerns,doubtsandadmittolowself-esteem,relatedtothelowstatusofteachinginrelationtoresearchintheirinstitutions:'IfeelI'mnotaswellregardedbecauseIdon'twriteandpublish.
'Theseacademics,indiscussion,seemtooscillatebetweenprideintheirwork,onemoment,andwritingitoff,thenext.
Theteaching–researchtensionseemstobeamatterofthegapbetweensomeacademics'valuesandperceivedinstitutional,orpeer,valuesrelatedtoresearchandcertaintypesofwriting.
Thisisnottoclaiminsightthattheseacademicsdonothavethemselves,sincetheyareabletoseecontradic-tionsintheiranalyses:'isthatoverstatedI'mnotcomfortablewiththatview.
'Perhapstheirapparentambivalenceisaboutshiftingpositioningduringthesediscussions:from'proud'publishedresearchersto'insecure'non-researchers.
Ironically,forsomeacademicsworkinginthedisciplineofEducation,theresearch–teachingtensionbecomesadeterrenttoresearchingandwritingaboutitforpractitioners.
Yet,mostoftheseacademicscontinuetowritefordifferentpurposes,andmanyholdresearchgrants.
Inotherwords,itisnotthattheyrejectresearch;instead,theyidentifythetensionasnotoftheirmaking,whileacknowledgingtheirresponsibilityfordealingwithit.
However,theseareaccomplished,thoughtful,motivatedandself-awarepeople.
Theyknowthepotentialconsequencesofnotdoingresearchfortheircareersinhighereducation.
Wecanspeculatethattheteaching–researchten-sionpersistsforsomeiftheyarestillintransitiontohighereducation,andstilladjustingtheirvaluesandpracticestothiscontext.
Weshouldnotignorethefactthatmanyacademicsndthattheteaching–researchtensionisacute.
Thisseemstobeparticularlythecaseforacademicsappointedtofull-timejobswhilestudyingpart-timeforadoctorate.
Someinstitutionsallocateresearchtime,insomecasesadayperweek,butothersdonot.
Ontopofthis,theacademicwhoisalsoadoctoralstudenthastondsomewaytopublishinjournalsandmay,atthesametime,betakingacourseonteachingandlearninginhighereducation.
Academicswhoarecommittedteachersareoftenputoffresearchbyitsperceivednepotism,andaredismayedatwhatappears,tothem,tobetheerosionofacademicvalues:'There'sadirtinesstothewholething.
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It'swhoknowswho.
'However,academicswhoputthisview,insuchterms,aregener-allyawareofthedangerofoverpersonalizingtheissue,ofbecoming,asone166USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONSputit,'tooself-interestedinresearch'.
Onceagain,therefore,theteaching–researchtensionisnot,initself,theproblem;theacademic'svalues,andperceptionofvaluesheldbypublishedwritersandeditors,arealsobarriers.
Whatemergesfromourreectionsonwhatacademicssayabouttheteach-ing–researchtensionisthatteachingisnottheenemyofresearch;itistheconictbetweenperceivedinstitutionalvaluesandindividualvaluesthatistheproblem.
Inaddition,thereisperceivedconictbetweenthevalueinstitutionspurporttoattachtoresearchandtheallocationoftimeforresearch.
Whatisstrikingaboutacademics'accountsofteaching–researchtensionsisthatallofthemtakeresponsibilityfortheirwritingbarriers,inthesensethattheyrecognize,cognitively,thatonlytheycanchangethings.
However,thisrealizationisnotalwayssufcienttochangehabitsorapproaches.
Theycanonlychangewhattheyhavecontrolover,andmanyfeelthattheyhavenocontrolovertheirteachingworkload.
Theseaccountswillbeseenbysomeasnothingmorethan'excuses',butwehavechosentodevotesometimetounpackingthesepositions.
Inthecurrenthighereducationclimate,academicsareawareofthepotentialcostofnotdoingresearch.
Thissuggeststhatthosewhochoosenottodoresearchwillhavesolidargumentsforthatchoice.
Itisclearthatthereareacademicswhodecidethatteachingwillpermanentlydisplaceresearch.
Whilewewouldacknowledgetheirfreedomtomakethischoice,weareconcernedthattheymaybemissingoutonanexperiencethatcouldenhancetheirteaching.
Inpractice,whatmayhappenisthatthosewhosaythatteachingleavesthemnotimeforresearchmaywellhavetowriteaboutorresearchtheirteachingroleforthepurposeofdemonstratingtheircontinuingcompetence.
Becausethisrequirementisnotyetroutine,thereisperhapsadelayininitiatingthistypeofresearchorscholarship.
However,thereareacademicswhointerpretthisdiscussionasmaking'excuses'nottodoresearch:Foralotofpeople,talkingaboutwritingisthesameasdoingit.
Theyseewritingasverydifcult,withcompetingdemands,whichistrue,butthetaskisjustdoingit.
Idonotnditinterestingtolistentoproblemsandreasonsandexcuses.
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Theyjusttalkthetalk.
Similarly,thereareacademicswho,whileacknowledgingthatmakingtimeforresearchwhilecarryingaheavyteachingloadisa'worry',usemoremoderatetermstoexpresstheimportanceofnotonlydoingresearchbutalsopublishingit:Theonlywaythatyou'regoingtocontinuetohavearewardingjobinhereisbyreectingonyourexperienceandpracticeandputtingitoutintothepublicdomainwherepeoplecancommentandgiveyoufeedback.
ACADEMICWRITERS'EXPERIENCESOFTHETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSION167Whatcanyoulearnfromouraccountofacademics'experiencesandper-spectivesontheteaching–researchtensionThereisateaching–researchtension,butit'snottheonlytensionforwriters.
Tensionliesinthegapbetweenperceivedinstitutionalvaluesandpersonalvalues.
Avoidanceleadstouncertainty,insecurityandlowself-esteem.
'Utility'can,andperhapsshould,bebalancedbyscholarly'value'.
Onlytheindividualwritercanresolvetheteaching–researchtension.
Onlyindividualacademicscanworkouthowtobalancetheutilityandscholarlyvalueoftheirresearch.
Onlyyoucanworkouthowtoalignyourvalueswiththoseofthescholarlycommunityandcalculatethebenetthatmightbringtoboth.
Thepurposeofthissectionwastoshedlightononecomplexanddifcultissueinordertoassistthosewhohavenotyetfully,orrecently,examinedinternalizedteaching–researchtensions.
Wemayhaveidentiedareaswhereyouwouldbenetfromsupport:Professionalsandserviceusersandcarersneednotonlymotivationtoundertakesuchwritingbutalsopracticalsupportintakingstepsnecessarytoenablethistohappen.
Suchwriting,ifrootedincriticalreexivityoneverydaypractice,enrichesandinformsthecontinuousdevelopmentof.
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practiceandprovidesvaluablecolourandtexturetothelandscapeoftheevidencebase.
