Below are links to resources for academic writing and publishing – sorted by category – that you might find useful.
Advice • Book Recommendations • Citations and Referencing • Conscious & Inclusive Language • Courses • Job Hunting • Newsletters • PhD Dissertation • Publishing • Tenure • Websites & Tools
Advice, in Various Formats
An advice column from the Council of Science Editors aimed primarily at journal editors. Athena answers publishing-related questions, covering topics from duplicate publications to publishing in predatory journals.
An advice column written by Letitia Henville for academics. Topics range from how to revise and resubmit your journal article to preparing persuasive promotion and tenure documents.
If you are job hunting or encountering any issues at work (particularly in North America), Ask a Manager is a fantastic resource. Alison Green, a former manager at a non-profit and now a consultant, gives advice on all aspects of the job search and just about any work-related problem you can imagine. While the advice isn’t specifically geared at academics, there are many relevant sections. Check Ask a Manager‘s topic archive on cover letters, resumes, references, interviews, and more. Can’t find an answer to a job-related question you have? Send in a question yourself.
- How to Win Acceptances by Psychology Journals: 21 Tips for Better Writing
A list of 21 tips for better writing from Prof. R. J. Sternberg. The article was originally published in 1993 in a newsletter from the American Psychological Society, but much of the advice applies to all fields and disciplines and is as valid today as it was back then. You can find the piece in various places on the internet, including here.
Book Recommendations
- Avoiding Common Pitfalls in Medical Writing (Deanna Erin Conners, 2024)
Written by an editor, Avoiding Common Pitfalls in Medical Writing is an open-access (i.e., free) e-book on scientific writing. Sections include “Writing and Style Basics,” “Specialized Style Concerns,” and “Optimization for Publication and Funding.”
- The Best Punctuation Book, Period(June Casagrande, 2014)
A highly useful guide not only for academics but also other writers, as Casagrande explains punctuation rules in book-editing (B), news media and business writing (N), science (S), and academia (A).
- The Book Proposal Book: A Guide for Scholarly Authors(Laura Portwood-Stacer, 2021)
A step-by-step guide for academics hoping to publish their work in bookform. It covers everything from how to select the right press for you to what matters in your book proposal. Available for purchase at bookshop.org, Amazon, or your local bookstore.
- The Conscious Style Guide. A Flexible Approach to Language that Includes, Respects, and Empowers (Karen Yin, 2024)
An essential guide on how “to write and speak with equity in mind.”
- Dreyer’s English: An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style (Benjamin Dreyer, 2019)Written by the copy chief of Random House, Dreyer’s English covers punctuation, grammar, and style in an upbeat, approachable manner.
- The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your Ph.D. Into a Job(Karen Kelsky, 2015)
A book with solid advice on job hunting from someone who has sat on many hiring committees. Chapters cover topics like CVs, cover letters, job interviews, and more.
- The Subtleties of Scientific Style (Matthew Stevens, 2007)
The 103-page guide is available for free download from various locations, including here. If you wish, you can also send a payment to the author (details on his website).
- Writing Science in English: A Guide for Japanese Scientists (Matthew Stevens, 2021)
Stevens has also produced a guide specifically for Japanese scientists, which you can download from the website of the European Association of Science Editors here. Some of the more general advice may be helpful for scholars from other disciplines too.
Citations and Referencing
An article from the Purdue Online Writing Lab that explains how citation generator apps work and also provides some guidance on “best practices” for using them responsibly.
Conscious and Inclusive Language
A style guide – aimed at journalists, but useful for anyone – that provides guidance on language for covering Asian American Pacific Islander communities. It consists of a list of terms, explaining their meaning and how and to what degree they are problematic, as well as offering alternative language. Also check out the website’s further resources (again, mainly media-oriented).
Created by Karen Yin, the Conscious Style Guide calls itself the “ the first website devoted to conscious language.” It’s a thorough resource you don’t want to miss as it covers many topics: ability + disability; age; appearance; climate + environment; ethnicity, race + nationality; gender, sex + sexuality; health; socioneconomic status; spirituality, religion + atheism, and more. Yin also links to many guides and basic tips.
This Communication Guide focuses on gender inclusive language, explaining some topics (on their website, but also available for download). It also links to further resources, ranging from LinkedIn Learning to streaming videos.
Crystal Shelley, the editor behind Rabbit with a Red Pen, has several toolkits on conscious language for both writers and editors. She’s also an authenticity (sensitivity) reader for Asian American content (fiction and non-fiction).
Courses
A free, on-demand training course – offered both in English and Chinese – for early career academics that want guidance on how to do a peer review. The course covers topics such as ethics in peer reviewing, assessing significant and technical quality, assessing presentation and readiness for publication, and writing a peer review.
Job Hunting
This is a brief guide from the University of Pennsylvania, but it includes links to additional resources (e.g., 8 Tips to Improve Your CV, Tailoring Your CV to Institutional Fit) as well as several CV samples for different fields (Communications PhD, Economics PhD, Chemistry PhD, Engineering PhD and two samples for STEM postdocs).
