The Researchers' Writing Podcast

Thanks for tuning in for another episode of the Researchers’ Writing Podcast! I often ask researchers which section they find hardest to write and the section that is named most often is the Introduction section! I hear things like “My introductions are very long and generic and I end up with lots of references.” or “I find it difficult to write succinct paragraphs.” or “I overexplain and my Introductions are loooooong.” I think a lot of researchers aren’t using the Introduction section effectively and so that’s why today I want to talk you through the 7 mistakes I find scientific authors make when writing the Introduction section for their research paper. In this episode, I’ll talk about: (02:10) What researchers struggle with in Introduction sections (04:35) Mistake 1: Not including the element of tension (09:25) Mistake 2: The Introduction section is too long (14:00) Mistake 3: The paragraphs are too long (16:40) Mistake 4: The sentences are too long (20:05) Free writing training at researcherswritingpodcast.com/free (21:05) Mistake 5: The first sense of your Introduction section is boring (23:50) Mistake 6: There’s no flow in your Introduction section (26:40) Mistake 7: Using too many synonyms in your Introduction section (31:08) Listener question: Are longer or shorter blocks of writing time better? Podcast host: Anna Clemens, PhD Video and audio editing: Jason Rivera Join our free training to learn more about the Journal Publication Formula at researcherswritingpodcast.com/free. Get tips on how to write every section of your paper and increase your chances of getting published in top-tier journals.

In this episode, I’m talking to Geetika Chauhan who is a PhD student at the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw and a member of the Researchers’ Writing Academy. Geetika works in the field of geophysics and joined the Academy because, as she told me, both she and her PI got fed up when she was on the tenth draft of her first journal article with no end in sight. After she joined our academic writing program she started with a fresh draft and after just two rounds of revisions and two months’ work in total, her PI approved and submitted the paper. Geetika talks about how she was concerned that this course would just join the pile of other online courses she had bought and never looked at. But how – once she was a member – she was surprised by the engaged community, which helped her to actually take and implement the course. (01:10) Introducing Geetika Chauhan (03:20) Geetika’s struggles before joining the Researchers’ Writing Academy (RWA) (06:01) Geetika’s concerns before she joined the program (07:45) What helped keep Geetika engaged and committed to the program (10:32) Free training for researchers (go to researcherswritingpodcast.com/free) (12:18) How Geetika’s feelings Geetika around writing have changed (14:22) Geetika’s favourite part of the RWA Podcast host: Anna Clemens, PhD Video and audio editing: Jason Rivera If you’re interested to join the Researchers’ Writing Academy and learn how to develop a structured writing process to get published in top-tier journals time-efficiently, then I highly recommend watching my free writing training as the first step at: researcherswritingpodcast.com/free.

Welcome back! This is part 3 of our 3-part mini-series on making time to take an academic writing course. In part 1 of the series (Episode 7), we talked about looking at deeper reasons (limiting beliefs and unhelpful stories you tell yourself) for why you’re not making time to take a writing course. In part 2 (Episode 8), we looked at actionable strategies you can employ today to carve out time to take a writing course. In this part 3 of the series, we are going to look at practical techniques that will help you supercharge your motivation once you enrolled in a writing course such as the Researchers’ Writing Academy. You’ll get more out of any course that you signed up using these motivation-boosting techniques and also it will also be way more fun!  Thank you to all the Researchers’ Writing Academy members who let me share their examples and experiences in this episode. Good luck with getting your whole brain aligned and making time and freeing up energy to take a writing course!  In this episode, I’ll talk about:  (01:00) Recap of part 1 and part 2 of this series (02:55) Technique #1: Keep your “why” top of mind (06:05) Technique #2: Incorporate learning into existing routine (habit stacking) (11:50) Technique #3: Stack taking lessons with writing (13:23) Free writing training at researcherswritingpodcast.com/free (14:20) Technique #4: Accountability and community (19:58) Technique #5: Dedicate a notebook to the course  (22:46) Technique #6: Turn taking the course into a ritual (29:29) Listener question: Can I use the Journal Publication Formula for writing my dissertation?  Podcast host: Anna Clemens, PhD Video and audio editing: Jason Rivera And if you’re ready to invest your time and energy into acquiring the skill of writing papers for top-tier journals time-efficiently, then I highly recommend checking out my free writing training: researcherswritingpodcast.com/free.

In today’s episode we’ll continue our mini-series on making time to take a writing course with part 2 out of 3 parts in total. Even if you aren’t planning on taking an academic writing course or program such as the Researchers’ Writing Academy right now, the strategies I’m sharing today are so universal, they will help you carve out time for other things too. Maybe you struggle to find time to write? Whatever you want to carve out time for, you’re in the right place. In the last episode, I introduced you to a technique to look a bit deeper into why you may be procrastinating on investing in your writing. Today, I want to share 7 proven and actionable strategies that have helped other researchers just like you to make time to invest in taking an academic writing course. I know, I know, it feels like you really don’t have a minute to spare to do anything else but the work you already have on your plate. If you don’t feel like you have enough time to take a writing program, then you’re not alone. It’s in fact the most common reason researchers give us for why they aren’t enrolling in the Researchers’ Writing Academy, our online academic writing program. BUT without investing time, you won’t learn the skill of writing a compelling paper that stands a chance to get published in a top-tier journal. And without investing time, you won’t learn a new writing process that will make writing a paper so fast that you can submit your paper in 8 weeks or less after analysing your data. Here’s what I’ll be talking about in this episode: (02:45) No time to join a program? (08:50) Strategy #1: Be clear on your priorities (11:21) Strategy #2: Time blocking (14:15) Strategy #3: Decrease frequency of regular meetings (17:01) Strategy #4: Reduce your email load (24:44) Free writing training at researcherswritingpodcast.com/free (25:47) Strategy #5: Stop or strictly limit using social media and set personal boundaries (28:54) Strategy #6: Time and energy tracking (31:54) Strategy #7: Say “no” more! (36:50) Listener question: How do I start tackling a drawer full of half-finished manuscripts? Podcast host: Anna Clemens, PhD Video and audio editing: Jason Rivera Want to dive deeper? We have a free training on how to write clear, concise, and compelling papers from start to finish using a structured and time-efficient writing process. Head over to researcherswritingpodcast.com/free to save your spot now!