(Waldman,2005:980)Waldmanconcludesthatthe'complexity'ofthismodeliscrucial,remindingusthatweneedmorethanencouragement,support,motivationorevensanc-tionsandrewardstodoresearch;weneedamodelforresearchandwritingthatisitselfcomplex,inthesenseofintegratingthedifferentaspectsofresearch,includingwriting.
Thekeymaybeintheindividualacademic'sabilitytointegratewritingineverydaypractice,bothcognitivelyandbehaviourally.
Forthosewhohavenotyetdoneso,wepropose,thatwritingaboutteachingisonewayofachievingthis.
Thiscouldbeonewayofachieving'continuousdevelopment'notonlyofcontentbutalsoofyourwritingprocess.
Theteaching–researchtensioncoulditselfbeasubjectforscholarlywriting.
Inthenalsectionwesuggestwaysinwhichyoucandothis,or,ifyoualreadydo,waysinwhichyoucanextendthatwork.
168USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONSTeaching–researchsynergiesIwantsomethingthatcouldtbackintomyteachinginsomeway.
Academicsareoftensearchingforwaystointegrateteachingandresearch.
Writingaboutyourteachingcanbeawayintowritingandneednotstopyoudoingothertypesofwriting,researchorscholarship.
Infact,writingaboutteachingmayagainbeawayoftransformingabarrierintoalever.
Thisisonewayofdevelopingyourwritingskills,conrmingyourcommitmenttowritingandgeneratingregularoutputs.
WhileChapter8consideredhowyoumightreconceptualizewritingthroughteaching,thissectionexploreshowyoumightreconceptualizeteachingthroughwriting.
Insteadofallowingteachingtodriveyouawayfromwriting,youcanbuildbridgesbetweenthetwo.
Ifyouareacommittedteacher,rstandforemost,thereistheaddedincentiveofwritingaboutasubjectyouvalue.
Youwillbemotivatedtoupdateyourskillsandknowledgefromtimetotime,andthistoocanbethesubjectofwritinginyourteachingportfolio.
Inthecurrentcultureofhighereducationitisassumedthatyouareaprofes-sionallyqualiedteacher,committedtocontinuallyupdatingyourskills.
Thismeansthatyouarelikelytohavetodemonstrateyourcompetenciesintheteachingroleregularly,throughoutyourcareer.
Continuingprofessionaldevelopmentisnowexpectedofyou.
Itmaynolongerbepossibletotakeanythingotherthanascholarlyapproachtoteaching.
Guidanceonputtingtogetherateachingportfoliowillbeprovidedbyyourdiscipline,institutionorprofessionalbody.
Generalguidanceisalsoavailable(e.
g.
MorssandMurray,2005).
WritingforyourteachingportfolioWhataretheimplicationsofthisbook/chapterforyourteachingYoucouldstartbywritingnotesonyourresponsesto[keyteachingissues].
Ifyoudonotseeany,itcouldbeinterestingtoexplainandjustifyyourimpressionsinashortpieceofwriting,perhapsevenamini-argument.
Thesewritingactivitiesmight,inanycase,promptyoutoreectonthedirectionsyourreactionsarerunningin.
Thiswritingneednotbeonerous,ordetailed,butitcanbequiterevealing.
Youmightnditusefultohaveamorefocuseddiscussionabout1theplaceofwritinginyourlifeatthistime;and2past,currentorpotentialteaching–researchtensions.
Thismighthelpyouwith'relapseprevention'(coveredinChapter9)inyouracademicwriting.
TEACHING–RESEARCHSYNERGIES169HasthischapterconsolidatedyourviewsorraisednewquestionsYoucouldidentifyandexplorequestionsthischapterhasansweredorraisedforyou.
Thisisnotintendedasafollowonfromtherstactivity;thesearesuggestionsforwritingaboutyourteachingindifferentformsandwithdiffer-entfocuses.
Whatiscentraltoallofthesepromptsisthatyouusewritingtoexplore,andpossiblydevelop,yourthinkingaboutyourteachinginrelationtoyourresearchandwriting.
DidoursummariesoftheexperiencesofacademicsintheprevioussectionofthischapterresonatewithyouIfso,youcouldcompareyourinterpretationoftheteaching–researchtensionwithours.
Ifnot,youcouldarticulate,inabriefpieceofwritingthatmaybeassubjectiveandastheoreticalasyouwish,forthepurposesofthisexercise,yourdenitionofteaching–researchtensions,drawingonyourexperiencesand/orobservations.
Improvinggoal-settingandadjustingvaluesarecomplexprocessesThisiswhyitmightbeworthtakingtimetodescribeandanalysetheminsomedetailandinwriting.
Inaddition,giventhatchangeoccursincycles,theremaybevalueincontinuingthistypeofreectivewriting.
DidanypointinthisorotherchapterssetyouthinkingCouldthatbethesubjectoffuturestudyorreadingHaveyoudiscusseditwithcolleagues,beforeorsinceWhataretheimplicationsforhowyoubal-anceteachingandresearchorwritingWhatisthe'scholarshipofteaching'WhatdoesthismeanHowcanyoundoutmoreaboutitHowcanyoujointhatscholarlydebateWhatarethegreatdebatesWhoaretheparticipantsHowmuchofthisis,orshouldbe,discipline-specicHaveyouusedwritingstrategiesdescribedinthisbookwithyourstudentsWhichone(s)ForwhatpurposeWhathappenedWhatdoyouthinkthatmeansWhatdidyoulearnfromthatWhatliteraturedidyoudrawonWhichofourreferencesdidyoufollowupHasthisaffectedyourownwriting–forexample,yourwritingpractices–inanywayWouldyouusethisactivityagainwithyourstudentsWithundergraduatesonly,orcoulditalsohavepotentialforpostgraduatesForexample,Elbow'swritingonfreewritingDocumentwhatyoudid,includingyourrationaleandyourobservations–whatcanyou170USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONSThesearewaysofwritingaboutyourteachingforthepurposesofdevelop-inganddemonstratingyourunderstandingandcompetence.
Ifyouwanttoachieveallofthis,youneedtogivesomethoughttoseveralquestions:Itisalsoinstructivetowriteaboutteachingforpublication,demonstratingscholarshipofteaching,submittingtopeerreviewinthiseldasyoudoinyourown.
Thisisanotherwayofputtingyourideastothetest.
Itisalsoanothersourceoffeedbackonyourabilitytoconstructacademicarguments,tosupplyevidencetosupportyourassertionsandtocritiqueotherliterature.
Wehavefoundthatacademicswhoundertakeacourseofstudyonteachingandlearninginhighereducationareoftenstimulatedbyascholarlyapproachtothiseld.
Somearesurprisedtondthatthereisaliteratureonthissubjectatall.
Mostarequicklyengagedbyqualityresearchandpublications,particu-larlyifthesesuggestsolutionstoproblemstheyface,orofferdirectionsfortakingtheirteachingforward.
