Grad Writes Workshops

Prep and Plan for Writing: Practical Steps to Write More This Semester

JAN 25 | 2-3:30pm | Virtual

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

This webinar covers topics of time chunking, agile scheduling, and habit formation. These approaches will help writers prioritize writing in their schedules while assuring they have also included for rest, recreation, and other life-affirming activities. Participants will take away strategies for creating and maintaining a workable writing schedule that supports their wellbeing and semester writing goals.

W2P: Write to Publish Course Introductory Session

JAN 29 | 3-3:50pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

The Write to Publish (W2P) non-credit course guides writers through the steps of producing an article for publication in 12 weeks. This introductory session for the Write to Publish (W2P) non-credit course includes information about writing for publication, the arrangement of the 12-week course, and scheduling to prioritize article writing. The workshop is open to graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and CSU researchers.

Attend and see if W2P is right for you this semester.

Well Organized Writing: Techniques for Reverse Outlining

JAN 30 | 12-1:30pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

If you want to craft engaging stories that move the reader from one idea to the next smoothly, you will benefit by learning techniques for reverse outlining. This session covers how to reverse outline refined model articles as well as drafts of in-process writing. The techniques are helpful for identifying problematic gaps, illogical leaps, and unnecessary repetitions. Reverse outlining techniques can also improve reading comprehension and help writers refine their writing style or “voice.”

Write Well: What Strong Writers Do

JAN 31 | 12-12:50pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

The strength and resiliency we need to complete extensive writing projects is built over time and through repetition. This webinar covers evidence-based approaches and actions that research and scholarly writers can undertake early in the semester to prepare, undertake, and complete their writing projects this semester. This virtual session is open to all research and scholarly writers.

Writing for Publication Webinar: The Big Picture

FEB 5 | 3-3:50pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

This webinar focuses on the processes of writing articles for academic journals. It includes information on such key steps as: identifying and contacting relevant journals, crafting the abstract, and tracking your progress through the process. This webinar is cross-listed with the W2P 12-week, non-credit certificate course.

How to Revise and Edit Webinar: Key Types and Steps

FEB 7 | 12-1:30pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

This webinar covers the principal steps for revising and polishing a manuscript. Graduate students and postdocs will learn about the key types of revision and editing and an easy-to-use step-by-step process to create flow and clarity in their writing.

ETD Information Session and Workshop with Experts from the Graduate School & Libraries

FEB 13 | 1-2:30pm | LSC 376-378

IN-PERSON WORKSHOP IN LSC

This session covers information about Electronic Thesis and Dissertation (ETD) submission processes and paperwork as well as the basics of copyright and ProQuest as they pertain to graduate student theses and dissertations. Experts from the Graduate School and CSU Libraries will present as a panel. Students are encouraged to bring questions specific to their theses and dissertations that will help them practice formatting correctly.

The ETD workshop was in-person Spring 2024. A recording of the Fall 2023 webinar can be accessed below. Note, any deadlines or dates for submission will not reflect the dates for the Spring 2024 semester. 

How to Use Passive and Active Voice with Purpose

FEB 15 | 12-1:30pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

This webinar will help you recognize passive voice, edit your writing for passive sentences, and revise sentences to make them active. This session supports sentence-level editing, and we will examine scholarly writing samples. These techniques can be useful for all fields of study and types of academic writing.

Literature Review: Types, Strategies, and Steps

FEB 28 | 12-1:30pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

This webinar covers the general nature and structures of literature reviews for theses, dissertations, and journal articles. Attendees will learn strategies to help them to cull relevant material from sources and integrate into manuscripts.

4-Hour Article Draft: Introductory Session

FEB 29 | 11-11:50am | Hybrid

HYBRID: LSC 304-306 and Zoom

This is the introduction to how to draft an article in four hours. We will cover how to prepare for the two 2-hr writing sessions in March (3/28) and April (4/4). In this introductory session, we will practice how to “write at speed” and discuss preparing for the guided drafting sessions. Attendees do not need to have manuscript data, literature, or findings/analysis/interpretations prepped to attend the introductory session. Writers will prep article contents in advance of the 3/28 and 4/4 sessions.

