Egocentric reading: Using Literature to Support Your Own Research

By Dave Harris

When we notice egocentrism, it is usually a bad thing: who likes the know-it-all who thinks only of themself? But lack of egocentrism is also bad: we need to know where we stand on issues; we need to trust our own knowledge enough to commit to projects and tasks, and to commit to words on the page. I want to emphasize the importance of egocentrism in reading as a crucial factor in using the research literature effectively, and how writing is an effective tool for building the right kind of egocentrism.

This essay picks up some threads from the September 2024 TAA Conversation Circle on developing good writing habits, Prof. Christine Tulley’s October 2024 webinar “Getting Your Reading into Your Writing”, and a blog post I previously contributed in response to the August 2024 TAA Conversation Circle on productivity.

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Three Strategies to Motivate Yourself to Write

By Angelica Ribeiro, PhD

To be happy involves feeling satisfied with the progress you are making toward your life goals. If you are a writer, completing writing projects is likely part of those goals. Therefore, you feel good when you sit down to write. However, I bet there are days when you don’t feel like writing, even if you know it will ultimately bring you joy. So, how can you motivate yourself on those days?

Here, I share three strategies that can motivate you to write, especially when you’re not feeling up to it.

Break down a big task into small tasks

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2025 TAA Conference Bookstore Featured Book: ‘Becoming the Writer You Already Are’

Why is writing so terrifying? Dr. Michelle R. Boyd’s Becoming the Writer You Already Are explains why being afraid of writing is neither strange nor shameful. And introduces the Writing Metaphor, a tool that illuminates what you already know about overcoming writing challenges. Becoming shows you how to consult, trust, and follow that process. So you can live a pleasurable, productive, satisfying writing life.

Purchase in the 2025 TAA Conference Bookstore

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2025 TAA Conference Bookstore Featured Book: ‘Publish & Flourish’

Triple your productivity. Write prose that is clearer, better organized, and more compelling. Publish in better journals and get more grants. Ninety scholars who followed the steps were studied, and 95% reported that their writing improved. They also increased then number of manuscripts submitted from a rate of two per year to nearly six. You can too, with Tara Gray’s, Publish & Flourish: Become a Prolific Scholar.

Purchase in the 2025 TAA Conference Bookstore

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2025 TAA Virtual Conference on Textbook & Academic Authoring Call for Proposals Now Open

The TAA Conference Committee invites proposals for its 2025 Textbook & Academic Authoring Conference, which will be held online June 6-7. Presenting at TAA’s 2025 Conference provides an opportunity to share your knowledge, experiences, and ideas with other textbook authors, academic authors, and industry professionals. The theme is “The Future is Now.” We welcome proposals from first-time and veteran presenters! The deadline for submitting a proposal is October 13, 2024.

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How You Can Experience Your Best Moments at Work or in Leisure

By Angelica Ribeiro

Have you ever lost track of time at work or in leisure? If so, you were in flow, a feeling you should often experience. Let me explain.

In his book Flow, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi shares that “the best moments in [your life] are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times—although such experiences can also be enjoyable […]. The best moments usually occur when a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.” You can experience these best moments when you are in flow. According to Csikszentmihalyi, flow is “the state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it.”

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