One month of writing improvement

Table of contents

1. What is this?
2. Who is it for?
3. What can you do?
4. Writing improvement goals
5. What to do in a month
6. Writing with others: Co-writing and reflection check ins
7. Writing diary template
8. Reading about writing

What is this?

This is a guide with suggestions for using one month to develop or deepen academic writing skills. It was inspired by the idea of Academic Writing Month (AcWriMo) which happens every November. But the idea of taking a focused block of time to work on a skill works on at any time of year. You can start at any time, you don’t have to even wait for the first day of a month.

Who is it for?

Anybody involved in writing in the academic context can benefit from taking a month to improve. This includes:

1. Academics writing for publication
2. Academics supporting students
3. Students writing short and long work
4. Academic administrators who want to support academics or improve their own writing.

What can you do?

Here are some suggestions of what you can use a month of improvement:

1. Set a writing improvement goal
2. Invite colleagues or friends to do it with you – they don’t have to give you feedback on writing, just check in on progress
3. Reflect on your writing:
   1. Keep a diary of your progress
   2. Read what others say about writing (but never instead of writing).

Writing improvement goals

Key principles: Reflect – Practice – Reflect

Almost everybody feels like they can improve their writing. From accomplished published authors to undergraduates struggling with their first essays. Everybody is starting at a different place, but everybody can use the same principles to help them improve.

1. Reflect
2. Practice
3. Reflect.

Any change takes time and consistency. It is important to learn what the issue is through reflection, then identify goals for improvement, then practice to get better at it. At the end we need to reflect again to see what else we can improve and practice again.

Some suggested goals

Here are some goals you can think about for November (or any other time):

1. Better writing habits – try to make your writing more consistent by experimenting with different times and spaces to write.
2. Increase writing fluency – try to make your writing less of a chore and improve your ‘writing flow’.
3. More readable academic language – you may want to make your writing more academic or less. English may not be your first language, or you are writing for a non-academic audience.
4. More effective use of assistive technology – try to make better use of the tools you have, or incorporate new tools (be it a spelling checker, reference manager, or a mind mapping or note taking tool).
5. Develop more positive feelings about writing – for many people writing is a stressful task. You can use this time to reflect on blockers that make you feel bad about writing and see if there’s anything you can do to minimise them.

What to do in a month

Once you’ve set a goal, you can take many different approaches to using your one month.

1. Write a paragraph a day (or every working day).
2. Write for 30 minutes a day (or every working day).
3. Write one day and edit the next day.
4. Write at the same time and/or place every day.
5. Write at a different time and/or place every day.
6. Write an independent paragraph every day or a part of a bigger writing assignment.
7. Write in a way that suits you best or try a new way of writing to expand your repertoire (e.g. a busy time or place, if you normally like to write in quiet solitude).

You can choose whichever approach works for you.

Writing with others: Co-writing and reflection check ins

Part of the purpose of the month is to set goals and build good habits to achieve them. This is better with others.

This does not mean that you have to read each others’ writing and give feedback. You can just spend time together to help journey through the process.

Here are some idea for how you can work with others to help you write:

1. Sit together quietly and get some writing done
2. Discuss writing goals
3. Check in on progress
4. Discuss writing strategies
5. Discuss / try new tools for writing
6. Ask and answer questions about writing.

Writing diary template

Keep track of progress is a great way to stimulate improvement. To help with that, the Centre for Teaching and Learning's Reading and Writing Innovation Lab has designed a Writing Diary Template in Notion. You can use it to keep a daily diary of your progress and plans for the future and also get a nice summary of your progress.

Reading about writing

If you would like to get some inspiration from others, you can also spend some time reading about writing:

1. Read one or more of four books on writing
2. Read about the goals of AcWriMo from the founders
3. Follow the #AcWriMo hashtag on Twitter during November.