Forexample,academicsstudyingamastersmoduleonAcademicWritingweremotivatedtotrysomeofthenewstrategiestheyhadrecentlylearnedintheirownteaching.
Theyusedfreewritingwithundergraduateclasses,forexample.
Learningaboutthisorotheraspectsoftheteachingrole–bymeansofaformalcourse,withseminardiscussions,informalconversations,assessmentandreectivewriting–canhelpyoutomakeconnectionsbetweenyourresearchandteachingroles(Murray,2001).
Onceyouseethatthereisabodyofknowledgethatyoucanlearnaboutandthatcanberelatedtoyourresearchrole–inwritingforpublication–itbecomesmeaningful.
Youcanalsoconnectyourownwritingwiththatofyourstudents.
Intheseways,writing,asasubjectofstudy,becomesafulcrumbetweenteachingandaddtothedebatesonstudentwritingDoyouhavethebasisforapaperonthissubjectCouldyoupresentataconferenceWhichonesTeachingandlearninginhighereducationconferences,studentwritingconferencesorsub-jectconferencesAudienceandpurposeWheredothesewritingsgoWhatistheirpurposeWhoaretheyforShouldanyoneelseseesome/allofyourwritingWhatcriteriawillothersbringtoyourwritingaboutteachingDoyourwritingscontainpotentialtalkingpointsforannualreviewOristhatthelastplaceyouwouldexpresssomeoftheseideasTEACHING–RESEARCHSYNERGIES171research.
Writingaboutthesemattersisameansofdevelopingyourunder-standingevenfurther.
Thistypeofcourse,particularlyoneonacademicwriting,promptsyoutoreectexplicitlyonwhatyoulearnedaboutwriting–ifanything–asanundergraduatestudentandtomakeconnectionsbetweentheexperienceoflearningasstudentandasacademic:ThewritingprocesswassomethingIhadn'tgivenmuchthoughttobeforestartingthecourse.
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Oneofthersttopicsexploredwashowisaca-demicwritinglearned,theanswer,certainlywithintheUKseemstobebytrialanderror.
Onreection,Icannotrecallbeinggivenformalinstruc-tiononthespecicsofacademicwritingduringmyundergraduatecareer.
Thistrialanderrorprocesswasnotjustexclusivelyconnedtoacademicwriting,butextendstoallformsofwriting.
Foraskillthatissoimportant,particularlyinacademiclife,Iamstillsurprisedathowlittletimeisgiventoformallydevelopingwritingtechniquesandthetransferenceofthoseskillstostudents.
(Murray,2001:35)Withregardtowriting,moduleparticipantsidentiedsevenstrategiesthathadprovedusefulintheirteaching,orwritingorboth(Murray,2001:37):1Discussingwritingwithothers.
2Gettingfeedbackonwritingfromothers.
3Freewriting(Elbow,1973).
4Generativewriting(Boice,1990).
5Goalsettingforwriting.
6Usingaframeworkforwritingabstracts(Brown,1994/95).
7Discussingfeedbackwiththecoursetutor.
Theyidentiedspecicinterventionstheyhadstartedtomakeintheirteach-ing,resultingfromtheAcademicWritingmodule(Murray,2001:39):WhenI'venishedaclassandgotthemtowrite50wordsonthelearningfromthatclass.
Iinsistthatundergraduateclasseswriteinclass(5minutes).
Thisisadramaticchange.
Priortothisitwaslecturediscussionnotes.
Iusewritinginclassasadynamic:writingindifferentforms,withdiffer-entpurposes,linkingbacktotheassignment,summingup,makinglinks.
Alsowithdissertationstudents:wediscussandIpromptthemtowritethereandthen.
Manypotentialteaching–researchsynergiescanstimulateyourwritingandyourunderstandingofwritinginthelearningprocess.
172USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONSHowever,thesesynergiesonlyoccurifyouconstructthem.
Onlyyoucancreatethesesynergiesinthecontextofyourownteaching–writinglife.
Theextenttowhichyourobservationsandexperiencesconstitute'research'isaquestionyouneedtoanswer,butthereareexamplesindifferentelds.
Thefollowingexamplesmayhelpyoutoderivepromptsforthinkingandwritingaboutteachingandlearninginhighereducation:Thisisbothareviewof.
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aswellasanattempttoplacetheissueinapracticalandreasonablecontext.
(Ziegler,2001)Inyourwritingyoucanreviewliteratureorconcepts,framingorndinga'place'foranissueyoufeelhasnotbeenresolved.
Atheoreticalmodelisoffered.
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(GavinandLister,2001)Youcandeveloporcommentononeormoretheoreticalmodelsavailableforteachinginyourdiscipline,orperhapscurrentlyusedinotherdisciplines.
Theauthordrawsupon30yearsofexperiencein.
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(Anglin,1999)Summarizeandcritiquetrendsyouperceiveinteachingandlearningduringyourexperienceasahighereducationteacher.
Thisarticlelooksathow.
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Thereisadiscussionofpracticalskillsandtrainingdirections.
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(Pazaratz,2001)Wherearethepotentialteaching–writingsynergiesTestingnewknowledgeinclassroomcontexts.
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learningmoreaboutwritingasyoudo.
Discussingwritingwithpostgraduatestudents–openingupyourownknowledgeofprinciplesandpracticesofacademicwritingtothem.
Directingscholarlyattentiontowhathappensintheclassroom,analysingteachingandlearninginthedisciplines.
Writingcanbeavehicleforintegratingteachingandresearch.
Workingonwritingwithstudentsleadingtovariouslearningoutcomes.
Writingtogetpeopletothinkinmoreresearch-orientedways.
Writingcanbeabridgeforbringingallacademicactivitiestogether.
TEACHING–RESEARCHSYNERGIES173Describe'practicalskills'and'trainingdirections'of,forexample,researchsupervisorsorexternalandinternalexaminersor,morespecically,reviewthediversicationofthedoctorateandexploreimplicationsforexaminationofdifferentdoctoratesinyourdiscipline.
Theseexamplessuggestpracticalwaystostimulatescholarlydialoguetofeedyourwriting.
Youcanwriteinscholarlywayswithoutwaitinguntilyouproducetheformsof'research'thatyoudoinyourowndiscipline.
Ifyoupositionyourselfasapractitionerofhighereducationteaching,andiftheseideasarenotcommoncurrencyinyourdepartmentorinstitution,youdonothavetonavigatethisterritoryalone.
Numerousgroupsandbodiessupportresearchandwritingonteachingandlearninginhighereducation.
Accessingtheirmaterialswillhelpyoutointegrateyourteachingandresearchroles:Furthercomplexityisbroughtintothepictureoncewestarttounpickthedifferencesbetweenresearchwhichisacademic-ledandresearchwhichispractitioner-ledorpractice-based.
Inthesemodels,researchandpracticearenolongerconceivedasisolatedbutasintegratedactivitiesthatborrowfromeachother,informeachotherandsupporteachother.
