Veteran author Kenneth Henson has spent a career learning how to write grants, articles and books. He has published more than 300 national and international publications, including 56 books. He presents workshops on grant writing and writing for publication at campuses nationwide.
The following are two tips from Henson’s new academic and grant writing tips page on Facebook & LinkedIn:
It is incumbent upon early-career academics to distinguish their research as mature scholarship, not student work. So as an editor who often works with junior faculty and recent PhDs, I’m always on the lookout for hallmarks of amateur writing that scholars can identify and excise.
Perhaps most academics can name some of the tics that unfortunately characterize graduate-student writing: overqualification, hedging, extensive literature review, and a high ratio of quotation to original material are just a few.
Doctoral study involves a transition from student to researcher; a key aspect of that transition is becoming an academic writer. This is not to say that most new PhDs would readily describe themselves as academic writers. But that level of accomplishment requires the development of a set of academic writing skills that were likely not present at the outset of doctoral study. It’s also likely the case that the development of those crucial skills was a significant challenge.
Some authors have a home office, while others work at the kitchen table, or at a coffee shop. Where do you write and why?
In her academic writing blog, “Explorations of Style”, Rachael Cayley offers three key principles for strong academic writing: 1) using writing to clarify your own thinking, 2) committing to extensive revision, and 3) understanding the needs of your reader.
Pen your academic-inspired valentine and share it with us! We’ll include it on our Storify page!
