The semester is rapidly coming to an end, with some of you already finished. Have you given thought to your summer writing goals? Do you write more or less during the summer months? I love this quote, “Write until it becomes as natural as breathing. Write until not writing makes you anxious.” I’m not really sure if writing will ever feel as natural as breathing, no matter what amount of writing I do. However one thing is for sure: not writing does make me anxious. I have to get the thoughts out of my head and onto my computer screen (and sometimes paper). It’s like the throbbing pain in your knee, slightly annoying and always at the back of your mind. But, the only way to cure it is to keep moving, keep running, or it gets worse. Just like the only cure for that anxious feeling of not writing is to keep writing. I’m curious what you think: Is writing as natural as breathing for you? Does not writing make you anxious? And as always, happy writing!

Three Steps to Getting Grants for Graduate Students
Tanya Golash-Boza gives best tips and “food for thought” for graduate students preparing for grant and fellowship applications. The advice she gives is that from a grant-writing workshop last fall of which she was one of the panelists. If you are preparing for either of those applications above, this is a must read.

How, when and why to say no to a review request
When, why, and how should you decline a review request? For all of those answers read this piece written by Andrew Moore, Editor-in Chief of BioEssays and Inside the Cell.

My #AcWri strategies: Integrate reading into your writing workflow
Raul Pacheco-Vega offers advice for academics in keeping up with their journal article reading other than “binge-reading” when writing a paper. Although all seven tips Pacheco-Vega gives are useful, I find number six to be the most useful.

Surviving a PhD disaster
What happens if you discover a mistake in your thesis after submitting it? Curious? Read this. 😉

3 things I learned during the week I switched to Scrivener
If you’re feeling frustrated with Microsoft Word and are interested in how Scrivener might be your answer, read this. Elaine Campbell gives a useful introduction to the benefits of using Scrivener to write articles.

How did you find the process of revising, editing and proofreading your work?
This is a short, less than three-minute, video of graduate students offering advice based on their experiences revising, editing, and proofreading their dissertation. Practical advice and insights are given that make this short video worthy of watching.

More Junk Journals from a Bogus Research Center
Jeffrey Beall has identified another predatory publisher launching with twelve broad-scoped journals. He identifies this journal and warns academics to be on the lookout for spam emails looking for article submissions.

Why Scholars Should Never Write Alone
This is an excellent piece on why and how scholars can incorporate an accountability partner or a writing group into their writing process. I’d like to add that the Text and Academic Authors Association is a great place to connect with other authors and build that support network to not go it alone. Learn more about TAA’s benefits.

General writing tips
Read this for general writing tips that even some veteran authors may find useful. From advice on learning from others to editing your work and everything in between, this article covers it.

Structure as a booster for the argument
Structure within your research thesis is important to the success of the argument. Susan Carter gives advice on how to make use of structure to clearly show the argument of your thesis.