Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: January 28, 2022

What are your writing goals? What do you hope to accomplish and how will you get there? Sylvia Plath kept hers simple when she said, “Let me live, love, and say it well in good sentences.”

In this week’s collection of articles from around the web, we see strategies for keeping up with information, facing changes to the academic publishing industry, sharing or marketing our work, and managing our inner critics.

Whatever your writing goals, work towards those that let you live, love, and say what you need to – in good sentences. Happy writing!

Tips for anxious writers: Gentle persistence

The first key to developing a healthy writing practice despite writing anxiety is gentle persistence. Every writer needs to maintain a consistent practice over time, which takes persistence and self-discipline. But persistence and self-discipline must be applied judiciously. As discussed in the series introduction, “try harder” and “be more disciplined” are not particularly good advice for someone struggling with writing anxiety because trying harder can lead to destructive practices. If you are suffering and you “try harder” to “be more disciplined,” you are likely to reinforce the negative experiences that contribute to writing anxiety. In a healthy practice, persistence is carefully balanced to approach your limits without pushing past them. You need the persistence to push against your limits and face challenges, and you need the gentle sensitivity to step back and care for yourself.

Member Spotlight: Pamela Gordon

TAA Member Pamela Gordon is lecturer at Norwalk Community College teaching classes in art appreciation and humanities and a textbook author in the art discipline. Her latest publication is Art Matters: A Contemporary Approach to Art Appreciation (Oxford University Press, 2020).

She is currently working on the second edition of Art Matters.

Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: January 21, 2022

Three weeks into 2022, most textbook and academic authors have begun a new semester of teaching, learning, and (of course) writing. As the new calendar year often comes with good intentions, plans for improvement, and resolutions to do and accomplish more than the year before, our collection of articles this week shares some tips and strategies for approaching your future efforts of writing, marketing, and producing your content for readers.

As you work on your writing this week, remember the words of Philip Pullman, “Read like a butterfly, write like a bee.” Happy Writing!

Member Spotlight: Corey S. Shdaimah

TAA Member Corey S Shdaimah is the Daniel Thursz Distinguished Professor of Social Justice at the University of Maryland School of Social Work and an academic author in the social work and policy implementation writing disciplines. Her latest publication is Social Welfare Policy in a Changing World.

She is currently working on two books- Research Handbook on Law, Movements, and Social Change with co-editors Steven Boutcher and Michael Yarbrough (forthcoming, Edward Elgar) and The Compassionate Court: Support, Surveillance, and Survival in Two Court-Affiliated Prostitution Diversion Programs with co-author Shelly Wiechelt (forthcoming, Temple University Press).