(FurlongandOancea,2005:8)Writingcontinuestobeamodeofinquiry,inteachingandlearningasinyour'home'discipline.
Writingkeepsyoumakingconnectionsattheindi-vidual,notonlyinstitutionalortheoretical,levels.
ChecklistDon'ttakeontoomuch–thisiseasiersaidthandone.
Alignyourdenitionof'toomuch'withothers'.
Talktoyourheadofdepartment.
Ifyouonlygeta'buzz'fromteaching,reviewyourdenitionof'research'.
Establishwhatvalueresearchhasforyou,theuniversity,yourprofession.
Findorcreatesynergiesbetweenyourteachingandresearch(seeChapter3).
Startateachingportfolioandwriteaboutyourteachinginanyform.
Ifyoualreadyhaveateachingportfolio,considerbroadeningthecontents.
Identifyaspectsofteachingandlearningthatyou'dliketoknowmoreabout.
Writeaboutyourpractice–makelinkswiththeliterature.
Writeascholarlypaperaboutyourteachingandsubmitittoajournal.
174USINGWRITINGTORECONCILETEACHING–RESEARCHTENSIONS11AdvancingandretreatingTheessentialdynamicofacademicwritingIntroductionRiskandopportunityinacademicwritingUnderstandingyourownwritingcontextBecominganacademicwriterUnderstandingyourownwritingprocessesNotatanycostConclusionIntroductionWepresenttwomodelsinthischapterthatwehopewillhelpyoutointegratemanyoftheideasthatwehaveproposedanddiscussedthroughoutthisbookinordertosituateyouracademicwritingandtomanagetheprocessesthatitrequires.
Firstly,thestructuralmodelofacademicwriting(Figure11.
1)drawstogetherthethemesthatwehaveexploredearlierandalsoextendsthatexplor-ation,particularlybyfocusingonthemoderatorsthatcaninuencewhetheryoutransformyourinitialwritingeffortsintoproductivewritingoutputs.
Weemphasizethateventhoughacademiclifeischaracterizedbycertaincontextsandconditions,itisalsopossibletochangeandinuencethosecon-textsinordertosupportandsustainyourwriting.
Theprocessmodelofaca-demicwriting(Figure11.
2)reiteratestherhythmsofwritingthathavealsobeenanessentialthemeinthisbook.
Anditprovidesexamplesofthekindsofprogressiveunfoldingofwriting-relatedactivities.
Again,thismodeldrawstogetherideasthathavebeeninvokedinearlierchaptersinordertosetoutmoreclearlywhatwemeanwhenwetalkaboutactiveandreectivephasesofwritingandtheessentialprocessofmovingbackandforthfromonemodeofengagementtotheother.
Youhavealreadyseenthatacademicwritingrequiresanengagementwithaseriesofactivities,manyofwhichareverydifferentfromeachotherandmanyofwhichrequireactivationatdifferentstagesinthewritingprocess.
TheparadoxesthatweexploredinChapter1echoagaininFigure11.
2,andwehopethatyoucanreadilyidentifysomeofthetensions,pullsandcontradictionsthatthesedifferentactivitiesmightpresentforyou.
Whilemany'writersonwriting'havealreadyandregularlypointedoutthattherearedifferentphasesofwriting,andmanymentiontheiterativenatureofthewritingprocess,wehavetriedtoenrichtheseestablishedinsightsbyilluminatingthe'advance-retreat'dynamicinawaythatcapturesarangeofassociated,unfoldingbehaviours.
Hereinthisnalchapterwecaptureanddisplaythisdynamicinaprocessmodel.
Itisdenedbyseveraliterationsofthe'advance-retreat'dynamic.
Essentially,themodelswepresentinthischapterwillhelpvisuallytomapout,linkupandextendthemanyinterconnectedideasaboutacademicwritingthatwehavepresentedearlier.
RiskandopportunityinacademicwritingSofar,wehavesharedandexploredinsights,ideasandstrategiesthatmanywritershavefoundusefulandproductiveinhelpingtodevelopacademicwrit-ingstrategies.
Asyouwillhaveseen,someofwhatwehavesharedrelatestobroadconceptualizationsofwhatwritingis(andwehavepresenteditasaniterativeprocessthatinvolvesadvancesandretreatsofdifferentkinds);somerelatestospecicindividualandinstitutionalstrategiesthatdirectlyfeedwrit-inguencyandtheproductionofwrittentext(forexample,writers'retreats,writingprogrammesandwriters'groups),andsomerelatestothewaysinwhichitispossibletonegotiatetimeandspaceforwritinginthecontextofyourlife.
Wehavetriedtoapproachtheprocessofwritinginquitecom-prehensiveways,referringnotjusttothemechanicsofacademicrhetoric,butalsotoworkingcontextsandprocessesthatmighthelpyoutobecomeaninsightfulandself-awarewriterofacademicwork.
Butgiventhatacademicwritingoperatesinacontextofunequalpowerandrequiresatleastsomeriskonthepartofwritersthemselves,thisknowledgeandtheseideasandinsights,whilepotentiallyhelpful,willnotequipyouforeveryeventuality.
Evenwhenyouhaveconsidered,selectedandactivatedsomeofthestrat-egiesandactivitiesthatwehavesuggestedinthisbooksofar,theywillnotprotectyoucompletelyfromthepitfallsandhazardsassociatedwiththewritingprocessinacademia.
Onthepositiveside,though,neitherwillthey176ADVANCINGANDRETREATINGprepareyouforallthepossibilitiesandpotentialthatyourwritingmayalsocontain.
Fromworkingwithmanyacademicsondevelopingtheirwriting,ourwordsofcautionarethese:nomatterhowwellequippedyouare,ornomatterhowableyouareplanningtobecomeintacklingthechallengesofacademicwriting,itstillcarriesrisks.
ButourwordsofencouragementinPartIstillstand.
Thatis,thateventhoughtherearerisks,theyaregenerallyworthtaking.
Wheneveryouwrite,youruntheriskthatyouwillbeunsupported,resented,unrewarded,inappropriatelycriticizedorevenbelittled.
Butyoualsocreatethepossibilitythatyouwillbeginnewconversations,forgenewlinks,articu-lateideasinnewwaysorcontexts,andgaintheendorsementandsatisfactionthatcomefromhavingyourideasheard.
Youruntheriskthatitwilltakeyouawayfromotherimportantprioritiesinyourlife,butyoucreatethepossibilitythatitwilluncovermeaningfulprioritiesforyou.
Youruntheriskthatyouwillincurcoststhatmaynotberedeemableatalaterdate(liketimewithyourchildrenoryourpartner,likethepursuitofothergoalsthatarenotrelatedtowriting),butyoualsocreatethepossibilitythatitwillgiverisetonewfree-domsandnewoptionsforyou.
