Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Spotlight On: The Power of 15 Minutes When it comes to writing the primary challenge most scholars face is how to find and protect time for this work. I use 15-minutes as a short hand for any amount of time less than 30 minutes, or so short it feels […]
Read More »As little as 15 minutes a day for research & writing is worthwhile
Many academics struggle with finding time to do research and writing. And yet it is research and writing that will make the difference when you are applying for jobs, going up for promotion, being evaluated for grants, and so much more. You don't need to find much time at all. 15 minutes a day could make a big difference.
Older posts in this category were edited and recategorized in June 2015. Re-edited and retitled July 2025.
Beyond accountability: co-working as support
When I started A Meeting With Your Writing, co-working groups for academics were practically unheard of Shut Up and Write didn’t exist yet. The most popular “accountability group” for academic writers, The Academic Ladder, didn’t include co-working. There is now a proliferation of options, both specifically for academics, and more generally. It is common to describe […]
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Tracking “streaks” to establish & maintain habits
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Tracking “streaks” to establish & maintain habits Note: Although I might provide some specific examples, what I say here applies to any habit you want to establish or maintain. That might be a work habit, like writing regularly. Or it might be self-care habits, like not working on weekends, […]
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The power of 15 minutes a day
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · The power of 15 minutes a day This is an excerpt from Finding Time for your Scholarly Writing (A Short Guide) which was published in late March 2018. In the Short Guide, I expand on the concept of 3 types of writing time. This excerpt is from the chapter on […]
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Writing is NOT a reward for getting your grading done
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Writing is not a reward for getting your grading done Grading is dispiriting at the best of times. There is too much of it to do, to a very tight deadline. And despite the occasional brilliant paper or clear demonstration that students are getting it, there are too many […]
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Developing A New Practice: One Year Later
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Developing A New Practice: One Year Later I’ve been preaching the value of establishing a regular writing practice. If you are writing regularly, you will produce journal articles, books, and whatever else you need to produce. Establishing a regular practice is hard, but research shows that as little as […]
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Finding your way back to writing
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Finding your way back to writing I had a query via the contact form on my website that said, in response to the prompt “What’s on your mind?”, not much, need help to figure out! If that isn’t the tip of an iceberg I don’t know what is. Both […]
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The benefits of working small
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · The benefits of working small In another post, I asked: “How could you experiment with working in a relaxed state?” — Is working at or just beyond your limits really effective? I proposed that the ways in which my yoga teacher has been encouraging us to work within the comfortable […]
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Developing A New Practice: An Update
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Developing A New Practice: An Update In my Planning Classes, I talk about how you learn to juggle by tossing one beanbag from one hand to the other. Your goal is form and consistency. Once you have that, you can add more beanbags, change from beanbags to something else, […]
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How much writing can you do in term time?
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · How much writing can you do in term time When I say “You can write during term time”, I don’t mean you can write for an hour or more a day. A privileged few have the teaching and service load that makes that possible. Most people would find that […]
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It IS possible to write during term time
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · it is possible to write in term time The academic year has cycles. There are periods, like the summer, when there are more opportunities to make writing your priority, even dedicating full days to intensively work on a writing project. Most academics look forward to those parts of the […]
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Developing A New Practice: How I Do It
Jo VanEvery, Academic Career Guide · Developing A New Practice: How I Do It You are probably worried about being able to write high quality academic prose, to get it published, to write and publish enough of it, and so on. You may look at my advice to write for 15 minutes a day and […]
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