How to Fix Your Academic Writing Trouble: A Practical Guide

List of tables
List of figures
Exercises
Abbreviations
Acknowledgements




1. Introduction: you may have academic writing troubles, but you can fix them!




2. ‘Waffle’: improving readability by managing your extra words




3. ‘Your writing doesn’t sound very academic’: how to convince your reader you belong




4. ‘Your writing doesn’t flow’: making your text coherent and fluent




5. ‘Uncritical!’: taking a stand in your writing 




6. ‘Where’s your discussion section?’: structuring your work as a whole




7. ‘You didn’t do your pre-writing’: Writing along the way




Final words
Notes
References
Index

“This new edition makes a good book even better. The snappy titles, chatty lines and comic asides make it very readable and engaging. A bonus is that this new edition explains AI and how to use it for writing in academic settings.”
Professor Rowena Murray, author of How to Write a PhD, Writing for Academic Journals and How to Survive Your Viva


“An excellent second edition: practical, accessible and confidence-building.”
Dr Fiona Philippi, University of Edinburgh, UK



“As someone who works in wellbeing and researcher development, I’m struck by how much care is woven through these pages. This new edition is essential reading, and an absolute joy.”
Professor Narelle Lemon, Edith Cowan University, Australia


“This is the book I wish I'd had as a PhD student.”
Dr Stephanie Zihms, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK


Are you struggling with your academic writing? Does it feel daunting to get your ideas and arguments onto the page? Or are you finding it hard to interpret your supervisor’s feedback? Fear not! This clear and accessible guide to decoding academic feedback is bursting with all the tips, tools and techniques you will need to take your academic writing to the next level.


Bestselling authors Inger Mewburn & Katherine Firth have fully revised and updated this second edition to address if, and how, to use AI for academic writing and provide more advice on writing along the way, all while preserving the many sections that readers told them ‘saved their relationship with their advisors… and their PhD’. 


This must-read guide will help you:

• Practice writing techniques and see immediate improvement in your own drafts guided by a range of tools, examples and ‘Try this Now’ boxes
• Interpret your supervisor’s feedback and plan your next steps to respond assuredly
• Develop a credible and confident written voice
• Master key thesis-writing strategies to build coherent arguments across lengthy projects
• Use AI ethically by effectively using prompts to clarify and optimise your work without losing your own voice

By addressing common writing challenges drawing on their combined 30 years of experience supporting postgraduate students, Mewburn & Firth offer you the definitive toolkit for producing excellent quality written work. 


Inger Mewburn is Director of Researcher Development at The Australian National University, Australia, where she helps researchers to shape their doctoral and early-career pathways. She is internationally known for her blog The Thesis Whisperer, where she provides practical guidance on writing and navigating academia, as well as for her YouTube videos and podcasts.


Katherine Firth is Senior Lecturer in Research Education and Development at La Trobe University, Australia. She is passionate about helping researchers transition into the highest levels of achievement. A co-founder of the award-winning Thesis Bootcamp programme, she maintains a writing blog, Research Degree Insiders, and is the author of several books on doctoral writing.