Category: Writing

Five Writing Tips from Three Perspectives

4/8/2019

In this post I want to share some advice from my own experiences as a writer, university writing instructor, and editor. Whether you are writing in your first language, writing in a foreign language, or translating from one language to another, there should be something that will be useful for you.

Tips from a Writer

Outline before you write, either mentally or on paper. Hopefully on paper… The more detailed your outline, the easier the writing will be.
Picture a target reader when you are writing. Are you explaining everything clearly and with sufficient detail to take the picture in your mind and transform it into a written text that will help them paint a similar picture in their mind?
You are your own worst editor because you know what the draft is supposed to say. We miss so many typos because we see what we want to see, not what is on the page. Get a friend or colleague to read your manuscript before sending it anywhere. If you are nervous about having a friend read it, why would you want anyone who could be important to your career read it?
Don’t rush to publish. Put the draft away for a day or two and read it again with fresh eyes. You will make improvements 99.9% of the time.
Experiencing writer’s block? Take a shower or go outside and take a walk. That’s when I get a lot of ideas for my articles.

Tips from a Writing Teacher

If you only read for content, you will never build a mental database that will help you become a better writer. Observe how words regularly work together to make phrases, phrases make sentences, sentences make paragraphs, paragraphs make sections, and sections, make articles.
Academic and business writing is formulaic. Follow the rules. Don’t try to be too creative. While there is no one exact template for a business email or academic journal paper, they do have a lot of similarities that can serve as good examples if you are unsure about how to write one.
You can make an outline in your first language but you need to actually write the text in your target language. If you can’t write well in the target language, you won’t be able to translate it later either.
Choose a target publication before you start writing. This way you can write for a specific audience and follow the formatting and submission guidelines from the moment you begin typing.
Learn what you can and can’t copy. You can (and should) copy format but you can’t copy whole sentences and ideas and ideas without citing the source and giving proper credit.

Tips from an Editor/Proofreader

Keeping your tone consistent is challenging, especially when you don’t have a good feel for tone in writing. If you are using an editor/proofreader, mention that you would like for them to keep an eye out for inconsistencies in tone.
Some things in English are just plain hard, like prepositions. Others, like subject-verb agreement and plurals with regular nouns, are easier to catch. Read through your manuscript and try to catch as many of those kinds of errors as you can before sending the manuscript to your editor or submitting it.
Be consistent. Use capitalization and punctuation consistently throughout your paper. Pick a formatting style and stick with it.
Learn from your mistakes. Keep track of the kinds of issues your editor is pointing out and try to reduce them over time.
Don’t look at editorial suggestions and changes as attacks. The editor is trying to help you make your paper better. Don’t reply to the feedback until at least one day later and you have had to digest it (and maybe calm down). If you disagree with the comments and changes, open a dialogue and explain your choices and intentions rationally, not emotionally.

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How to Write Articles for Language Teaching Magazines

2/11/2019

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Writing articles for magazines that focus on language teaching can be great for your teaching career. It boosts your CV, enhances your name recognition which will generate opportunities at professional development events and conferences, and best of all it helps other teachers. So what do you need to do to get your article published in a language teaching magazine?

1. Choose a magazine and study it
The first thing to do is select the publication you are interested in writing for. What kinds of articles do they publish? How long are they? How are the articles laid out? Are they more academic and research based or are they more about sharing thoughts and classroom experiences? Do most of the articles have a long list of references? Make sure your topic is something that fits within the magazine's scope and isn't repeating something that was published recently, then read the submission guidelines carefully.
This is a tip I give to anyone writing for publication, whether it is a letter to the editor in a local newspaper or a scientific journal article: Make sure your manuscript looks like articles that have been successfully published. This means the length, the tone, the format, and even style choices like serial commas and British/US spelling. If the format doesn’t match the editor’s expectation, it’s probably going to be rejected unless the content is so good that is makes up for it. Even then, the editor is likely to ask for revisions.

2. Write for a target reader
Think about who will be attracted by your title and read your article. Does the title accurately portray the benefits your article is offering? Your reader will most likely be a less experienced teacher or a teacher who is interested in new ideas for their classes. Focus on sharing what worked for you and make sure you clearly lay out what the reader will need to do to duplicate your success in their classes. Explain your teaching situation so the reader can determine if they will need to make any adjustments to implement your ideas.

