Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: July 17, 2020

So, what are you unable to do…yet? As academics, we value the learning process. We seek change and opportunity to do things differently. Better. We explore new avenues for growth and development. Pablo Picasso might have summed up the life of an academic in his personal statement, “I’m always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.”

This week’s collection of articles from around the web incorporates this growth mindset at both the individual level and within the larger scholarly publishing industry. We found posts on opportunities to stabilize publishing practices, develop a safe haven for writing, and new ways to protect intellectual ownership rights.

Open up to open access

Join Danielle S. Apfelbaum, Senior Assistant Librarian, Farmingdale State College and Derek Stadler, Assistant Professor at CUNY’s LaGuardia Community College as they take our TAA Summer Webinar Series participants on “A Crash Course on Open Access” next Thursday, July 16th.

Although open access publishing has been around for years, misconceptions about what “open” is and what it means for authors’ works continue to persist. This session aims to demystify this multifaceted concept.

Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: May 22, 2020

This week’s collection of articles from around the web is filled with hope and encouragement for writers. Despite many still being locked down by the COVID-19 pandemic, the posts we found this week explore ways of strengthening writing habits, enhancing productivity and creativity, and recognizing the vast amount of work done by authors beyond the published production counts.

There are resources on self-care, fresh perspectives, and cutting yourself some slack. There are also guides for mixed methods research, issues related to scholarly communication, the problem with enhanced ebooks, and a new milestone in open access publishing by Springer Nature.

Especially in uncertain times, it can be easy to focus on the lack of opportunity, the disruptions to our normal way of life, or the seemingly insurmountable challenges we face, but if we choose to do so, we can find hope and encourage ourselves to explore new perspectives for even greater results ahead. Brian Tracy suggests that you “Make your life a masterpiece; imagine no limitations on what you can be, have or do.” Happy writing!

Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: May 8, 2020

Why? The simplest and, at the same time, most complex question we can ask of ourselves in any situation. Simon Sinek said, “People don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.”

Our collection of articles this week includes a number of applications of the “why” in our work. From designing and publishing research to prioritizing and progressing on projects, in determining career paths after the PhD or looking at the future of publishing models, and finally, in how we conference and collaborate with others in our academic circles.

As you examine your writing projects this week, ask yourself why they’re important to you. The answer is what will drive them forward to completion. Happy writing!

Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: April 10, 2020

Whether you just started an academic writing career or you have been publishing journal articles and textbooks for years, the sudden changes in recent weeks can have us all feeling like beginners.

This week’s collection of articles discusses topics of researching in a digital world, changes in the academic library, considerations related to PhD pursuits during COVID-19, and do’s and don’ts for using visuals during virtual meetings. We close the collection with articles about getting by and getting on and publishing models in an open age.

Muhammad Ali once said, “Even the greatest was once a beginner. Don’t be afraid to take that first step.” Whether your first step or your next first step – Happy writing!