Find me
The Developmental Aspects of Sexual Health Laboratory
  • Home
  • People
  • Research Projects
  • Blog
  • Publications
  • Presentations

Intentional writing

11/4/2013

0 Comments

 
Some early advice from my adviser, Marian Sigman, has stuck with me perhaps more than any other advice. I’ll try to share it here in as close to her words as possible:

When you submit a grant proposal (or a manuscript, or a dissertation) and you imagine a reviewer reading it, you picture her sitting at an uncluttered desk with no distractions, full attention to your masterpiece.

In reality, she is more likely to be sitting on her bed, pages of her manuscript strewn about, with children jumping on the bed and a dog trying to eat the pages. Real life is messy.  As a result, you need to do everything in your power to make your writing clear, easily digestible, and as error free as possible. You can’t control the environment it will be read in, but you can control how easy it is to read it.  

---

Perhaps these words have stayed with me more than any other because I read manuscripts, grant proposals, and theses whenever and wherever I can. Yes, in bed with children climbing me, but also on trains, in the car during the kids’ ceramics class (actually, a very low distraction environment), in coffee shops, in doctors’ offices waiting to be seen, on park benches at playgrounds… whenever and wherever I can fit in a few minutes.  I rarely read a full document of more than a few pages in one sitting, and if I do, it’s after midnight. Clarity is incredibly important when you’re trying to convey your message to someone who is distracted or exhausted.

So for my next few posts, I’m going to discuss some ways to make your writing clearer.  I call it intentional writing because it involves carefully considering your word choice, and thinking not only about the content of your work, but the words you use to convey it. As with posters and presentations, good content only works if backed up by clear presentation. Once you start writing with intention, it will become more natural to correct your own writing, as well as to edit others’.

Other entries in this series:
Use consistent terms
Consistent ordering avoids confusion
Vanquish the vague
Dis the this
Start strong
Leave them with something to remember
Write about what you are doing, not what others are not
Integrate, don't list past research
Great introductory sentences
Findings-focused literature summaries


“The post Intentional writing  first appeared on Eva Lefkowitz’s Blog on November 4, 2013.”

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Eva S. Lefkowitz

    I write about professional development issues (in HDFS and other areas), and occasionally sexuality research or other work-related topics. 

    Looking for a post doc? 
    List of HDFS-relevant post docs
    Looking for a fellowship? 
    List of HDFS relevant fellowships, scholarships, and grants
    Looking for an internship?
    List of HDFS-relevant internships
    Looking for a job?
    List of places to search for HDFS-relevant jobs

    Categories

    All
    Adolescent Development
    Being A Grad Student
    Conferences
    Excel
    Gmail
    Grant Proposals
    Job Market
    Mentoring
    Midcareer
    Networking
    PowerPoint
    Publishing
    Research
    Reviewing
    Sexual Health
    Social Media
    SPSS
    Teaching
    Theses & Dissertations
    Transitions
    Undergraduate Advice
    Word
    Work/life Balance
    Writing

    Archives

    February 2022
    May 2021
    January 2021
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    October 2017
    November 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    May 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013

    Tweets by @EvaLefkowitz

    RSS Feed

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    Enter your email address:

    Delivered by FeedBurner

    Blogs I Read

    Female Science Professor

    The Professor is in

    APA Style Blog

    Thinking About Kids

    Tenure She Wrote

    Prof Hacker

    Andrew Gelman

    Claire Kamp Dush
Proudly powered by Weebly