#note/sourcereview/article | #note/sourcereview/book # Air & Light & Time & Space: How Successful Academics Write ## Helen Sword, 2017 ## Background: In 2018, I was a community physician running a community hospital simulation program. I was happy in many ways, but I felt unfulfilled in many others. A key question I was grappling with was, what impact am I having based on my work? I like what I'm doing, but can I tell if what I'm doing is important? I was working as an essentially lone physician, with a great group of nurses, but struggled to have partners to help me answer this question. I also was becoming increasingly distressed by what was eventually diagnosed as a values disagreement with the organization I worked for. Fast forward to 2025, when I'm completing this book review, (Yes, it took me 5 months to read this book.) and I'm Director of Clinical Programs at the Center for Medical Simulation, with a Masters in Health Professions Education, and two papers in review at a major simulation journal. How can a middle-aged clinician methodically be transformed into an academic? Works like this can help! ## What is the thesis? Start with [[The writers BASE]]: There are many ways to be a great writer; there are many styles, systems, and approaches. Beware the one true way, don't chase the system, focus on your own development. Start with your BASE: behaviors (how you go about the writing process), artisanal habits (how you craft and edit), social habits (how you work with others), and emotions (how you feel about writing. By stretching in all four directions with a focus on [[Forming Habits]] that support your strengths being powerful and your weaknesses improving, [[Barbells make you stronger]]. Remember, too much focus on what you do and not enough on why you do it will limit your growth. What was my BASE evaluation? As of 2024-6-11: ![[CleanShot 2025-01-24 at 08.12.29.jpg]] As of 2025-1-23: ![[CleanShot 2025-01-24 at 08.11.16.jpg]] It appears I have evolved, so of this evolution is likely a better alignment of self-awareness and skill as I move from [[unconscious incompetence]] to a higher state of being. ### Specific domains that have changed: B: I believe I am more self-aware in the domain of behaviors. I actually think my behaviors have improved, I'm much more productive and have created a ritual of writing, although I still have a lot of room for improvement. I need to figure out how to write on my clinical days and my teaching days, even if it's only for 10 minutes. The increased self-awareness has caused my score to go down, but my action to go up. A: The Writer's Workshop with Chris Waitling and Lorelei Lingard turned a key unlocking knowledge about sentence structure, verb use, paragraph structure, and pacing. A sun has broke over the horizon last week, dawning on my writing as I felt warmth spread while helping edit the introductory sentences and abstract for a paper I'm co-authoring. Artisanal craft and voice are emerging... S: There's a lot of room to grow here, I think I'm more self-aware of the gaps. I have tried to be in a writers group, that group fell apart. I have done a few hours here and there of co-writing, but need to solve this issue in our organization of distributed and busy people. E: I do think that at this point I enjoy writing. I do need to get over my emotions around feedback and editing, but these are definitely going in a better direction. Reviews are "advice to be considered," and I have given some editing advice that others have not considered. That framing is a more mature version of the initial thinking that I carried, which was reviews are judge and jury. ## Am I convinced and why? I think this is a useful self-assessment, although I don't take much stock in self-assessment as an outcome, it can be helpful as a process. How can that contradiction be true? In my mind, it is useful in that it give you specific domains to work on as you try to make progress on being a better writer. In that way, the accuracy of the assessment is not important, the direction of change is. ## Summarize the argument ### Part 1: Behavioral Habits - By tracking the writing time and productivity you can get a sense of how productive you can be with your writing: are you an early bird or a night owl? Where in your life can you fit in regular writing? - Regular small chunks of writing tend to be _waaaay_ more productive than "I'll get the writing done on Thursday when I have 5 hours." - Consider writing to be training for a marathon, you won't do it all on the day before the race. The training needs to happen in little bunches, jammed into your already busy life. You need to train in the dark, when it's snowing, and just 5 miles on one of those mornings is SO much more valuable than a zero day. Habits and identity are tightly entwined. [[Forming Habits]] through the Atomic Habits method asks you to consider each day as a vote for the person you want to be in the co-creation of your identity through your outcomes, your actions, and your thinking.  (Clear, 2018) ### Part 2: Artisanal Habits - Interestingly, the key central goal of becoming a great _writer_ might be to become a great _reader._ Read broadly. While reading, look for the results of writing craft that trigger resonance within you. Recognize the moments of potency, succinctness, and value, and ask yourself, how did the writer achieve that? What construction, metaphor, word choice, and pacing led to the positive outcome? >"Think like an artisan Craftspeople respect and cherish the materials and tools that they work with: the stonemason loves the stone and the chisel; the weaver loves the fiber and the loom; the sushi chef loves the raw fish and the knife. To cultivate your identity as an artisan of language, start by writing down all the things you love about writing, from the feeling of words in your mouth to the sound of a tapping keyboard."