Yourunthesometimessignicantriskthatanonymousreviewerswillberateyou,misinterpretyourwordsandcriticizeyouforthingsyoudidnotsay,orforthingsyoudidsay,butyoualsocreatethepossibilitythatyouwilldrawattentiontointerestingandimportantwork,andthatyouwillmakethatcontributionbeyondyourclassroomsorthelimitsofyourlocalnetwork.
Ifyouunderstandtheoddsandthebalancebetweenopportunitiesandrisksinyourwriting,thenyoucanreduceyourchancesof'gettingburned',butyouwillnotcompletelyeliminatethem.
Sobepreparedforthehazardsandrisksthatacademicwritingcausesyoutorun,butdon'tshyawayfromtaking(andcontinuingtotake)theleap.
Thispreparednesswillmakeyoundwaysofprogressingevenwhenyouhavebeendiscouraged,andtoknowwhenyouneedtostopforawhiletoregroupandtoreconsideryourapproachoreventodetachyourselffromthewritingprocessaltogether.
Importantly,aswellasbecomingstrategicandunderstandinghowto'playtheacademicwritinggame',equippingyourselfwithanawarenessoftherisksandopportunitiesalsocreatesaframeworkinwhichyoumayengageactivelyanddeliberatelywiththeprocessesandrulesofscholarship.
Simplyput,academicwritingsharpensyourpracticeasascholar.
UnderstandingyourownwritingcontextButofcoursewecannottalkaboutrisks,hazardsandopportunitiesasiftheywerethesamethingsforallacademicwriters.
Quitethecontrary,yourowncombinationofrisksandhazardsmaybeuniquetoyou,asmaybethepowerrelationshipsanddynamicsthatcontributetoyourworkingcontext.
WeUNDERSTANDINGYOUROWNWRITINGCONTEXT177propose,however,thatatleastsomeofthefeaturesthatareoutlinedinFigure11.
1arealsolikelytobeafeatureofyourenvironment.
Thisdiagramrepresentsaframeworkthatyoumightuseto'deconstruct'thecontextsinwhichyouwrite.
Bycombininginsightsfromtheoriesofmotivationandengagement(e.
g.
PorterandLawler,1968;Czikzsentimihalyi,1990andGoleman,1995)andbyapplyingtheseideastotheinterrogationofacademics'accountsoftheirwritingtriggers,prohibitorsandmoderators,weidentifyarangeofwriting-relatedissuesandconditionsandweshowthewaysinwhichtheyarelikelytobeconnected.
Itispossibletodifferentiatebetweenfactorsthatarelikelytoencourage(orprohibit)theinitiationofyourwriting,andfactorsthatfacilitatethetransla-tion(ornot)oftheseeffortsintoproductive,useful,professionallydevelopingoutputs.
Thedevelopmentofthismodelisbasedonboththeoryandevidencethattherearecommontriggersandblocksthatfacilitateandprohibittheinitiationofwriting;andthattherearecommonlyinvokedmoderators(bothindividualandenvironmental)thatcaninuencewhetherwritingactivityleadstoproductiveoutputs.
Inaddition,therearedifferentkindsofrewardsassociatedwithwriting,whichcanbroadlybedividedintotwocategories:instrinsicandextrinsic(seeWatson,2002).
Ourqualitativeanalysisofaccountsofacademicwritingsug-gestalsothattherearefeedbackloopswhichinvolveanalysingtherewardstowhichwritingactivityhasgivenriseinthepast,inawaythatguidesfuturedecisionsaboutwriting.
Thisechoestheprinciplesassociatedwithgeneraltheoriesofworkmotivation(see,forexample,Morleyetal.
,2004)andappliesthoseideastothespecicactivityofacademicwriting.
BecominganacademicwriterWhatthemodelalsoattemptstoemphasizeisthattheprocessof'becomingawriter'isnotsomethingthathappenstoyouonceandthensubsequentlydenesyouforevermore.
Writingisanactivitythatcanstartorstopatanytimedependingontheparticularcombinationofchoices,activities,prioritiesandconditionsoperatingwithinyourlife.
Sometimesthesestartsandstopsservetofeedwritingandrespondtotherhythmsofyourworkandyourlife.
Butsometimestheyaremoreproblematicthanthat.
Justasnon-writerscanbecomeactivewriters,soisitpossibleforactiveandsometimesevenverysuccessfulwriterstoabandontheirwork.
Tobuildasustainedapproachtoacademicwritingthen,itisusefultoanalysewhatyourownpersonaltriggersandblocksmightbe,andtounderstandthenatureoftheindividualandenvironmentalmoderatorsthatrelatetoyourprofessionalexperience,rememberingthatyoucaninuencethemthroughyourowninsightsanddecisions,andrecognizingthattheyarelikelytochangeovertime.
178ADVANCINGANDRETREATINGWethinkthatitisalsousefultothinkdeliberatelyandexplicitlyaboutthekindsofrewardsyouvaluemostandtheonesthataremostlikelytobecon-nectedtoyourwritingeffortsandoutputs.
Thepossibilitythatsomeofthesewillberewardsthatcomefromyourexternalenvironmentandthatotherswillbeintrinsictoyourownexperience,esteemandsatisfaction,issomethingthatisalsoworthyourattentionandreection.
Therewardsyoureceiveandthosethatyouvaluemost,arelikelytohaveastronginuenceonyourcommitmenttowritingandtothescholarshipandengagementthatthisrequires.
SothefactorsthatwehighlightinFigure11.
1andtheinterrelationshipsbetweenthemarepotentiallyveryimportantforyou.
Theymaybeabletohelpyoutodiagnoseyourownwritingcontextandtocreatescaffoldingthatwillhelpyousustainyourwriting,ifonexamination,youdecidethatsuchscaffoldingdoesnotexist.
Figure11.
1Astructuralmodelofacademicwriting:framingyouracademicwritingcontextAdaptedfromMoore(2003)BECOMINGANACADEMICWRITER179UnderstandingyourownwritingprocessesThefeelingofgoingforwardsandthenbackwardsagainissomethingthattakesgettingusedto.
Zerubavel(1999)notesthatrevising,revisitingandre-examiningwrittenworkisnotsomethingthatwearetypicallytrainedtodoasundergraduatesorevenathigherlevelsinouracademicdevelopment.
Besides,the'retreat'modeofacademicwritingischaracterizedbyaformofengage-mentthattendsnottoprevailinmanyWesternculturesandworkclimates,notleastacademicones.
Retreatingistaughtinfrequentlyandarguablycon-trastswiththenormsandvaluesthatreigninacademicsettings.
And,becauseweconsiderittobeanessential,balancingdynamicwhichmoderatesandnourishestheactive,progressivephaseofadvance,mostpeopleneedatleastsometrainingorgroupsupportinordertogetusedtoit.
Wehopebynowthatyouhavemanyideasabouthowyoucandothisandaboutwhatthatmeansforyourwritingprocesses,developmentandproduct-ivity.