A thorough guide to writing resumes and CVs from Rice University, which includes templates for Graduate Student Resumes and a PhD Student Template.
Karen Kelsky, aka the “Professor”, offers advice and consulting services on job hunting in academia. There is a lot of information, so you will have to dig through the website to find what you want. The post “Dr. Karen’s Rules for the Academic CV” (continually updated) is particular useful and, if you are actively looking to get hired, you could also purchase Prof. Kelsky’s book, The Professor Is In: The Essential Guide to Turning Your Ph.D. Into a Job. Also look for posts highlighting differences in the academic job search in the US and the UK.
Newsletters
Jennifer Yankopolus sends out information on one macro a month. It’s an easy way to learn how to use macros without feeling overwhelmed. (See also: Word Macro Tools under Websites & Tools)
Laura Portwood-Stacer’s newsletter on book publishing for academics provides lots of useful information.
PhD Dissertation
- Writing a Literature Review(PDF file)
Joseph Heathcott (Prof. of Urban Studies, New School) offers helpful guidelines for organising and structuring a literature review.
Publishing
This helpful chart from Jane Friedman provides information about the different options for publishing your book, whether academic or otherwise.
Stanley’s system is based on Matthew J. Lebo’s pipeline. He particularly leans into Lebo’s point system. With colour-coded spreadsheets and other tracking methods, Stanley’s approach is perfect for individuals who are highly organised, data-oriented, and visual.
- Managing Your Research Pipeline (PDF file)
Matthew J. Lebo describes his system for pipeline management, i.e., how to take papers from idea to publication, as you work towards tenure and, later, full professorship.
Published in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Erin M. Furtak’s article from 2016 introduces the 11 stages she uses in her publishing pipeline. (Note: You need to create an account to access this article.) Furtak also offers a 4-week seminar on the topic, but it’s available only for NCFDD members.
Dr. Brown’s publishing pipeline consists of 10 parts, which are explained in the post. You can download a simple template to use for your own pipeline.
Jennifer Kelly shares how she finds time to write. She talks about digital calendars, time blocking, weekly and semester plans, using all these tactics to build a publishing pipeline. Her approach includes a physical planner for scheduling various activities (writing, teaching, meals, self care, etc.), colour coding, and Post-its that can be moved around.
This post from Bristol Clear describes what a publication pipeline is and what steps it involves. You will find explanations here rather than a specific plan with a template; links to additional resources are provided. You may find the diagram showing the 3 main areas of the writer’s publication pipeline helpful.
A website that “helps researchers identify trusted journals and publishers for their research” by providing tools and practical resources (e.g., checklists with questions to help you identify whether a publisher is trusted and suitable for your research), some of which are available in multiple languages.
Tenure
This is a short article from CUNY, but it’s full of useful links if you are working towards tenure. Includes: an annotated tenure statement, two people’s strategies after not-so-great third/fourth year reviews, and articles on long-term planning for a successful career in academia.
Websites & Tools
If you are Black and/or Indigenous person in academia (student, scholar, researcher, mentors, administrator, etc.), the Academic Editing Circle is a small group of professional editors who offer pro bono editing services and career support (including some free courses and a pro bono résumé or CV review). It also promotes Black and/or Indigenous editors, groups, and associations.
A website with links to several academic writing resources. It also offers book recommendations, both for general as well as subject-specific advice on academic writing.
If you are researcher in a low or middle income country who is looking for help with publishing in peer-reviewed journals, AuthorAid offers free support, mentoring, resources, and training.
A resource for phrases used in different sections of a research paper or dissertation. You can search the phrasebank by “Major Sections” or “Language Functions.” An expanded version of the phrasebank can be purchased in PDF or Kindle format.
A web-based app that assesses your writing for a number of factors, including your use of passive voice, transitions, and nominalisations.
An app that helps you improve your writing by highlighting text in different colours, marking long, complex sentences as well as common errors.
A visualisation tool that allows you to select a specific scientific method (e.g., archival research or video interviewing) and shows you its broader as well as narrower terms, as well as related concepts.
Aimed primarily at students, the Purdue OWL provides a wide range of resources, covering topics related to general and academic writing (e.g., personal correspondence, essay writing). Additionally, you will find advice on preparing different documents for undergraduate, graduate, and (post-university) job applications.
Aimed at students, this website provides information sheets and videos on many topics grouped into four distinct categories: Writing the Paper; Citation, Style, and Sentence Level Concerns; Specific Writing Assignments or Contexts; Writing for Specific Fields. Additional Resources (bottom right of the page) include links to dictionaries, corpora, academic phrasebanks, resources to build your academic vocabulary, and more.
In MS Word, you can use macros to automate tasks, something which can be useful for both writing and (self-)editing. To get started, Paul Beverley’s website Word Macro Tools is immensely helpful. It’s aimed at editors, but equally useful if you are a (somewhat technically inclined) scholar editing your or other people’s writing. Note: Macros are particularly useful when working with longer manuscripts.
A tool that can help you detect patterns in and improve your writing.
And One More Academic Writing Resource
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