3. Outline your ideas
It is very hard for me to start writing without planning what I want to say. I need to outline my thoughts on paper (yes, actual paper) and make sure I have a clear plan for what I want to share and enough content to make it worthwhile. I try to assemble my main points or tips as bullet points and find a way to make them flow together. Writing from an outline also allows me to focus my concentration on clearly explaining my ideas for each subsection instead of being distraction by trying to make sure the whole article is tied together while I’m writing.

4. Take your time
It is important not to rush and fire off your first draft. Put it away and look at it again after a day or two (or seven). Try to absorb the article with fresh eyes and imagine that you are someone who is trying to learn from it. What might not be clear to someone who is new to your topic? What could explained more succinctly? Is your tone consistent? Ask a colleague to look it over and give feedback. Hopefully they will also catch your typos. Thanks, Michael F.

5. Send the article with a short email
I usually keep my submission emails short. In fact, they are rarely more than three sentences but the one I never leave out is the one that explains how I feel the article can benefit the magazine’s readers. I find that this helps the editor approach the article with a more positive attitude. This has been the case for me both as a writer and an editor.

It feels great to see something you wrote in print or published on a popular website. I have had good luck with magazines like English Teaching Professional, Modern English Teacher, EFL Magazine, and KOTESOL’s The English Connection. Regular publications are always looking for new content so if you have a creative idea to share with your fellow educators, follow these tips and you should see your article in print in no time.

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Tips for Scientific Writing

11/12/2017

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Last Thursday I ran a one-day workshop for researchers in the nuclear industry. I thought it would be useful to share some of the key takeaways from the workshop here in case my readers are looking for ways to increase their acceptance rate in journals or need to teach something similar. I drew from my experience as a teacher of a graduate-level scientific writing course at KAIST, volunteering as an assistant editor for various academic journals, and working as a freelance editor and proofreader to create the workshop contents.

1. Learn what you can copy. Plagiarism is serious and can scare new researchers but learning how to copy journal articles' format and common phrases with the technical vocabulary you need to use is not only okay, it is recommended. You can learn so much from successfully-published articles beyond the content. Look at how they were written and create a database of phrases and formats in your mind.

2. Follow directions. Read the submission guidelines carefully and don't give the editorial board a reason to reject your paper without even reading it carefully. Also, follow the suggestions that the editors give you if your paper receives conditional acceptance.

3. Choose your target publication before you start writing your paper. This will allow you to write for a specific audience and write with a basic template in mind. Not all journals follow the same format. You can save yourself a lot of revision work later by writing to match your target journal's expectations from the beginning.

4. Put the Wow before the How. English is top-loaded so we want you to share your most important outcomes first. We also expect to see what you accomplished in the abstract. Don't expect readers (and editors) to read your paper from front to back. Hook us with the good stuff and make us curious about how you did it.

5. Self edit for common grammatical issues such as plurals and subject/verb agreement. If you make your proofreader guess what you meant, we might guess wrong and that could affect how the editor views your paper.

6. Think like a target reader. Ask yourself if your paper is complete and your findings, rationale, processes, and outcomes are clear. If you can find a colleague to read your paper and provide feedback, that would be even better.

7. Finally, if you are writing in your second language, you can outline and organize your paper in your first language but don't try to write your paper in your first language and try to translate it yourself (or expect Google to do it). This only works if you hire a professional translator who is strong in both languages and knows your field. That can be hard to find and very expensive. Instead, write your first draft in your second language using easy words and sentences. That way, a proofreader will be able to understand your paper better and help you build it up to sound more academic and formal.

The workshop took six hours so we covered a lot more than this but heeding these tips can go a long way toward helping researchers get their papers published quicker and with a higher success rate.

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What No One Tells You About Publishing Your Research

5/1/2017

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I was listening to a rebroadcast of This American Life Episode 583 "It'll Make Sense When You're Older" and it inspired me to write this post. The theme of the episode was that we don't know what it's like to be in a certain situation until we're there.

