7 Methods for Making Academic Writing Engaging and Accessible
Curious about how to make academic writing engaging without sacrificing clarity? This article starts with the insight of using relatable examples and wraps up with the strategy of asking guiding questions. With seven practical techniques in total, readers will find actionable tips to transform their writing.
- Use Relatable Examples
- Activate Your Writing
- Simplify Your Language
- Incorporate Visuals
- Weave in Storytelling
- Use Familiar Situations
- Ask Guiding Questions
Use Relatable Examples
My go-to method is using relatability. I believe that when readers can connect their own experiences or knowledge to the topic, they find it more engaging. For example, think about the lively conversations that happen in a beauty salon or barbershop. The discussions are often captivating because they revolve around topics that everyone in the room can relate to, whether it's sports, hair products, or everyday life. I aim to bring that same level of connection to my writing by using examples and references that resonate with the audience.
Activate Your Writing
Engaged technical writing is a challenge, even for native English-speaking authors. Traditionally, academics write using a lot of past tense and inactive verbs. After a while, the text narrative becomes a tough slog for a reviewer, not to mention a potentially interested reader.
The key is to activate our writing where we can, especially when presenting methodology and results.
Principle #1: Look for "was" or "were" statements. Can they be activated?
Example A: "To investigate the effects of varying light intensity on plant growth, a controlled experiment was conducted using Arabidopsis thaliana as our model organism."
A slight change makes this sentence just a little more active:
"To investigate the effects of varying light intensity on plant growth, we conducted a controlled experiment using Arabidopsis thaliana as our model organism."
Example B: "Seedlings were placed in identical growth chambers, ensuring consistent temperature and humidity."
Change to: "We placed the seedlings in identical growth chambers, ensuring consistent temperature and humidity."
Principle #2: Can sentences be active without using personal pronouns?
I often encourage students and professional authors to avoid the use of personal pronouns in technical writing. So, let's rewrite the above active examples without the use of personal pronouns.
Example A: "To investigate the effects of varying light intensity on plant growth, a controlled experiment utilized Arabidopsis thaliana as the model organism."
Example B: "Identical growth chambers ensured consistent temperature and humidity for all seedlings tested in the experiment."
These aren't the only principles that can activate technical writing, but it is a good first scan for a thesis, abstract, or manuscript when you start the editing process.
Simplify Your Language
Using clear and strong language helps make academic writing easier to read and understand. By avoiding long and complicated words, the writer can focus on getting their main points across effectively. This approach ensures that readers stay interested and can follow along without difficulty.
In turn, this can lead to better engagement and a stronger grasp of the material presented. Try simplifying your language to enhance understanding and keep your readers engaged.
Incorporate Visuals
Adding different and interesting visuals like pictures, charts, or diagrams can make your work more engaging. These visuals help break up dense sections of text and offer a visual representation of complex ideas. This method not only captures attention but also aids in better comprehension of the topic.
Readers are more likely to remember information that is presented both visually and textually. Consider using visuals to make your writing more captivating and easier to understand.
Weave in Storytelling
Using storytelling methods can make academic writing much more appealing. By weaving in stories, examples, or anecdotes, the writing becomes more relatable and less dry. This keeps the readers hooked and helps them better connect with the information.
Stories can illustrate points in a way that pure data or facts cannot. Incorporate storytelling into your writing to draw in and maintain your readers' interest.
Use Familiar Situations
Putting difficult ideas into familiar situations helps readers understand them better. When complex concepts are explained with everyday examples, it makes the material more accessible. This approach allows readers to see the relevance of academic theories in real life.
It breaks down barriers and makes learning seem less intimidating. Use relatable contexts to demystify tough concepts and make your work more approachable.
Ask Guiding Questions
Prompting readers with questions encourages them to engage actively with the text. When readers are asked to consider certain points or predict outcomes, they become more involved in the reading process. This method can transform passive reading into a more interactive experience.
It also helps reinforce understanding and retention of the material. Start incorporating guiding questions to boost reader interaction and deepen comprehension.