Helpful Resources for Academic Writing

When you just need a little guidance . . .

In my last post, I shared some thoughts about learning to write like an academic using inductive techniques. Using that method, you can learn by reading what others have written and gradually build a theory of academic writing from studying the work of others in your field. This kind of learning will help you get the feel of academic writing; as you read, you’ll pick up on the linguistic choices, the kinds of arguments, and the parts of journal articles, theses, or dissertations in your field. It’s invaluable.

But, as I mentioned in that post, this inductive method has a couple of drawbacks. One is that it can take a long time to learn general rules by studying specific examples. Another drawback is that it’s difficult to be sure you have identified the rules correctly. If one dissertation has a section on limitations in the introduction, and another has it in the conclusion, where should you put your limitations section? Sometimes it can be a huge relief to have someone tell you what to do. Especially, of course, if that person knows what they are talking about.

So, in this post, I will try to point you toward some people who know what they are talking about. Following are some resources on academic writing that I have found particularly helpful, both to me and to the students I work with.

Some Helpful Books on Writing

Dissertation and Scholarly Research: Recipes for Success, by Marilyn K. Simon and Jim Goes

The authors call this book “A Practical Guide to Start and Complete Your Dissertation, Thesis, or Formal Research Project.” That’s an excellent description, with the emphasis on “practical.” The book includes step-by-step directions for writing a five-chapter dissertation. It has instructions for choosing a topic and method, situating your study, conducting qualitative and quantitative research, and writing it all up. If you are writing a dissertation in the social sciences and need someone to hold your hand, Simon and Goes are your people.

Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day, by Joan Bolker

Bolker admits that you can’t really write a dissertation in 15 minutes a day (unless you have a lot more days to work on it than most people). Her point is that consistently and diligently chipping away at the project is what is going to get this thing done. This book made me think of the words of one of my first friends to earn a Ph.D. (about 30 years ago). He said anyone could do it – it’s just an endurance game. Bolker’s book is practical, but in a completely different way from Simon and Goes’. It has advice for things like understanding the writing process, dealing with interruptions, and beating writer’s block. This means it’s valuable for people working on any kind of dissertation or thesis – indeed, any kind of large writing project at all. Written in 1998, it’s a bit dated (there’s an appendix with advantages and disadvantages of composing on a computer, which few of us consider these days, although maybe we should). But the writing and productivity tips are completely relevant. And – bonus – the book is fun to read.

Academic Writing for Graduate Students: Essential Tasks and Skills, 3^rd Ed., by John M. Swales and Christine B. Feak

This book is designed for graduate students whose first language is not English. The truth is, though, that graduate-level academic English is not anyone’s native tongue. When, outside of graduate school, do we throw around terms like “theoretical framework,” “phenomenology,” and “generalizability”? Does the average undergrad know how to write data commentary? What goes in the discussion section of a research paper?

The authors of this book provide information and practice exercises that will be helpful for students in any discipline who struggle to write in an academic style. They cover the genres of research paper and book review, and they also discuss sentence-level issues, such as word choice, passive vs. active voice, and the use of contractions.

Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7^th Ed.

Of course, not every discipline uses APA. If you are getting your degree in history, aerospace engineering, or literary criticism, you’re going to want the appropriate style manual for your field. (Did you know, by the way, that Zotero includes 9,900 citation styles? On the one hand, that is super impressive. On the other hand – can we not get a little more consensus, people?)

If you are in a social science, nursing, or business field, however, APA is going to be your bosom companion throughout your thesis or dissertation writing process. You might as well spend the $20 and get your own copy. The manual has more than just the rules for headings, tenses, tables, appendices, and citations; it also includes ethical guidelines for research and publishing, tips for scholarly writing, and an outline of the publication process.

In addition to purchasing your own style manual, I highly recommend the APA Style website and – especially – the blog. That was where, after diligent, yet fruitless, searching, I finally found confirmation of how to cite multiple references from the same organizational author with no date [(n.d.-a), (n.d.-b) — in case anyone else has similar informational needs].

Those are a few of my favorites. It would be a great idea to ask your advisor, chair, or other students in your program for their top recommendations as well. And let me know – I’d love to hear what others have found helpful!