Day 30: Plan(t) an #AcWriMoment
From Margy Thomas and Helen Sword
Freddie plan(t)s an #AcWriMoment. (Photo by Helen Sword)
Back at the beginning of #AcWriMoments, we invited you into this adventure with a question:
What unique perspectives, experiences, constellations of values, and capacity for pleasure and joy define who you are as a scholar and as a participant in the larger scholarly enterprise?
It’s a question we each could return to many times over the years without ever fully answering. But any time we explore it — including (obliquely) by way of the #AcWriMoments prompts shared this month — we can reconnect with our unique purpose and find the courage to carry on in our scholarly work.
Of the six types of SACRED #AcWriMoments this month, which did you find most nourishing, revelatory, or productive? Was it the Strategic moments, or the Artisanal ones? Perhaps the Creative or Reflective? Or maybe the Embodied and Delicious moments resonated most with you?
Through your thinking and writing this month, what have you discovered about your current project, your larger body of work, or yourself as a writer?
Whatever your responses, we trust that you’ve found a wealth of gentle, yet expansive new ways of approaching your work this month. And we hope that you now feel better equipped to make the kind of intangible writing progress that may not always be measurable but that can, when you pay close enough attention, surely be felt.
For this final #AcWriMoment, consider these three suggestions for planning (or planting!) fresh #AcWriMoments in the weeks and months ahead.
1. Save these #AcWriMoments prompts and create your own.
Bookmark this page so you can return to the prompts anytime and reuse them in the future. As long as you’re subscribed to this list, you’ll continue to receive one new #AcWriMoments prompt each month in 2024. Stay tuned for details!
Create your own #AcWriMoments prompts inspired by the ones shared here! We’ll soon start soliciting submissions for prompts to feature in future #AcWriMoments.
2. Line up your writing resources for 2024.
Subscribe to Helen’s Word (Helen’s Substack) for weekly inspiration, wordcraft, and colorful news from the bestselling author of Stylish Academic Writing and Writing with Pleasure.
Subscribe to ScholarShape (Margy’s Substack, coming soon) for weekly(ish) invitations into your Story-Argument, the body of work only you can create.
Subscribe to the podcasts, socials, and email lists of the lovely Contributors whose prompts have resonated with you this month.
Share a comment on this post and let us know what you’re plan(t)ing for your next #AcWriMoment!
Thank you for participating in #AcWriMoments! The journey doesn’t end here. Please stay in touch and let us know what kinds of topics and questions you’d like us to support you with in future resources.
Helen Sword and Margy Thomas
Awwee... it's the last day! 😭🥳 I set out to start a writing habit, and I almost gave up when I fell over a week behind, but I'm stoked to have persevered and responded to each prompt. In our busy world, especially virtually, it's easy to let things fall by the wayside, and give ourselves lots of excuses. But the support of this community combined with accountability to follow through with a goal, and not wanting to let people down, reminded me of my strong humanistic value system. I'm so grateful for this space! 🩵 Thank you, Helen and Margy, for creating and hosting such an empowering activity. As a newbie academic, I truly appreciated the practical prompts and wisdom tidbits. However, I think the reflective prompts were the most impactful in my journey to push past obstacles. 🙏🩵💫
OH THANK GOD there is a plan for 2024!!! ❤️ I have been avoiding this prompt all morning because it's the last one and I couldn't bear it. I'm so grateful to you both for organizing such a lovely and lively month. It's just been such a gift.
I think my overall discovery is how to cope with procrastination. I have a lot (potentially too many) writing strategies that get me through but they are only helpful once I know what to do. These prompts have given me additional tools to conquer those mucky places where the path forward isn't clear yet. My current writing mantra, "I am not afraid of chapter five!" I think is going to be a lesson that carries forward into a lot more writing projects.