We were thrilled to connect with many of you and to talk about our research and scholarly writing at CSU in fresh ways. You can explore recaps from this exciting and productive fall semester below:
Writing with Creativity and AI – We were honored to host internationally acclaimed author, educator, and expert on academic and writing productivity Helen Sword to CSU in an exciting workshop series open to the broader CSU community. These hands-on sessions guided the nearly 100 writers in attendance through unconventional techniques for tackling writing challenges and bringing more creativity into their writing, some of which included the use of AI writing tools. Check out our article in Source magazine for a detailed look into Helen’s visit.
Learning to Live (and Write) with AI – Peter Gorsuch, research consultant and former Research Editor at Nature, offered a rich discussion of AI use in scientific research writing. In his talk titled “Taking the Plunge: How Generative AI Can Boost Scientific Writing,” Gorsuch offered just that — a plunge into the exciting (or concerning…or both?) new world of AI writing technologies in its current and quickly evolving state. With the expectation that generative AI will eventually become a fundamental research skill – perhaps sooner rather than later – Gorsuch painted a diverse landscape in scholars’ present attitudes toward AI use in research. Highlighting that an increasing number of scholars appear to be adopting various AI writing and editing tools, Gorsuch stressed the importance that writers understand the fundamentals of how generative AI works as well as the implications of its use on the quality of scholarly writing. To learn more about Gorsuch and his work, visit his website at gorsuchscientific.com.
Book Club: Optimal
Our book club topic this semester centered on how we can leverage emotional intelligence to reach an optimal state of performance while also maintaining balance. After reading the book Optimal by Daniel Goleman and Carr, writers from across campus came together for an engaging, hybrid discussion about what it means to strive for an optimal state of writing success rather than maximum output so as to avoid burnout.
To learn more about the CSU Writes Book Club and to register to join our Spring discussion on Cal Newport’s Slow Productivity, visit our website.
show up & write. and sprint & write.
One of CSU Writes’ flagship programs, show up & write., received an organization and website refresh this fall. We look forward to offering additional drop-in writing sessions both virtually and in locations across campus. This program relies on an amazing team of volunteers to sit as Session Hosts who welcome drop-in writers while also making consistent progress on their own projects. If you would like to dedicate one or two 2-hour sessions each week as a Session Host, please visit here to register. If you know that showing up to write will support your writing next year, check back in early February for our Spring schedule.
Additionally, we launched a spinoff program this fall called sprint & write., which offers timed blocks of writing to provide intense focus and enhanced productivity. These timed sessions are part of the 4-Hour Article Draft method and are valuable for practicing drafting at speed.