(pp. 86-88). ### Part 3: Social Habits - How do you cooperative with others? Do you write with others in a writing group of some type? Do you write with others in a collaborative process? Lately, this is an domain I've been considering as a key growth area. Some of my projects are stuck, largely based on inability to move in rhythm with my dancing partners. - Do we all have the same priorities for our next project creation? - Do we all have the same free times for working together to make progress on creating a [[shared mental model]]? - When I do my weekly review, and I'm at the "clarify" step of being stuck at a project moment, these would be good questions to ask. What is the next step? Maybe it's working with my team to negotiate out the priorities of our work. ### Part 4: Emotional Habits - What feelings does writing evoke? - How can you reframe neutral or negative emotions associated with the process? #### On editing - competing framings _consider the benefit or resonance of these competing ways of considering editing your work: murder your darlings vs I still love you._ ![[Murder your darlings]] versus ![[I still love you]] #### “The Pleasure Principle” - To turn writing into a virtuous cycle, add pleasure to the process. Reframe frustration (one of the most common emotions) to an opportunity to overcome. >"successful writers, by and large, draw pleasure from their writing and infuse their writing processes with pleasure; struggling writers, on the other hand, often labor under debilitating burdens of anxiety, stress, and self-doubt." >"frustration is a prerequisite for elation. Perhaps the pleasure of the breakthrough, the intensity of the flow, would lose some of its emotional force if writing were easy all the time. (p. 163) #### “Risk and Resilience” - You have to determine how and when you'll take academic risk. >"So how do successful academic writers become risk takers rather than rule followers? How do they learn to bounce back from criticism and rejection? And to what extent can their academic survival and even success be attributed to their emotional habits rather than to sheer good luck?" (p. 169) >"develop strategies for recovering quickly and moving on" (p. 173) >"Rejection feels horrible, but the feeling has a shelf life. And you just develop your plan: “Well, this didn’t get in here, so I’m going to do this to it and send it there.”" (p. 173). ![[CleanShot 2025-01-23 at 16.42.36.jpg]] >"This exercise can be expanded to other aspects of academic life as well: for example, how might you turn a routine administrative job (career-advancing but not life-enhancing) into a proactive leadership role that feeds your sense of personal fulfillment and professional purpose (career-advancing and life-enhancing)?" (p. 176) #### “Metaphors to Write By” - How can metaphors add depth to your writing? ## What is the other side of the argument? What is left out of this book about developing your BASE for writing? The use of Generative A/I as a writing partner is absent. The tradeoffs and leverages are absent. Appendix 1 demonstrates my feedback approach to using generative A/I. My prompt was: "give me feedback on this source review for my blog, does it capture my action? the big ideas? does it inspire action in others?" I use generative A/I not to do my writing but to advise or coach me. I want it to prompt new ways of seeing, to make me better next time. As a result of the feedback, I added the "specific domains" ## What else do I wonder about? Since I spend a lot of time in the car, I wonder about ways that I can use that time to write or edit. ## Action 1) [Develop a process for tracking writing productivity/hour](https://todoist.com/app/task/8273140966) 2) How would I define writing? Is my [[Zibaldone]] writing time? I would have to say "yes." But, what is the metric that matters? Words/day isn't the best metric if those words aren't published or valuable... 3) I need to make progress on my [[Writing]] idea guide ... ## When do I want to stumble across this? #on/writing | #on/writing/process ## Source: Sword, H. (2017). _Air & light & time & space how successful academics write_. Harvard Univ. P. Clear, J. (2018). _Atomic habits: Tiny changes, remarkable results: an easy & proven way to build good habits & break bad ones_. Avery, an imprint of Penguin Random House. #### Appendix 1: Prompt to ChatGPT (Model 4o) 2025-1-24: give me feedback on this source review for my blog, does it capture my action? the big ideas? does it inspire action in others? --- Your source review for _Air & Light & Time & Space_ effectively captures the big ideas of the book, reflecting Helen Sword’s emphasis on diverse writing approaches and the importance of aligning habits with personal strengths and weaknesses. It also touches on actionable strategies, such as reframing frustration into opportunity and infusing pleasure into the writing process, which resonate with the book’s thesis. **Feedback on Capturing Action** • **Strengths**: You clearly outline the BASE framework (Behaviors, Artisanal habits, Social