Original collage by Helen Sword

On Tuesday September 28, our WriteSPACE international membership community welcomed special guest Professor Inger Mewburn, better known as the Thesis Whisperer, as the special guest at our monthly Special Event.

Inger is Director of Researcher Development at the Australian National University and the author of numerous scholarly papers, books, and book chapters about research education and post-PhD employability. If you're not yet familiar with Inger's fabulous long-running blog at www.thesiswhisperer.com, be sure to check it out!

In the first hour of this 2-hour Special Event, I talked with Inger about her work as an influential writing scholar, research developer, and blogger. She told us how and when she started the Thesis Whisperer blog, why she recently stopped publishing guest posts, and what projects she’s working on now — for example PostAc, Postac, a tool for PhD students in search of non-academic jobs. I especially loved hearing about her childhood as the daughter of a computer technician; she used to sit with her back against his big mainframe computer to keep warm and build card houses out of stacks of used punch cards.

Quote of the hour: “The future is Search.”

In the second hour, Inger took us through a hands-on writing workshop based on her recent book How to Fix Your Academic Writing Trouble. We learned why so many academic authors write hard-to-read sentences and explored some simple ways to fix them.

Quote of the hour: “The English reader is not a good guesser.”

If you’re a WriteSPACE member, you can watch an edited video of the conversation and workshop with Inger Mewburn in the Library.

Not yet a member? Join the WriteSPACE now with a free 30 day trial, and access our full Library of videos and other writing resources.

Subscribe here to Helen’s Word on Substack to access the full Substack archive and receive weekly subscriber-only newsletters (USD $5/month or $50/year).

WriteSPACE members enjoy a complimentary subscription to Helen’s Word as part of their membership plan (USD $15/month or $150/year).

Original collage by Helen Sword

When was the last time you renovated your writing space?

I don't just mean the physical space where you write, although that's important too.  Maybe it's time to clear your desk, brighten your room with colorful artwork and fresh flowers, and polish the windows to let in the light.  Or perhaps you could head out to a cafe with your laptop or walk to the park with a notebook in hand -- anything to stimulate your senses and get your body moving.

But what about the writing space inside your head?  Is it cluttered with dust bunnies, to-do lists, negative thoughts?  When you sit down to write, what emotions do you bring with you across the threshold into that sacred space?  Are there any distractions that would be better left outside the door?  

I would love to help you find and flourish in a multidimensional "SPACE of Writing," a space of productivity and pleasure that is:

• Socially balanced, offering opportunities for social interaction, collaborative intimacy, and solitary writing;

• Physically engaging, inviting you to bring your body as well as your mind to the party;

• Aesthetically nourishing, infusing your writing practice with color, beauty, and style;

• Creatively challenging, encouraging cognition, choice, and change; and

• Emotionally fulfilling, amplifying and celebrating joy in writing.

Does that kind of writing space sound appealing to you? If yes, I hope you'll come visit us in the WriteSPACE, an international community devoted to helping you become the stylish, savvy, satisfied writer you long to be.

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Subscribe here to Helen’s Word on Substack to access the full Substack archive and receive weekly subscriber-only newsletters (USD $5/month or $50/year).

WriteSPACE members enjoy a complimentary subscription to Helen’s Word as part of their membership plan (USD $15/month or $150/year). Not a member? Join the WriteSPACE now and get your first 30 days free.

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Original collage by Helen Sword

We raise them, we nurture them, and then we let them go.  There's nothing harder -- or more exciting! -- than watching our darlings head out into the big wide world to make their own way. 

Maybe the book that you wrote for an academic audience will get picked up and read by a dog trainer, a preacher, or an engineer.  Maybe your daughter will write home to let you know that he is now your son.  Who knows what will happen next? 

This month, I have let several of my darlings go.  Now I've got that familiar pit-in-the-stomach feeling: How will they fare on their own?  What surprises do they have in store for me?  What will I learn from them? 

• The book: In early September, I pushed a book manuscript out the door -- a major research and creative project that I've been working on for at least four years, now in the hands of anonymous referees. Optimistically titled Writing with Pleasure, my book aspires to surprise and delight. But have I got the tone and content right? Will my readers hand me brickbats or bouquets? Patience, patience. . . .
  

• The artwork: I've started heading up my blog posts with my own handmade paper collages, another scary but exciting prospect. I've long resisted using the kinds of stock images that you find on most writing websites -- laptop computers artfully arranged on improbably uncluttered desks, good-looking people with designer glasses writing in poses of deep concentration -- but can I do better? Watch this space. . . .
  

• The website: I'm in the midst of a major website renovation, which means that every minor tweak (or error!) immediately goes public. I hope that you'll like the results of my home improvement, which includes streamlined navigation, this new blog creamed from my newsletter posts, and a calendar that you can use to find the dates and times of events in your own time zone.

What darlings do you have lined up, just waiting for you to gently push them out the door?  It's terrifying -- but it's worth it.   

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Subscribe here to Helen’s Word on Substack to access the full Substack archive and receive weekly subscriber-only newsletters (USD $5/month or $50/year).

WriteSPACE members enjoy a complimentary subscription to Helen’s Word as part of their membership plan (USD $15/month or $150/year). Not a member? Join the WriteSPACE now and get your first 30 days free.

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At our recent WriteSPACE Special Event on “Writing for Writing Grants,” special guest Professor Karim Khan from the University of British Columbia joined me for a wide-ranging conversation about why professional development for writers is so important and how you can sharpen your own writing style -- and get someone else to pay for it!

Our discussion focused mainly on academic and professional writers seeking funding in support of advanced writing courses such as the Stylish Writing Intensive. However, Karim’s advice could easily be adapted by any kind of writer applying for any kind of funding. Here’s a brief summary of his key points:

• Be creative about where you look for funding. Research grants, travel funds, teaching and learning enhancement grants, and even philanthropic gifts are all potential sources of support.

• Consider stitching together funding from more than one source and/or offering to cover some of the cost yourself. (In many countries, professional development activities are tax deductible.)

• Frame your funding request in terms of the benefits not just to you but also to the funder -- for example, “This course will better equip me to draft that strategic plan you wanted me to help with” (good for the department) or “This course on stylish writing will help me increase the outreach and impact of my research” (good for the institution and the world).

• Promise to bring something back -- for example, after attending the Stylish Writing Intensive you could offer to run a writing workshop for the graduate students in your department.

• Ask the facilitator of the event that you’re applying for to send you a letter of invitation or recommendation in support of your application. (Contact me if you would like me to provide you with such a letter for the Stylish Writing Intensive and/or WriteSPACE membership; I’d be delighted to do so!)

In the second hour of the live event, we walked participants through a series of prompts designed to help them craft a strong application, whether for writing development funding or for any kind of grant. You can replicate the workshop on your own by playing the second half of the video, and responding to the prompts yourself.

Warm thanks once again to Karim for a useful and stimulating event!

A recording of this WriteSPACE Special Event is now available for members in the WriteSPACE Library.

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Subscribe here to Helen’s Word on Substack to access the full Substack archive and receive weekly subscriber-only newsletters (USD $5/month or $50/year).

WriteSPACE members enjoy a complimentary subscription to Helen’s Word as part of their membership plan (USD $15/month or $150/year). Not a member? Join the WriteSPACE now and get your first 30 days free.

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