Schedulingintimeforretreat(seeChapter1),planningtogetengagedinaretreatphase(seeChapter3)andretreatinginordertoadvance(seeChapter5),areallwaysinwhichyoucanbuildretreatingactivitesintoyouracademicwriting.
Figure11.
2showsthatsuccessivestagesofadvanceandretreatmightthem-selvesalsobecharacterizedbydifferentkindsofactivities.
Certainstagesofadvancerequireunbridledbrainstorming,whilelaterstagesmightrequiretheactiveintegrationofthecritiqueofothersintoyourwriting.
Certainstagesofretreatrequirelisteningtootherperspectivesonyourwritingforthersttime,whilesubsequentstagesofretreatmayrequireare-examinationofthosecri-tiquesandinsightsinwaysthatmightevencauseyoutocomefullcircle.
Figure11.
2isasimplicationoftheiterativeprocessthatmayofcoursebemuchmorecomplexandhavemanymoreiterationsthanwehavepresented.
Advancecanstartwithmanypossibleactivitiesthatwehavenotidentiedinthemodel.
(Hjortshoj,2001,refersto'prewriting'asanythingthatpreparesustowriteorthathappensinadvanceofanactivewritingprocess.
Thiscouldarguablybeanythingwehaveeverdone,thoughtorfelt.
)Similarly,therealexperiencesofwritersmeanthatthe'release'ofyourwritingorsubmissionforpublication,setsawholenewseriesofiterationsinmotionthatarealsonotdisplayedinFigure11.
2.
Thewritingprocessesinwhichyouengage,likethosewehaveidentiedinFigure11.
2,willimpactonthewritingcontextsinwhichyouoperate(asdenedbythefeaturesdisplayedinFigure11.
1).
Youmayndthatthesuc-cessfulpublicationofapieceofwritingservestointroduceyoutoanewcom-munityofwriters/scholarsthatsignicantlyshiftsyourwritingcontext.
Youmaydiscoverthataspectsofyourcontext,liketheestablishmentofastrongmentor,canimpactontheprocessesyouusetowrite.
Youmightdiscoverthattheintrinsicsenseofachievementthatyouexperienceintheproductionand180ADVANCINGANDRETREATINGsuccessfulpublicationofwrittenoutputcausesyoutopersistwithfuturepro-jectswherewithoutthatreward,youmighthavebeenlesstenaciousinthedevelopmentofyourworkandyourideas.
Notethatasabackdroptoeachofthediagramspresentedabove,therearethreeoverarchingstrategicdynamics(PettigrewandWhipp,1991)thatyoumightconsiderapplyingtoyourwriting:thecontextwithinwhichyouwrite,yourwritingprocessesandthecontentofyourwriting.
Simplequestionsaboutwhyyouwrite,howyouwriteandwhatyouwritemightbeausefulstartingpointforanalysingtheotherdynamicsthatwepresentintheguresinthischapter.
Figure11.
2Aprocessmodelofacademicwriting:trackingyouracademicwritingprocessesUNDERSTANDINGYOUROWNWRITINGPROCESSES181NotatanycostAttheverybeginningofthisbookwehighlightedthatcareerdevelopmentinacademiaisaprocessthatinuencesandisinuencedbyyouracademicwrit-ing.
Butyouprobablydon'tneedustotellyouthat.
Manydiscussionsinacademiafocusontherightsandwrongsoftherulesassociatedwithdecisionsrelatingtoreward,promotionandtenureandthewaysinwhichsuchrulesareapplied.
Manycommentatorsarguethatacademicinstitutionsreecttheinequitiesandinconsistenciesoforganizationsingeneral,andthattheideathatmeritocraticprinciplesapplyisnaveintheextreme.
Itisinthiscontextthatthepursuitofrewardsliketenureorpromotionisbothcompetitiveandfraught.
AckerandArmenti(2004)haverecentlycommentedthat'theprocessbywhichtenureisobtainedhasbecomeatormentingritualthatseemstohavegoneoutofcontrol'andsaythatthey'seepeoplewhoarealreadycommittedtoexcellenceandproductivity,riskingtheirhealthandhappinesstoarriveatevenhigherandevermoremystifyingperformancestandards'(p.
19).
Academicwritinganditscklepromisesofexternalrewardshouldnotbepursuedatallcosts.
Veryfewthingsareimportantenoughtoriskhealthandwell-being.
Wehopethatwehaveencouragedyoutorecognizethatyoucanbecomeaproductiveandsuccessfulacademicwriterwithoutincurringthatrisk.
ConclusionThepurposeofthisnaldiscussionhasnotonlybeentosynthesizeandcrys-tallizetheinsights,advice,strategiesandideasthathavebeenpresentedinthisbook.
Ithasalsotakentheseideasfurtherandattemptedtosituatetheminthestructuralandprocessmodelsofacademicwritingthathavebeenpresented.
Wehaverepresentedacademicwritingassomethingthatincorporatesmanyparadoxesandchallengesthatonceexploredandexamined,ultimatelybecomeeasiertomanagethanmightotherwisehavebeenthecase.
Wehaveexplainedhowcertainlevelsofchaosareinevitableandnecessaryduringaca-demicwritingtasks,andhaveencouragedyoutousethischaosinawaythatbuildsyourideasandinsights,butinawaythatdoesnotprohibittheimpositionofstructureandformonyourwritingprocesses.
Wehaveincorporatedthepracticalimplicationsoftheiterativedynamicsofwriting.
Wehaveemphasizedthatbuildingupasocialsupportsystemtofacili-tatetheebbsandowsofwritingisoftennecessary,perhapsparticularlyatcrucialstagesofthewritingprocess.
182ADVANCINGANDRETREATINGRememberalsothathealthyhabitsmayfail,effectivepatternsmaybreakandwritingstrategiesmayworkwellinonecontextbutnotinothers.
Inacademicwritingthereseemstobeafairlycommonneedforpeopletostartandstop,tojumpinandjumpout,tondtheirownrhythmsofadvancingandretreating.
Ahealthy,productive,satisfyingandpleasurableapproachtoacademicwritingoftensimplymeansbeingabletorecognizeandbecomecomfortablewiththeebbsandowsoftheprocessesinvolved.
Writingprocessesexpressedbyotherauthorsallbuildinthenotionthattherearedifferentstagesinthewritingprocess.
Writerswhohavecommentedinsightfullyonthisprocessincludethosewhoseworkwehaveregularlyinvokedthroughoutthisbook.
Hjortshojnamesthephasesofwritingasprewriting,composing,revising,editingandrelease.
Zerubaveltalksaboutgettingstarted,movingalongandclosing.
Webelievethattheiterativenatureofwritingneedstobemoreexplicitlyrecognizedbothinthetheoryandthepracticeofacademicwriting.
Inordertoutilizethebenetstowhichrevisabilitygivesrise,itneedstobeembraced,notavoided.
Thesedynamicsarewhyacademicwritingcanbesofascinatingandprofessionallyhelpful.
