Author: Rosalyne Naa Norkor Baddoo, AfricaLics Visiting Fellowship Programme (VFP) Fellow (2023 Cohort) and PhD Agribusiness Candidate, University of Ghana.
Introduction
After the interviews and selection process, six of us were offered the special privilege to be AfricaLics VFP Fellows (2023 Cohort). Like the other 5 fellows, I eagerly anticipated the inception of the Programme and together we all welcomed the news of the seminar on academic writing skills with excitement and enthusiasm. However, my unwavering expectation was that by the end of the day’s session, I would be a better writer sooner than later. Although it was a virtual session, it was highly mind-engaging, and I was thoroughly convinced that AfricaLics virtual sessions were highly comparable to physical or in-person training sessions at almost all levels.
Ongoing writing course at the 2023 VFP paper presentation
Background
There is often a misconception about writing, especially when one preconceives an utmost ideal scenario that – good writing starts as soon as you settle behind a desk and the computer is booted. This perception has frustrated many authors especially when the writing is not as seamless as projected and thus mediocrity becomes commonplace. We only discover the reality when we start and realize the vision of great article writing can be clouded with hesitation, panic, insecurity, confusion, and lack of motivation.
Against this backdrop, the AfricaLics secretariat commenced the fellowship with a strategically planned inception seminar dubbed: Course on Academic Writing Skills, facilitated by Liv Gish – a PhD Coach from Copenhagen, Denmark – with over a decade of experience in facilitating writing academies.
In this blog, I share my reflections and insights I gained by participating in the course.
Academic writing tools
A few tools that can be helpful during academic writing include:
- Speedwriting
Speedwriting is a great tool for academic writing. It is a great way to start because it helps to overcome any form of inherent criticism. You just write anything and everything that comes to mind about the topic you have decided to write on. You write at a very fast pace without correcting any errors. This tool is extremely useful in generating ideas and clarifying thoughts.
- Essence writing
The next step is essence writing, which is a more focused form of speedwriting. It provides additional details and more accurate thoughts on a previous speed writing session. Essential writing serves as a valuable tool for identifying areas that require further research. It also helps with in-depth writing by allowing the author to highlight key points or important messages. Following this, each major point is unpacked- you choose highlighted messages or key points to write on. This process is repeated until all major points are clearly explained.
- Smart Writing Goals
Smart writing goals are intentional and realistic! Always remember that a goal without a plan is just a wish. The regular AfricaLics writing sessions (a follow-up to the course on writing skills) have greatly helped me to appreciate SMART goals. When we first started, during the breakout sessions before writing exercises, I would say, “I am working on my Chapter Three today”. But now, through my interactions with the AfricaLics fraternity, I have learned to make it a ‘SMARTer’ goal. Now I can say, “I will use the first 45 minutes to work on two paragraphs of my theoretical framework! and then I state another SMART goal for the next session. Achieving SMART goals invigorates you for the next goal.”
Styles and Approaches
There are various approaches to academic writing, and this can go up to the author’s creativity horizon. It is always better to choose what works best for you. Some authors start with a disposition or outline while others start with a claim, premise, or hypothesis. This makes academic writing very flexible, allowing every author to use a unique “trade secret” to capture their readers’ attention.
When writing, it is always important to clearly differentiate between creative writing and critical revision. During creative writing, the brain is in creative mode, and the writing is freely done without much revision and editing. However, critical revision involves editing and considering feedback from either supervisors or reviewers of a journal article.
Content, Structure, and Language
For every good write-up, the content, structure, and language should be apt. Content often entails the ideas, claims, and line of argument of the author, focusing on what is relevant for readership.
Structure: The structure is usually made up of a sequence of ideas and sections. This ensures that the titles and headings are in sync with the content they capture. In considering the structure of a write-up, it is always important to ensure that the title, introduction, main text, and conclusion are coherent ensuring a smooth transition between each section.
Language: The language used must also be consistent and precise. When writing, using the right language and well-articulated terminologies help the target audience to understand the text. Consider whether the text is easy to read out loud and understand. The preference for either the active or passive voice may be the author’s style or the requirements of the editors.
Myths about writing
I could relate to some of the myths that were shared during the course… For instance, I have delayed in most instances because I was always pondering over what I wanted to write about, often thinking that I needed to get it right in my head first before the ideas can be very fluid when I start writing. Sometimes conceptualizing is good but pondering over and over for perfection has mostly knocked the wind out of my sails. I cannot agree more with the Chinese proverb that says, “The faintest ink is more powerful than the strongest memory”.
Until you get to start writing there will always be a still small voice telling you – I don’t have enough time or What I write will not be good enough. At least during the writing course, I realized that we, the fellows, or early career scientists were not alone … this even happens to the experienced writers we so greatly admired including the facilitators of the course. Some of them explained that they usually overcame by not allowing these feelings to stop them but rather they continued to write; by applying the smart writing tools, especially speed writing!!
Snack writing
Ever heard of snack writing? These are very short writing sessions you can do to make use of some 15- or 20-minute intervals during transit when waiting to get on a bus or while waiting to have a cup of coffee with a friend. Writing snacks can include checking your paragraphing, referencing, or speed-writing a conclusion that will be worked on later, or checking the affiliation and details of co-authors for a paper. Indeed, it could encompass many of the small things you need to complete e.g., an academic journal article or a paper or a chapter for your PhD, but which do not require longer periods of focused work.
AfricaLics Writing Sessions
As a VFP fellow, I always look forward to AfricaLics writing sessions because it is the booster shot that keeps me going. Especially to make up for seemingly unproductive days when I sit to write on my own. Of course, during every writing session, there is a productive phase where the energy level is at its peak and the writing flow is great. I get so immersed in the writing that I lose track of time. It flies so quickly. There are occasions when distractions set in and there is a loss of concentration. This reminds us that good habits take time so a short break can get us back on track. In one of the plenary sessions during a writing session, email pop-ups and notifications were major distractions and so I have learned to be mindful of those too.
Ongoing paper presentations
Conclusion
- There is a very common assumption that everyone has competence in writing which is often not the case. It is not automatic. Most people can be good writers, but this requires hard work and more reading of good articles, especially from good authors and good journals. It can be improved gradually and it is perfected with continued practice.
- Every academic writing task involves a chain of writing sessions that can be clearly achieved when writing tasks are simplified into realistic and specific milestones. Being overambitious often results in disappointments and de-motivation.
- With academic writing do not stop when you are tired but be sure to take a break when you are still in the flow. By so doing, you are always eager to come back and continue writing. Taking a break when you are tired and lack concentration makes you dread coming back to continue writing.
- Always have writing prompts– These are sentences that give your readers a sneak peek of what to expect is a particular section. Transition sentences such as “The section below describes….”, “In the following pages I will present…” and “The most important finding is…” are a few good examples.
Way forward
There are tons of books out there that offer more tips on how to be a great writer and develop great writing skills. The AfricaLics community also has a pool of selfless researchers with a great wealth of experience and expertise. They are willing and ready to nurture early career researchers in the best way possible; especially in enhancing academic writing skills. I am more than happy to say that Peer-to-peer interaction and mentor-mentee relationships fostered by the AfricaLics family have bolstered my confidence in believing that I can also be a prolific writer soon!!
It’s been an exciting journey full of great inspiration.
Bibliography/read more:
Gardiner & Kearns (2012), The ABCDE of writing: Coaching high-quality high-quantity writing,