These days I've been working with researchers who need to publish their results and grad students who need to present their PhD research proposal and sometimes I feel like the advice I'm giving seems too obvious, but then I remember that I had to learn those same lessons the hard way myself. The advice focuses on two key areas: 1. Who are you writing for? and 2. What inspired your research?

When I was in grad school and trying to get my papers published I would write first and then look for a publication to send it to second. This works when you are writing papers for your grad courses and then looking for places to publish edited versions of them. However, when you are writing up your research results and your job security rests on getting published in top-tier journals in your field, you need to pick a journal before you start writing. That being said, a researcher friend reminded me that it's okay to have an outline of what you want to cover before selecting a journal.

Picking your journal before writing helps you identify your target reader (are they specialized in your field or is the publication for a broader range of readers?). It also gives you a opportunity to look at that journal's style guide which includes reference and citation guidelines, how to format charts and tables, and provides word counts for titles and abstracts. Additionally, you can look over sample articles to find out what topics have not been covered recently (or have been covered but could be improved on) and the average length of the articles they publish including the format and length of the individual sections.

Writing an article that looks like a typical article from that publication will increase your chances of being accepted. Following the rules for submission helps your article get an unbiased read. When I worked on the editorial board of a journal as a front-line editor, going over word limits and not following our prescribed referencing style was an easy way to clear that file off my desk (and into the trash can). After all, this was unpaid work and I didn't have time to critically read articles from authors that didn't have time to read our submission guidelines.

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Regarding the inspiration for research, I remember planning the survey items for my MA thesis and choosing topics and questions that interested me. During my defense, my committee crushed me for not basing my survey items on previous research. Sure, they could have mentioned this MUCH EARLIER in the process but it was a valuable lesson that I have tried to pass down to my students.

Last week, a student was practicing her presentation for her PhD research proposal and her labmates were being very critical about the experiments she was planning. They were asking her why she thought it would work and were pointing out very specific critiques. When I asked which articles led her to want to run these experiments, she looked stunned. I think she just thought they would be interesting to try. It took my back to my MA thesis, since that was a version of what I told my committee members. I was curious to see what the results of my survey would be. The problem is that academic research needs to stem from previous research. Budding researchers need to let peer-reviewed studies guide them to holes in what is known in that field that need filling. They need to read everything they can get their hands on for the topic they plan to research.

If you are reading this and thinking that this advice is all common sense, you might be as surprised as I was when I found out how many people didn't know it even at a time in their academic careers when you would think they should. But I'll ask you to think back to that moment when you figured out that you need to pick a publication and an audience to write for and that you can't just try an experiment that pops into your head and expect to get it published in a top-tier journal. I would wager that many of you, like me, were not taught these lessons in a classroom but were smacked in the head by reality when your article was rejected and learned them the hard way.

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Help Your Proofreader Help You

2/4/2017

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I have been doing more and more proofreading since becoming a freelance educational consultant last year. Some jobs are more challenging than others due to short project timelines, a lack of direct communication with the lead author, and translation issues. Another issue that has been popping up lately is clients not providing me with all the tools I need to do a better job proofreading their documents. I have listed a few examples below.

1. Information about the goal

At the very least, it would help the proofreader to know the title of the journal you will be submitting to in order to allow them to Google a few sample articles to see how the journal formats their articles and handles various stylistic issues (Oxford commas, capitalization rules for tables and figures, etc.). Sending a few articles from your target publication or a link to that journal's style/submissions guidelines would help even more. Sure, that takes a little more effort on your part but it will increase your satisfaction level in the end.

For speeches and general correspondence, the name of the event or the job title of the recipient and your relationship with them will help the proofreader choose the most appropriate tone and vocabulary level.

2. The author's weaknesses and expectations

If you know that you often drop the 's" from countable plurals, please let your proofreader know so they can keep an eye out for that. Sure, they will catch most plural errors but there might be some terms that they are unfamiliar with in a scientific or technical paper and they won't be sure if it is a countable or non-countable noun, which can lead to subject-verb agreement errors.

