Writing Pact: Are you in?

Everyone knows the drill: you get a load of good, solid work done during the summer and then semester hits, with teaching, pastoral care, admin roles, grant applications and invited seminars. I don’t know about you, but I have both hard writing deadlines and my own aims for my work to deal with while at the same time maintaining the quality of my teaching and student support. And, you know, a life and that.

So, to that end, a few of us on Twitter decided to have a ‘writing pact’ so we keep at the words no matter what this semester throws at us. This is inspired by other initiatives, such as #AcWriMo. Carving out writing time is vital, not just for career progression and intervening in your discipline, but also for keeping your teaching fresh. You understand your students’ writing pressures better, I think, when you’re also struggling with the terror of the blank page or experiencing that moment when things come together.

So, if you’d like to join in, here’s how it will work on Twitter.

– Think about achievable goals you’d like to get done before we knock off for mince pies and mulled wine at Christmas. Be reasonable and realistic about the amount of time you have.
– Pledge it by tweeting (public declaration hopefully means motivation) using the hashtag #AcWri2014 or by tagging me at @DrMagennis
– I will add these to the growing storify, to keep you honest: https://storify.com/DrMagennis/academic-writing-pact-christmas-2014
– At some point on a Tuesday, any time, use the hashtag again to let us all know how you’re getting on.

Some of you might adore the solace of academic writing, and I do too, up to a point. If you like the community of checking in and seeing how you’re getting on with other writers, you’re very welcome to join in! Thanks!