REFLECTIONS ON MY WRITING PROCESS
I’m an English teacher, and I don’t find academic writing easy! When I’m very serious about making a carefully chosen argument as convincingly and efficiently as
possible, I find it isn’t just theses, supporting arguments, paragraphing and sentences that need my attention: almost
every word requires close
scrutiny.
For example, I ask myself questions like “Why am I using this word instead of its close synonym?” and “Which of this word’s multiple connotations will
be active for the reader?” and “Could this word be deleted?” I’ve always enjoyed the intellectual challenge involved in producing my best argumentative prose,
even though I am sometimes left exhausted.
The most demanding type of academic writing I attempt these days is producing essays or parts of essays that serve as examples for my students. For instance, I can
easily spend three hours crafting a single model body paragraph: it is very difficult to express an argument’s logic fully, precisely and simply, and I very much
want the final product to be as perfect as possible.
Andrew Burton
English Teacher
If you find academic writing difficult, I suggest that’s because it is difficult. If someone tells you that academic writing is easy, reply that you know
of an English teacher with a graduate degree who finds it gruelling.