Confronting the anxiety of academic writing: What if anxiety about academic writing were to be taken seriously?

The first step in confronting the anxiety of academic writing is to ask, “What if anxiety about academic writing were to be taken seriously, rather than ignored, treated as a punchline, or accepted as inevitable?” said Rachael Cayley, author of the forthcoming book, Thriving as a Graduate Writer: Principles, Strategies, and Habits for Effective Academic Writing, in her October 19, 2022 TAA webinar, “Confronting the Anxiety of Academic Writing”, available on demand.

“If we instead try to understand why academic writing is the site of so much anxiety, we can then find ways to improve the experience of academic writers,” she said.

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Crush those horrible holiday questions about your academic project

Holidays can be welcome respites from our daily routines and the seemingly relentless pressures to produce. But at holiday gatherings we also risk what are often inevitable and often embarrassing questions from well-meaning relatives and friends. Whether you’re writing your dissertation or, post-dissertation, sweating through the first article from it, a book chapter, or an entire book, at least one person asks those questions that make you squirm. They’re right up there with the personal in-your-face ones: “How come you’re still single?” or “When are you going to have kids?”

To help you field the equivalent questions about your academic project, maintain your self-respect, and even jab a little in return, here are several of the most common questions and suggested replies I’ve collected from my academic coaching clients who are agonizing through working on their scholarly projects. Clients report, I’m glad to say, that these suggested responses have worked well—meaning they’ve shut the other guy up. Tailor your responses as appropriate, but curb your impulse to throw a punch.

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Staying focused during vacations and holidays

Nothing is quite so sweet as seeing that block on your calendar that says, “Vacation,” or “Holiday.” Of course, it comes with some stressors, but oh, that time away.

One of those nagging items that accompany time off may be your writing. Hopefully, you have set a schedule or timeline for when your next milestone needs to be completed. The holidays in particular can present both opportunities and pitfalls. The key to determining which path you will go down is having a plan.

Many people once the time off starts will need a day or so to decompress and turn off the noise of work or the office. Completely understandable. But the goal is not to let a day turn into three days or into ten continuous hours of Netflix or….

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Holiday tactics to honor your all-important academic project

The holidays can be wonderful times for reconnecting with family and friends; taking breathers from the daily-weekly-yearly chase of accomplishment; kindling or rekindling feelings of love, warmth, and generosity even to those who’ve published much more than you; and indulging in delectable seasonal goodies. But we academics often feel conflicted about how much time to “take off.”

Maybe we’re feeling the pressure of having to participate in holiday events. Maybe we’re worried about being grilled by well-intentioned family or friends about the progress of our dissertation, article, or book. Maybe we’re very aware of the dangerous loss of momentum from our work. Maybe we just don’t like all those jolly gatherings.

Here, from clients who have suffered through such “maybes,” I suggest three holiday strategies you can apply, depending on the severity of your “maybes” and your fortitude.

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Join Us Throughout the Month of November for #AcWriMo – Academic Writing Month

Every November, the Textbook & Academic Authors Association (TAA) joins with academic authors around the world to recognize and promote the month-long academic write-a-thon event, Academic Writing Month (AcWriMo). Started in 2011, this event encourages academic authors to focus on daily writing habits that move their projects closer to completion.

TAA is partnering with SAGE Publishing’s Methodspace to offer several resources for #AcWriMo throughout November 2022. Visit the TAA Blog each week in November for an article related to this year’s AcWriMo theme, “Intellectual Freedom & Integrity”.

Visit TAA’s AcWriMo 2022 page for events and activities open to TAA members and non-members.

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Organizing your professional affairs: Set up a ‘Business Executor’

What will happen to your professional affairs if you suddenly die?

True customer service and support requires preparing for such possibility. Getting your affairs in order can also be helpful for basic recordkeeping and file management.

As a long-time freelancer, I’ve always worried about what would happen, and how my clients would get notified if something happened to me, or worse. Then, a few years ago, a close professional colleague died suddenly. It was disastrous for his loved ones, and bad for his customers and clients as well. We miss him sorely.

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