habits, Emotions) and link it to personal development. The notes on tracking productivity, breaking down writing sessions into smaller chunks, and viewing writing as training are especially actionable and practical. • **Improvements**: Some parts of the review, like “What else do I wonder about?” or the reflections on using car time, could more explicitly connect to specific steps or tools you intend to implement. This would make the review more actionable for readers looking to apply these insights. **Feedback on Big Ideas** • **Strengths**: The big ideas, such as the diversity of writing processes and the emphasis on risk-taking and emotional resilience, are well captured. The metaphors of writing as an artisan craft and training for a marathon are particularly vivid and memorable. • **Improvements**: Expanding on how these ideas influenced your perspective could deepen the impact. For example, you mention moving from “unconscious incompetence” to a higher state of being—how does this align with the book’s teachings, and what specific changes have you made as a result? **Feedback on Inspiring Others** • **Strengths**: The review includes reflective questions (e.g., “How would I define writing?”) and practical suggestions (e.g., reframing frustration) that could motivate readers to reassess their writing habits. • **Improvements**: To inspire action more broadly, consider emphasizing transformation stories—how Sword’s ideas have changed your habits or mindset. Readers often connect more deeply with narrative examples. **Additional Suggestions** 1. **Clarify the Action Steps**: Highlight specific actions you’ve taken or plan to take as a result of reading this book. For instance, how will you track your writing productivity, or what tools might you use? 2. **Relate More Personal Insights**: Share a concrete example of how you’ve applied a concept like “pleasure in writing” or “murder your darlings” to inspire readers to reflect on their processes. 3. **Engage with Generative AI**: Since you noted that the book omits generative AI, you could briefly discuss how you integrate it into your writing process and how it complements Sword’s ideas. Does this align with your goals for the review? Would you like to refine any specific sections or explore a different focus? --- Next round: How is this version? Did I incorporate your ideas effectively? --- This revised version of your source review shows clear incorporation of earlier feedback, particularly in the areas of action, personal insight, and connection to the book’s key themes. Here’s how effectively it achieves your goals: **Capturing Your Action** • **Strengths**: • The updated evaluation of your BASE framework (Behaviors, Artisanal habits, Social habits, Emotions) is a great addition. It provides specific examples of how you’ve grown, such as improving writing rituals and gaining insights from a writer’s workshop. • Your acknowledgment of areas needing improvement (e.g., writing on clinical days, developing collaborative habits) demonstrates reflection and action-oriented thinking. • **Suggestions for Improvement**: • You might strengthen the “Action” section by listing concrete next steps for areas needing growth, such as a plan for integrating writing into clinical days (e.g., scheduling 10-minute sessions during breaks). **Capturing the Big Ideas** • **Strengths**: • The review succinctly outlines the book’s major points, such as the metaphor of writing as a marathon and the importance of incorporating pleasure into the process. • Your inclusion of personal reflections, like moving from “unconscious incompetence” to greater self-awareness, effectively ties the book’s ideas to your journey. • **Suggestions for Improvement**: • Expand on how the book’s teachings shaped specific habits or outcomes for you. For instance, how has embracing the idea of “artisanal craft” improved your writing projects or collaborations? **Inspiring Action in Others** • **Strengths**: • The reflective questions and insights into your growth make the review relatable and potentially motivating for readers. • Including generative AI as a tool to advise and coach aligns with modern writing challenges and could inspire readers to experiment with it. • **Suggestions for Improvement**: • Incorporate a transformation story that others can learn from. For example, describe how you applied “pleasure in writing” to a challenging project and the impact it had. • Frame actionable advice explicitly for readers. For instance, suggest how they might begin their BASE evaluation or integrate micro-writing sessions into their routines. **Final Assessment** This version captures the big ideas, your personal actions, and includes inspirational elements. To further enhance it: 1. **Clarify Next Steps**: Provide actionable plans for areas needing growth, which will make your progress more relatable and applicable to readers. 2. **Add Transformation Stories**: Personal anecdotes demonstrating the impact of Sword’s ideas can make your review more compelling and actionable. 3. **Frame Advice for Others**: Explicitly guide readers in applying the book’s concepts. Would you like to brainstorm specific transformation stories or actions to emphasize? Or refine how to frame this review for your blog audience? --- This feedback prompted the creation and writing of the "Background" section that opens and frames the review... It is a "transformational story," meaning the character was one way, now they are transformed.