Writing and publishing workshops to achieve research communication goals

23 July 2021 | Diana Newport-Peace

Outside Opinion has run publishing workshops for clients across a range of disciplines at the University of Technology, Sydney, University of Canberra, University of Newcastle, QUT and most recently at the University of Adelaide. Our team includes writers and publishers with a range of experience, and I have co-facilitated several times with John Emerson, formerly of Adelaide University Press.

The first and most recent workshops I delivered were in person, with everything in between offered via Zoom. Setting aside the issue of "zoom fatigue" I found there were a number of positives from running workshops online, one of which was the ease with which we could transition from group discussion of concepts and approaches to individual written exercises. The format also allowed for collaborative written exercises using online tools such as Etherpad.

Last week, with a group from the University of Adelaide we talked (in person!) about reading with intent and not just for content. Journal articles and book chapters are a ready source of information about what publishers want and what good writing looks like. Consciously looking for that information can enhance our own writing craft and style as we read work. Every writing workshop is different, with the format dictated by the discipline mix and the sorts of projects participants are working on. Where budgets permit, we have provided wraparound support starting with an individual discussion with participants, followed by the workshop, and followed up a few weeks later by intensive one on one coaching to guide a specific writing project to the point of submission. We have supported academics with book proposals, journal articles and resubmissions, the conversion of conference papers to articles and theses to books.
There are many rewards for both workshop participants and facilitators. For me there is a wonderful feeling of exhilaration when a workshop participant gets back in touch to say something has been submitted or accepted for publication.

Diana Newport-Peace is Senior Associate, Outside Opinion