Whatshouldbecelebratedratherthanlamentedisthisinherentopportunityalwaystorevisit,torene,tore-orientate,toredisplayandtore-examinetheworkwehavedoneoraredoing.
Inmanyways,thisrepresentssomeoftheessentialaspectsoflearning.
Itisoftentheverywritingdynamicsthatarefrustratingandsometimesprohibitivethatmayintheendbewhatmakesacademiclifesofullofpotentialforcontinuedgrowth,learninganddevelopment.
Veryfewthingsarelinearinnature,butthereisasymmetrytomostthingsasthereisinwriting.
Foreveryuptheremaybeadown,foreverystepforwardyoumayalsoneedtostepback,foreverywintheremaybealoss.
Recognizingandembracingthiscanhelpyourwritingmotivationtosustainitselfevenunderreorwhencondenceandself-assurednessarelow.
Balance,reciproca-tion,isolationandtogetherness,immersionanddispersion–allofthesearenotjustfeaturesofacademicwriting,theyaretheconditionsofacademiclife.
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190BIBLIOGRAPHYINDEXAbandonedwork,negativefeedback,8,43Abstracts,journalanalysis,58–66Academicvoiceconventions,8development,68–9difculties,29Academybecominganacademicwriter,178–9functionalwritingdynamics,140–1multipleroles,15problemareas,x–xiredenition,140–2researchseeResearchteachingseeTeachingAdvancingacademicwriting,20–35downside,34dynamics,175–83retreatingtoadvance,73–89Anonymousreview,49Audience,46–7BarriersblockageseeWriter'sblockidentication,150Behaviourchangeactionplanning,152decisionalbalance,148healthpromotion,146–7readinesstochange,147–8realisticgoals,150–1relapseprevention,151–2writing,146–52writingconsultation,148–50Behaviouraltheory,22–3Benets,notwriting,149Bookpublicationintegratingwriting,156–6process,157Breaksactionlists,40,41completebreaks,40,41–2insights,42practicaladvice,40–2rest,39–42time,41seealsoRetreatingCognitivedissonance,43Collaborationorganizationalculture,140–2positiveenvironments,xiwriters'retreats,76–7,87Competitionparadoxes,132redenition,139–40Complexities,paradoxes,3–4Concordancing,153Condence,inadequacy,29Consultation,148–50Conventionsoriginality/conventionparadox,9–10requirements,8,56,93–4seealsoGenresCreativitychecklist/strategy,34–5creativepeople,30–2insights,42knowledgecreation,26paradoxes,31positivedimensions,xiiCriticismbeautyofcriticism,47cognitivedissonance,43constructivecritique,133,135negativesurveillance,28publicscrutiny,12–13workabandoned,8,43writer'sblock,26,38seealsoFeedback;ReviewCsikszentmihalyi,M.
,xi,27,31Culture,140–2Decisionalbalance,148Delight,ow,xi,27Dialogue,25–6Disciplinaritychecklist,69genres,55–8journalanalysis,67–68research,54signicance,54–69Discouragement,negativefeedback,43Dislikes,22,27–9Dynamicsadvance/retreat,155,175–83functionalwritingdynamics,140–1iterativeseeIterativedynamicEffort-rewardprobability,23Elbow,Peter,6–7,11,13,45,46,51,137Emailtrailmonitoring,152–6purposes,153–6Emotion,logic/emotionparadox,10–11Enjoyment,elements,30Evaluationwriters'retreats,83writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),107–8Evidencequestioned,123–4Expectations,adjustment,55Experimentation,32–3Facilitatorswriters'groups,111–12writers'retreats,79writingfacilitators,179Feedbackanalysis,45–6cross-disciplinary,118–19effectivefeedbackblocked,44–6enhancement,50fear,45nalizedwriting,44functionalapproaches,46–9guidelines,49negative,8,42–3,49opportunitiesforimprovement,44positive,43professionaldevelopment,48psychology,42–3receptivity/reection,47–8retreating,42–49stayingincharge,48typerequired,45,50–1unhelpful/destructive,49writers'groups,117–18writingconsultation,149writingpartnerships,49writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),101seealsoCriticism;ReviewFlow,delight,xi,27Freewritingexercises,41,102,133–5uency/condence,13,100,133teaching,132,133–5writingprompts,41,99,134Genderdifferences,writers'retreats,75,85Generativewriting,100Genresconventionalrequirements,8disciplinarity,55–8kindsofwriting,32–3Goleman,D.
,11Heroes,141Humility,46Individualism,132Inertia,28Integratingwritingbehaviourchange,146–52bookpublication,156–6checklist,158emailtrail,152–6lifestyle,143–58motivation,145–6Inter-disciplinarygroups,118–19192INDEXInteractivity,25–6Iterativedynamiccontinuousnature,4–6importance,xmotivation,25paradoxes,xii,5,18–19writingexercises,17–19writing/research,117Journalanalysisabstracts,58–66disciplinarity,67–68genre,55–8momentumlost,55writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),93Journalpublicationabstracts,58–66analysisseeJournalanalysisbranding,58challenge,90–2characteristics,57evaluation,56formula,90targeting,56,57,80–1,99writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),90–108writingrequirements,56,93–4Knowledge,creation,26Lifestyle,integratingwriting,143–58Likes,22,24–7Literatureacademicwriting,93literaturesearching,9Logic,logic/emotionparadox,10–11Moderators,179Momentumlostjournalanalysis,55rest,40Monitoringemailtrail,152–6meetings,103–4Motivationachievement,26–7advancingwriting,22–4behaviouraltheory,22–3careerprospects,23–4,25–6ow,27integratingwriting,145–6iterativedynamic,25knowledgecreation,26likes/dislikes,22,24–9rewards,22–4writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),99MotivationalConsultationProcess(MCP),148–50Negativefeedback,8,42–3,49Networking,137–9NewpublicmanagementxiNorman,Ralph,12,13–14Opportunity/risk,176–7Organizationalculture,140–2Originality,originality/conventionparadox,9–10Over-engagement,40Paradoxescompetitive/individualistic,132complexities,3–4creativity,31easy/difcult,11–12exploration,6–14iterativedynamic,xii,5,18–19logic/emotion,10–11originality/convention,9–10personalchallenges,19public/private,12–14starting/nishing,7–9PeerreviewseeReviewProductivityacademicroles,xiiilongproductiveswathes,17,74longunproductiveswathes,16shortproductivebursts,17shortunproductivebursts,15–16time,14–17Professionaldevelopmentacademicvoice,68–9feedback,48notatanycost,182writers'retreats,74,83,84Public/privateparadox,12–14INDEX193Receptivity,47–8Redenitionacademy,140–2checklist,142collaboration,137competition,139–40mentoring/networking,137–9writingpractices,131–42writingthroughteaching,132–6Researchchecklist,174disciplinarity,54iterativedynamic,117researchassessment(RAE),165teaching/researchsynergies,169–74teaching/researchtensions,159–75writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),97Retreatingchecklist/strategy,52deningretreatphase,37dynamics,175–83exercises,50–1feedback,42–49fromadvancetoretreat,38–9importance,xii,36–53rest,39–42retreatingtoadvance,73–89retreatsseeWriters'retreatsseealsoBreaksReviewanonymousreview,49consistency,120evidencequestioned,123–4negativity,121–7peerreview,120–7pre-peerreview,116–19responses,126seealsoCriticism;FeedbackRevisability,5Rewardseffort-rewardprobability,23extrinsic/intrinsic,24,179motivation,22–4Rewriting,re-evaluation,38Risk/opportunity,176–7Rituals,141–2Sabbaticalsystem,74Slowingdown,39Snackwriting,15Strategymatrix,16Structuralmodel,179StudentsseeTeachingSurveillanceinstitutional,83negative,28Symbols,141Targeting,journalpublication,56,57,80–1,99Teachingchecklist,174–5constructivecritique,133,135criteriaforgoodwriting,135freewriting,132,133–5kindsofwriting,135newcourses,165portfolios,169–71reectingthroughwriting,135–6studentpaperseries,136teachingbuzz,163–4teachingimperative,164–5teaching/researchsynergies,169–74teaching/researchtensions,159–75timecommitments,114writingthroughteaching,132–6Textualprole,56Theory-practicedivide,165–8Timebreaks,41keypoints,115makingtimetowrite,113–16teachingcommitments,114writers'groups,113–16writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),100writingtimeframes,14–17Transaction-obliviousorientationsxiTransformationalactivity,ixTrust,138–9Unnishedwork,7–8Waldman,J.
