Tips from the BSC Blog Writing Session – April 2023

In April 2023, the BSC held its first Blog Writing Session. A dozen members logged on for the 2-hour workshop (held on Zoom) to share writing tips and tricks, and to spend a bit of time crafting their individual blogs. This was a great success, so we’re aiming to hold more in the future.

For now, here’s some of the top tips arising from those who took part in the session:

When to pitch your blog: don’t wait for a call or to be invited to submit one; if you have something to write then go ahead and write it. This can be helpful if the issue is about to become relevant (as you’ll have a blog ready to go) or if you can get the post out via your Uni press office.

Make the time: drafting blogs can also be a useful, regular writing exercise (and doing so at your own time gives you more opportunity to have drafts reviewed by others). Be aware that it might take you a bit longer than anticipated, particularly at the start. Working out how long the process takes you will mean you can start planning your time better and keep at it.

Ensure you’re getting your point across to your audience: sometimes we get stuck in the academic language trap, so it can be helpful to have someone (a colleague or the blog editor) review and simplify / ‘translate’ your work for a less specialist audience. Where possible, see if the publisher can include an estimated ‘read time’ so people know whether to read it straight away or bookmark it for later.

Make sure the information is correct: this might be easier if your blog is based on a peer reviewed article you’ve had published (in the place the blog is going, or elsewhere). Otherwise, it might be worth having a colleague review it for accuracy before submitting.  

Think about who is producing the blog and how that might affect what is written: we explored the difference between blog publishers depending on the background they’re coming from, i.e., academic / news sites / journals / organisations etc. and how this might impact on how it’s received. Also, blogs with pictures and images may prove more popular, but you need to be aware of any copyright issues that may be relevant. Source free pictures, if possible, else you can see if whoever is commissioning the blog will pay for the image. Here’s two useful links:

https://www.copyrightfreephotos.com/

https://www.dreamstime.com/free-photos

Remind yourself that it’s a worthwhile exercise: while it may not count for the REF, blogs may be of great use for promotion purposes or for getting greater traction for your other published pieces. On that note, see if you can get hold of any blog metrics which may demonstrate the reach you’re having among readers.