Social media or social web? I posed that question last year in a guest blog for the British site, Discover Society. Given recent scandals involving hacking and profile misuse on commercial social media sites, I’d like to revisit this question as it pertains to academic and textbook authors. To what extent should we post original writings on social media sites?
First, let’s distinguish between social media and social web. Social media can be defined as: “commercially-owned online platforms or applications that allow for interactions between users who can create, archive and retrieve user-generated content. [Read more…]
Academic authors can reap many benefits from blogging, says Mark Leccese, author of The Elements of Blogging: Expanding the Conversation of Journalism, and the blog 
Kevin Patton, the author of 10 anatomy and physiology textbooks or manuals in over 40 editions, shares his views and strategies on how to adapt and remain relevant and successful in the fast evolving textbook industry.
strikes every morning at nine o’clock sharp.”
Even if you missed most of what this week offered, you can still join in on the live panel discussion 
Have you ever heard of an inspiration or vision board? It’s a collage of images, quotes, and affirmations of your dreams and goals. Creating a vision board that illustrates what you want to achieve in your writing career could motivate you and inspire you on days when you need it most to get you writing. Use it to gather quotes from authors that inspire you, journal covers that you wish to be published in, or positive comments from reviewers. Learn more about how they work and how to make one here: 
but my mind is too consumed by the thought of what today represents. Instead, all I’ll say is, take a moment to remember and reflect on the events of this day in 2001—the horror we felt and how we came together as a nation. I encourage you to take a moment of silence in honor of all who lost their lives, lost a loved one, or were otherwise impacted by the events of this day.
With all the demands on your time, you might think that you don’t have the time to read about your craft because you are too busy working on your craft. However, spending some time everyday reading about academic writing best practices, tips, and strategies can actually help you save time in the long run.
