We are all up against a relentless stream of competing demands when we are trying to write. These demands often seem urgent, and while they can be compelling and tantalizing, they also represent ever-present obstacles to getting our writing done. To combat this problem, and better enable yourself to achieve your writing goals, author, professor, and writing coach Kathleen P. King suggests that you become the master of your writing universe. [Read more…]
How to leverage technology to benefit writing collaboration
Although collaborative writing projects can present challenges in terms of communication, work flow, and organization, there are several technology tools available that can help increase productivity and the overall success of the project. Kathleen P. King, Professor and Program Director of Higher Education & Policy Studies at the University of Central Florida, Orlando discussed this topic in her 2016 TAA conference presentation, “Leveraging Online Learning Technology & Environments to Benefit Research Group Writing”.
King’s first piece of advice is to consider the person in the group that has the hardest time adjusting to new technology and choose a tool that will fit their comfort level. This may mean that you use a more familiar option such as Skype or Google docs to aid in your collaborations, rather than some of the more advanced options. In group collaborations, the project’s success is dependent on all group members feeling comfortable with the technology tools used. [Read more…]
6 Tips for selecting the right textbook publisher
Selecting the right publisher for your textbook is key to the success of your project, so it’s important to find a good match.
Allen R. Angel, author of A Survey of Mathematics with Applications (9th Edition), and an algebra series, now in its 8th edition, and Patricia Heyman, author of International Cooking: A Culinary Journey (2nd Edition)
share the following 6 tips to consider when comparing publishers: [Read more…]
5 Approaches to writing group success
Writing groups offer their members a wealth of benefits. In fact, studies indicate that membership in a writing group can actually help boost your publication rate. In an examination of the publication rate of 48 female medical school faculty before and after participating in a writing group, Sonnad et al. found that the professors’ average publication rate increased from 1.5 papers per year to 4.5 papers per year after joining the writing group. Cumbie et al. also describe increases in productivity among writing group members, reporting “significant and positive writing outcomes in the form of manuscripts submitted for publication, abstracts submitted for conference presentations, [and] grant proposals developed.” [Read more…]
6 Tips for a productive summer break
Summer vacation can be a great time for academic writers to get ahead on their writing projects, but all too often professors and graduate students find themselves scrambling to get something—anything—finished as summer comes to a close, and wondering how the summer slipped away from them.
Your summer vacation doesn’t have to end that way. Noah Shusterman, assistant professor at Temple University and author of the Chronicle of Higher Education article “Planning a Productive Summer,” and Tanya Golash-Boza, associate professor at the University of California, Merced and author of the blog post “How to Have a Productive Summer by Working Four Hours a Day,” offer the following six tips for maximizing your writing productivity over summer break: [Read more…]