Blog about those research sources!

Those doing literary research should make public their working sources during their research and drafting processes.

Student Rachel Rueckert posted reviews of
books she was researching both on Goodreads
and on her research blog.

Blog about the books and sites that you are reading, researching, and skimming! Tweet about some of those articles you are going through! Post reviews about the books you research, make blog posts evaluating that archival website or digital resource! Keep your researching and thinking as public as possible! 


Read on to learn why.

Blogging More Academically

flickr - David Silver
(creative commons licensed) 

I've taught my students that online writing requires a fluency in both informal and formal modes of writing. Blogging only works if it has the low threshold, casual quality that invites regular and personal sharing. When students set out to make each blog post as though it were some academic paper, it kills the spirit of blogging.

At the same time, when conducting academic blogging, or simply more serious blogging, there comes a time when the blog must become something more than an outlet for personal expression or random observations. That is to say, for people to take a blog seriously, one must take the medium seriously, as well as the subject or content. And that means not always skimming along the surface.