Help me learn to love writing!
May 2, 2017 6:12 AM   Subscribe

I'm an academic but hate writing! I've managed to get this far in my career by forcing myself to write to deadlines, working with colleagues and doing leadership roles. But now I'm about to move into a research focussed post and have to get to grips with writing regularly (and enjoying it). What are you tips and tricks?
posted by janecr to Education (12 answers total) 13 users marked this as a favorite
 
Best answer: If you don't naturally love writing, cultivating Stockholm Syndrome is the way to go. Make writing your captor and eventually you'll grow to love it.

So, a brief plug for what I use every day, Cold Turkey Writer: a simple word processor that won't unlock the rest of your computer until you reach your pre-entered word quota.
posted by Beardman at 6:22 AM on May 2, 2017 [4 favorites]


Is the research itself something about which you're passionate? Imagine the audience that will be reading your work and convince yourself it's imperative they get the information only you can provide.
posted by DrAstroZoom at 6:33 AM on May 2, 2017 [1 favorite]


Realize that there are many, many academics who love their work in general but don't love the writing process. Loving it is not necessary. Doing it is, however.
posted by grouse at 7:09 AM on May 2, 2017 [2 favorites]


In writing fiction, it's wildly helpful to turn off your inner editor in order to imagine your story and get started putting words on the page. Otherwise writer and editor get into an extremely unproductive wrestling match and that is where the energy goes. For me it really helps to think of writing and editing as completely separate phases. And compared to writing, I find editing really easy. I can't guarantee that this fiction tip is a perfect match for writing serious nonfic.
posted by puddledork at 7:21 AM on May 2, 2017 [3 favorites]


I write stuff for work. I don't love the process at all. But I am happy to see things published -- for me that's where the "enjoying it" part comes in. For me I just plug away...and visualize it being done.
posted by Lescha at 7:51 AM on May 2, 2017


What I like about writing (scientific info, briefs, summaries, monthly progress reports, etc) isn't the glamour (!) of the end result, and it isn't the process or the technical perfection and polishing of my words and phrases. What I really like is the feeling of explaining to somebody what I've been doing. Without getting too bogged down in the feel of a long heavy report, imagine writing an email to a new collaborator explaining what you're doing - or if you hate email (consistent with hating writing), imagine the phone call or conversation where you explain it, and take dictation.
posted by aimedwander at 8:10 AM on May 2, 2017


I find that it helps to make sure writing is part of my thinking process. When I read something related to my research, I take notes in a semi narrative form. I am essentially recording my thoughts about how the ideas I encounter relate to the ideas I'm pursuing in the research. This material often serves as a loose first draft of a section in a publication. I also keep a journal on my computer. I don't write in it every day, but I do use it to warm up my mind and fingers on days when I am having a hard time getting started.
posted by Morpeth at 8:27 AM on May 2, 2017


Stick to basics.
- Write an actual outline with real details, then fill in the blanks.
- If you can find good software to help you with this, use it.
- Write as if you were a human trying to communicate with humans. Say what you mean. Use short, simple sentences. Do not over-qualify your assertions. Do not obfuscate.
- Contrary to the tricks for overcoming stage fright, do not imagine your audience naked. But do imagine your audience reading what you write. Always keep them in mind.
- Learn to enjoy the positive feedback you get for doing a good job, even if you have to beg for that feedback.
posted by pracowity at 8:45 AM on May 2, 2017 [3 favorites]


This suggestion tends to turn up more as a hack for artistic endeavors and would, in fact, require MORE writing on your part, but doing a morning pages-style brain dump is supposed to help clear your mind of grumbling and help you to be able to focus on the thing that actually needs to happen. I am not sure if it'll help you enjoy writing any more, but it could be cathartic to be able to write "MAN DO I EVER HATE WRITING THIS WHOLE THING SUCKS ALL THE ASS" before you have to sit down and do it.
posted by helloimjennsco at 8:52 AM on May 2, 2017


Write first, edit later.

I also have an overactive brain, so I do a lot of "subconscious" writing in my head when I'm not actually writing and the good bits inform writing/editing when I'm sitting in front of the computer again.
posted by porpoise at 9:34 AM on May 2, 2017


I found a fun tip is to pretend that you're an elderly tottering British anthropologist
posted by semaphore at 7:02 PM on May 2, 2017


Read this book. It's 70 pages long, so you could do it in a lunch break. I won't link them here, but PDF versions are easy to find online. (The reviews on amazon sum up most of the contents tbh).

The gist is:

(1) set specific times in your calendar to sit down and write, the same as you would for a class or a departmental meeting. Don't let yourself make bad excuses not to do this.
(2) make a master list of all projects and define their outputs so you know what you have to do.
(3) every writing session make a simple practical goal to achieve, even if it's just "make some progress on X".
(4) Keep track of the time spent, projects worked on and goals achieved.

It is practical and bulletproof advice, and ultimately the best if not only way to be consistently productive.

Here is an apposite passage:
Some kinds of writing are so unpleasant that no normal person will ever feel like doing them. What kind of person feels enthusiastic about writing a grant proposal? Who wakes up in the morning with an urge to write about "Specific Aims" and "Consortium/Contractual Arrangements?" Writing a grant proposal is like doing your taxes, except that you can't pay your accountant to do it for you. If you have moods where you're gripped by a desire to read the Department of Health and Human Services Grants.gov Application Guide SF424 (R&R), then you don't need this book. If you' re like everyone else, though, you'll need more than "feeling like it" to finish a grant proposal.

Struggling writers who "wait for inspiration" should get off their high horse and join the unwashed masses of real academic writers. The ancient Greeks assigned muses for poetry, music, and tragedy, but they didn't mention a muse for journal articles written in APA style. As academics, we're not creating high literature. We don't have fans lurking outside the conference hotel hoping for our autographs on recent issues of the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. We do technical, professional writing. Some kinds of academic writing are more relaxed- like textbooks, or perhaps this book-but even those kinds of writing boil down to imparting useful information to your readers. Our writing is important because it's practical, clear, and idea driven.
posted by rollick at 7:11 AM on May 3, 2017 [3 favorites]


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