,168Wheelreinvention,9194INDEXWriter'sblockcriticism,26,38defensiveness,9unpleasantness,28Writers'experiences,teaching/researchtensions,161–8Writers'groupsacademicdepartmentscompared,110checklist,127cross-disciplinary,118–19debrieng,118draftingtheproject,112facilitator/chair,111–12feedback,117–18functions,113–27goalsetting,115–16interimgoals,115makingtimetowrite,113–16peerreview,120–7planning,41practices,112pre-peerreview,116–19principles,111–12productivestrategies,109–27purpose,110time,113–16workings,111–13writingaboutwriting,112writingproblems,117Writers'retreatsacademicsettings,75accommodation,78characteristics,76,89checklists,78,80–1collaboration,76–7,87collective/privatespace,86concerns,84context,74–5equipment,79evaluation,83genderdifferences,75,85handouts,80–1holisticmechanism,75keyfacilitators,79keymoments/experiences,88–9non-residential,86–7outcomes,84–5participantbrieng/preparation,79–80positiveexpectations,83–4pre-retreatpreparation,70–81preparation,78–81professionaldevelopment,74,83,84rationale,76–7retreatingtoadvance,73–89sampleschedule,82specicpurposeretreats,87variations,86–7Writingbuddiesanalysis,55writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),100,101,102Writingchampions,51,98Writingcontext,177–8Writingdrivers,24–7Writingexercises,17–19,41WritingfacilitatorsseeFacilitatorsWritingmentorsexpectations,adjustment,55feedback,50–1redenition,137–9remit,105role,105–6tasks,105–6writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP),104–6Writingpartnerships,49Writingpractices,redenition,131–42Writingprocessacademicauthorship,178–9denedstages,92structuralmodel,179understanding,180–1Writingprohibitors,179Writingprompts,41,99,100,134Writingforpublicationprogramme(WfP)checklist,108evaluation,107–8feedback,101journalanalysis,93journalarticles,90–108monitoringmeetings,103–4motivation,99rationale,92–4research,97six-monthprogramme,96–7INDEX195stages,94–8structure,98–101structuredinterventions,91time,100writers'goals,95–8writers'needs,94–5writingbuddies,100,101,102writingmentors,104–6Writingrequirementsgenreconventions,8journalpublication,56,93–4seealsoGenresWritingschedules,143–4Writingskillstuned,93Writingtypes,32–3Zerubavel,E.
,15196INDEXwww.
openup.
co.
ukCoverillustration–JohnMcFarlaneCoverdesignHybertDesignwww.
hybertdesign.
comTheHandbookofAcademicWritingRowenaMurrayandSarahMooreMurrayandMooreAFreshApproachAFreshApproachTheHandbookofAcademicWritingTheHandbookofAcademicWritingTheHandbookofAcademicWritingofferspracticaladvicetobusyacademicswhowant,andareoftenrequired,tointegratewritingintotheirworkinglives.
Itdefineswhatacademicwritingis,andtheprocessofgettingstartedthroughtocompletion,coveringtopicssuchas:GainingmomentumReviewingandrevisingSelf-disciplineWritingregularlyWriters'groupsandretreatsAcademicwritingisoneofthemostdemandingtasksthatallacademicsandresearchersface.
Insomedisciplinesthereisguidanceonwhatisneededtobeproductive,successfulwriters;butinotherdisciplinesthereisnotraining,supportormentoringofanykind.
Thisbookhelpsthoseinbothgroupsnotonlytoimprovetheirwritingskillsandstrategies,but,equallyimportantly,tofindsatisfactioninengaginginregularandproductivewriting.
Underpinnedbyadiverserangeofliterature,thisbookaddressesthedifferentdimensionsofwriting.
ThefreshapproachthatMurrayandMooreexploreinthisbookincludesdevelopingrhetoricalknowledge,focusingonwritingbehavioursandunderstandingwritingcontexts.
Thisbookwillhelpwritersinacademiccontextstodevelopaproductivewritingstrategy,notonlyforresearchmonitoringexercises,butalsoforthelongterm.
RowenaMurrayisaReaderintheDepartmentofEducationalandProfessionalStudiesattheUniversityofStrathclyde.
Sheregularlyfacilitatesarangeofinnovativeandinformativeprofessionalworkshopsandseminarsdesignedtohelpacademicstodevelopandenhancetheirwriting.
SheisalsotheauthorofHowtoSurviveyourViva(OpenUniversityPress2003),WritingforAcademicJournals(OpenUniversityPress2004)andHowtoWriteaThesis,2ndedition(OpenUniversityPress2006).
SarahMooreisDeanofTeachingandLearningattheUniversityofLimerickinIrelandandamemberofIreland'sHigherEducationAuthority.
Ateacherandresearcherintheareaoforganizationalbehaviouranddevelopment,shehasusedtheprinciplesofthisdisciplinetohelpdevelopeffectiveacademicpracticesandprocessesbothwithinandbeyondherowninstitution.
Shehasdesignedanddeliveredninededicatedwriters'retreatsforacademicswithinthelastfiveyears.
SarahisalsotheleadauthorofHowtobeaStudent(OpenUniversityPress2005).
Ifyouhavetroublefittingwritingintoanalreadybusyschedule,thenthisisthebookforyou!