Sometimes, its the best we can do.....

I am not being lazy here, but this post really says just what I want to say. Sometimes, the best you can do is a 50 words in a day, and you know what, sometimes that is a major victory.

50 Word Day

Thanks UWT Writing and Publishing Community!

I wanted to thank the "group of 12" who participated in our two day workshop. The passion you all brought toward developing new skills was inspiring. I look forward to a productive summer together. Make sure to use your collective word count spreadsheet and support each other in our Canvas work space. Can't wait to see what articles comes out of our work together.

Thinking of writing a book?

Recently, I was asked to present to a small writing group on "writing a book." I was given very little other guidance. At first, this felt a bit daunting; how could I talk about writing a book in less than half an hour, without any focus?

As with many such tasks, it is best to take such invitations as an opportunity for values clarification; what is important to me about writing books?

And as with many such tasks, it is fun to try to break them down into a nice little bow for easy teaching.

So, I came up with, the "the Five Ms" of book writing: Motive, Meaning, Motivation, Market, Manageable.

Motive- What do you want to accomplish with your book? A job? Tenure? Promotion? Getting a clear sense of your motives for wanting to write a book will help you begin to think through if it is even a good idea to do so. After all, a book takes a lot more time than an article, and three articles, which might still be only 1/5 the length of a book, might be "worth" a lot more in your discipline (or might not).

Meaning- What will the book mean to you? Will it help you view yourself as a more senior scholar? Will it provide a sense of closure to a project? Will it signify your expertise in an area? Will the writing of a book be something that will provide meaning to your life, on a day to day basis (the writing of it, not the completion).

Motivation- Do you have the motivation to follow through with this? Be honest with yourself. What supports and resources do you need to help you stay motivated. Books are for the long haul- you need to make sure to have your daily rituals in place and your accountability structures.

Market- Is there a demand for your book? Who will read it? Academics? Will it be for the educated general public? For classes? Do you have a contract? Many people overestimate the interest in their work. I think it is usually best to have a contract in hand before you are too far into your text (unless, it is based on your dissertation, e.g. already mostly written). What happens if you write too much and your dream publisher wants major changes? Oh, and speaking of market, if it is for classes, make sure your proposal includes which  courses around the country (world perhaps) might use your book. Be specific; do a good web search.

Manageable- Can you pull this off? Do you have the time, resources, skills, knowledge? Be honest with yourself. Again, you may need to develop some new skills to insure that you are able to write your book!

Of course, there is a great deal more to consider; but perhaps this can help you begin to reflect on some of the key issues pertaining to writing a book.

Summer moves fast!!!

How many times have you said to yourself (or someone else), "That is something I am going to write this summer!"

And here is summer, and now what?

Are you well into that writing project that you promised yourself you would do?

If not, what concrete action can you take to get there, today!

If you don't know, talk it over with a friend, colleague, mentor, or coach. Time to come out of the private, restful slumber and silence of summer, and make your intentions public. Post them here, if you wish, but don't let another summer pass you by!!

What we do well verses what we enjoy

Of course, we hope that in life our strength and our desires align. That which we are good at, in an ideal world, are things we enjoy. Yet, for some academics this is not always the case. There are time when we may have a set of strengths and competencies which make is good at a role that does not make us feel fulfilled.

This was the case for me and administrative work (although, I know some of my detractors would say that I perhaps am overestimating my skills!!). Regardless, I had to be true to myself that it was role that I did not enjoy, and and that if I let go of the role, a space for something else would occur.

It takes courage to admit what you do no wish to do, and courage to cultivate a new set of capacities, perhaps even turning former limitations into assets.

Courage, but what are the potential costs of not doing so?

What percentage?

Someone recently asked me what percentage of overcoming problems with writing are psychosocial. Of course, it depends upon the person. However, experience has shown me that it seems to average around 50% for many people (not sure for most, but for many I have worked with).  Of course, this is just an estimate; its hard to  quantify such things.

Working on your procrastination, anxiety, fear, stress, problems with rejection, fear of failure, immobilization, worries, and all the other cognitive/emotional/behavioral barriers that we possess helps us "get out of our own way" and allows our skills as scholars and writers to be accentuated (actualized?).

Yes, many people have technical issues, or just need to learn the rules of "the game." Yet taking care of your "playing field" (Self) can be valuable to nearly also of us.

Writing and Publishing in English: For Second Language and International Scholars

Since I have not been blogging for some time, I never announced my newest book on writing. It was specifically written for international scholars who wish to write and publish in English peer-reviewed journals. It also provides my latest thinking on many of the issues covered in Practical Tips for Publishing Scholarly Articles, so should be relevant to all who wish to improve their scholarly productivity. We self published this intentionally, so we could do so electronically, and for a very reasonable price; this should make this material more accessible from scholars in the "global south and doctoral students.

Here is the link

Writing and Publishing in English: For Second Language and International Scholars