A friend recently complained that their Ph.D. student could not write very well.
No matter what they did, my friend complained that they had to clean up the language in their papers.
It struck a chord because I spend much time cleaning up grammar.
Often, my coauthor speaks English as a second language & has slightly awkward turns of phrase.
Sometimes, my coauthor writes for an industry audience & lacks the precision expected in scientific writing.
My most challenging coauthors belong to two groups.
First, there are the English & Literature majors, who often will not take advice & make time to lecture me on their superior training & that my poor assessment of their writing’s clarity simply means I don’t get it.
Usually, I give this kind of coauthor a bless your heart & don’t start new projects with them. A form of academic ghosting?
Second, there are the Germans, whose writing is brilliant & methodical & abstract & complex! Their work must be deciphered, so it’s more accessible, so regular people like me can get it.
Usually, I give this kind of coauthor a pat on the back & a heavily marked-up document.
I always look forward to working with people like my German coauthors because I learn fun new ways to express ideas by simplifying the complexity.
Mind you. My contribution is more than fixing grammar; I shape ideas, help design studies, & co-create how we will tell data-informed stories, but, it would be deceptive if I didn’t acknowledge that I also spent a fair amount of time copyediting.
I think, every collaboration, particularly with students, involves some creation (the fun) and some tedium (the editing).
So how to effectively mentor someone who is learning to write?
First, accept that it takes time to learn to write. Your mentees will struggle to find their voices, & it will tick you off, but that is the price you pay for the joy of the creative parts of the collaboration.
Don’t hang onto the frustration, plan for it, and let it go.
Second, take time to annotate why you are changing words & turns of phrase. I have found a comment here & there explaining why language needs to change is helpful. It helps mitigate your coauthors' pain at seeing their work marked up in red ink.
If you educate, you will find your current and future collaboration will be smoother.
Third, be grateful. When I am frustrated, I remind myself that the paper likely would not exist without the mentee putting boots to the ground.
Acknowledge the contributions of your mentees & you more easily find the fun.
Fourth, communicate expectations. You are not just helping a mentee write a paper, you are also teaching them to collaborate.
Use your words, a mentee can’t address unvoiced concerns.
Doing these things improves my mentees’ writing improves substantially.
For mentees, just two pieces of advice, don’t give up! It will get easier! But do send mentors your best work!
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/jason-thatcher-0329764_mentoring-writing-phd-activity-6915618588867403776-v-73?utm_source=linkedin_share&utm_medium=member_desktop_web
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