Part 1 of the EDST Blog Writing Series: “On Academic Blogging”
If you were to go back even a short time in history, the term “blogging” would elicit strange looks and confusion from those you talked to. Early models of the blog, dating back to 1994, emphasized the personal, encouraging users to document their lives and hobbies and share them via platforms such as Livejournal and Blogger. With the integration of images and videos, and the invention of social media, blogs became even more engaging.
The genre of “academic blogging” encompasses a broad range of uses, including blogging about university or student experiences, blogging for research, and blogging for teaching and learning. Anthony Salamone describes:
“Academic blogs are an important vehicle for sharing your research with and offering your analysis to colleagues and the wider world…their shorter format, potential reach, and faster publication times make them an important part of contemporary research life.”
Some of the benefits of writing academic blog posts include:
The opportunity to test an idea or concept
Do you have a paper idea that isn’t quite fully formed that you’d like to develop? Pondering a piece of data or claim that you’d like to engage with an audience?
Blog posts are a short, accessible way to engage with an idea that you’ve been thinking about, but isn’t ready for formal academic outlets. A guide from University of Wisconsin-Madison describes that:
“Blogs can be a forum for writers to get feedback on half–formed ideas and emerging stances, and through comments, readers can talk with and back to writers and build communities.”
Helping your writing reach a wider audience
Blogs have the benefit of always being open access, allowing your writing to be shared across social media and through other networks. The option of including images, videos and hyperlinks makes engagement with blog posts faster and easier than traditional publishing outlets.
Being part of the UBC blog network, the EDST blog hosts the opportunity to share your writing across the university and beyond to larger audiences that may not be able to access academic writing behind paywalls.
Editing for beyond academia
Academic blog posts are different than class papers or journal articles; writing a blog post compels you to distill your essential argument or thesis to fit the shorter and more accessible format, a valuable skill for all writers!
Interested in becoming involved with EDST’s blog?
Click below to check out the full call for applications to the Blog’s Editorial Board. Deadline extended through December 16th!
Questions or feedback should be directed to Jessica Lussier at edstblog.editor@ubc.ca
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