Similarly, if the proofreader is expected to do more advanced work such as look over your reference list and check the references against the in-text citations you should let them know. There is a great deal a proofreader can do beyond fixing grammatical errors and making stylistic changes. They can also take on editing tasks such as suggesting alternative vocabulary, rephrasing sentences, adding comments about content and organization, and even helping with typesetting. If you let your proofreader know what your expectations are before they get started, you will be much happier with the revised draft that you get back.

3. The final deadline

Some proofreaders charge an hourly rate and other by word count and urgency (same day, two-day, four-day jobs, etc.) for working on a document. Your proofreader needs to know how urgently you need the drafts back in order to fit them into their schedule. (Note: you probably aren't their only client.)

Be sure to consider the number of drafts it might take to get your document ready to submit to a journal or use it in its final form. Complicated papers often need multiple drafts to be crafted into the version that will make the strongest impression and increase its chances to be accepted for publication. Rushing won't do any favors to your document so start working with your proofreader as early in the writing process as you can.

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As a final suggestion, whenever possible, work with a proofreader that you know personally. This will help you feel more comfortable discussing changes and negotiating around areas of confusion. The best proofreading projects are a kind of dialogue where the author and proofreader work as a team to mold the author's words and ideas into their clearest and most accurate form. Working with someone that you know will make that dialogue more comfortable and result is a better document and a more enjoyable writing experience.

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Beliefs About Teaching Academic Writing

10/14/2014

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This semester I have two freshman writing classes. On the first day of class I told the students that they needed to do two things to be successful: ask questions and follow directions. So far so bad. You can lead a student to the classroom but you can make them ask questions or follow directions.

There are several things I do differently than my colleagues when teaching writing. First, I don't use a textbook. I do a lot of "chalk talk" and don't give grades to drafts. Students learn by trying and making mistakes, which are pointed out and (hopefully) corrected in the next draft. When I take the time to give feedback to a draft and that feedback is ignored, grades drop and they drop quickly.

The first half of the semester focuses on various types of paragraphs. The last assignment before midterms was a problem/solution paragraph set. The final draft was written in the format of a business email which was addressed to someone who could (in theory) actually do something about the problem. I wrote some formatting rules for business emails on the board but many of students didn't bother to write them down. When it came time to turn in their final drafts there were many errors and some students didn't even bother to write their assignments in the form of an email. Cue the depressed sigh.

Making writing assignments as practical as possible is another thing I try to do in my writing classes. Students who actually sent their problem/solution emails to the person they identified resulted in bonus points. They just needed to bcc me in the email. Less than ten percent of my students took advantage of this opportunity. A large portion of the 90% who couldn't be bothered to send an email will complain about the grade they earned (they will argue the grade they were given) at the end of the semester when it is too late to do anything about it.

After midterms we will start on essays. The goal of writing essays in my class is to write something that can be published in a newspaper as an opinion piece. Around ten of my students have succeeded in having their essays published in national Korean newspapers in the last 3-4 years. The successful students were given a one-letter-grade bump in their final grade. More importantly, they were very proud of their accomplishment and had a positive attitude toward writing in English for future assignment and projects.

Topic selection and audience assessment are key elements of my writing course. I don't choose topics for my students to write about (except for the midterm and final timed-writing exams). It is important for the students to choose a topic that they know a lot about or are very passionate about and for them to have an audience in mind when they are doing their pre-writing.

Attention to detail is a final goal that I hope my students take away from my writing class. I am currently working on a project with a website design firm. The employees have to be asked to make changes several times before they are made correctly. It is very frustrating working with unprofessional employees and I am looking for a new firm to do business with. I hope that my students learn that their actions have consequences and a lax attitude toward their work will result in their losing their jobs or the reputation of their company suffering (or both).

I enjoy teaching writing, not because I believe students will need to write five-paragraph essays in English in the future, because I believe learning to ask questions and follow directions will help them become successful after graduation. It's better than they learn that with me when the worst-case scenario is receiving a failed grade, not getting fired from a job.

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Five Writing Tips from Three Perspectives

How to Write Articles for Language Teaching Magazines

Tips for Scientific Writing

What No One Tells You About Publishing Your Research

Help Your Proofreader Help You

Beliefs About Teaching Academic Writing

Tim's Thoughts

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