Fit Writing: Physically, Mentally, Emotionally, Textually

MAR 19 | 12-1:30pm | LSC 304-06

IN-PERSON WORKSHOP, LSC 304-06

This is a Lunch & Learn workshop. Research and scholarly writing require that we sit to work—a lot. If “sitting is the new smoking,” we must also recognize that our pursuit of writing excellence may be taking a physical toll on our bodies. Functional Fitness personal trainer Heber Howard will present simple ways we can build and maintain muscular strength alongside our building out manuscripts and proposals. The exercises shared in this session can be done without fancy equipment or going to the gym. CSU Writes will have yoga mats and resistance bands for participants to borrow and practice. This session is part of the Write Well series for Spring 2024.

Short Course: How to Take Smart Notes (3 Sessions)

MAR 26, APR 9, APR 23 | 1-2:30pm | HYBRID: LSC 308-310 and Zoom

HYBRID SHORT COURSE, LSC and Zoom

Part book club, part training and practice session, this series of three workshops (short course) introduces writers to a reading and notetaking system that will enhance their writing quality and establish a system by which they can build (or continue to build) their research and scholarly careers. This is the introductory session. 

Participants are asked to read and work with ideas from Sönke Aherns, How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking (2022). You can purchase a copy of the book at Sönke Aherns’ website or your preferred online book outlet. For students or faculty who have need, CSU Writes has 10 copies of Ahern’s book. Request book here. If you register for this short course and request a book, we kindly ask that you attend all three discussion sessions (3/26, 4/9, 4/23).

About How to Take Smart Notes: “The key to good and efficient writing lies in the intelligent organisation of ideas and notes. This book helps students, academics and nonfiction writers to get more done, write intelligent texts and learn for the long run. It teaches you how to take smart notes and ensure they bring you and your projects forward. Instead of wasting your time searching for notes, quotes or references, you can focus on what really counts: thinking, understanding and developing new ideas in writing. It does not matter if you prefer taking notes with pen and paper or on a computer, be it Windows, Mac or Linux”…or other software systems such as Obsidian.

Writing with Ease and Grace with Geophysicist Roel Sneider

APR 2 | 12-1:30pm | LSC 304-306

In-Person, Lunch & Learn, LSC

Writing is a challenge for many in academia, yet it is most compelling when done with ease and grace. In practice there are hurdles in the way. Some of these hurdles involve a lack of practical skills, these can be overcome by taking a class, course, or other ways to improve. But many of us face personal hurdles in writing with ease and grace. Examples of these include the curse of perfection, a wish to not be vulnerable and keep a low profile, or a sense of having to do it all alone. In this interactive workshop we discuss the barriers we encounter in effective writing, and ways to overcome these barriers.

Grant Proposals at the Sentence Level
with Dr. Jeff Wilusz and Dr. Kristina Quynn

APR 11 | 12-1pm | Zoom

WEBINAR ON ZOOM

In this workshop, a seasoned NIH grant reviewer (Wilusz) and a seasoned English professor (Quynn) team up to explain what can go wrong in a proposal at the sentence level. We will take attendees through a Special Aims page to identify common errors that effect the readability of a proposal and to strategize revising for clarity and impact. While we will use a specific federal agency grant as a model, the concepts discussed will be applicable other grant agencies, programs, and foundations. Exploring sentences has never been more fun or potentially profitable.

Tell Your Story: Memoir Methods for Researchers
Guest speaker: Ross Atkinson

APR 10 | 12-1:30pm | LSC 300

IN-PERSON WORKSHOP, LSC

Everyone has a story to tell—a memory held onto that begs to be captured and framed, or perhaps released or reframed. Whatever your memoir goals are, this workshop is aimed at helping you get your story out. Modeled after CSU’s Military-connected Writing Workshop, this event is aimed at extracting, through targeted writing prompts, memories about significant moments in life. Don’t know if you have a story to tell? Come find out! No experience necessary. Part of the Write Well Series for Spring 2024. Lunch will be provided. This session is open to all writers on campus.

Skill Swap: AI and other Writing Assistance Tech

APR 17 | 12-1:30pm | LSC 322

IN-PERSON WORKSHOP, LSC

Open to all writers on campus, this skill swap brings together graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and faculty who have developed skills in using writing assisted tech and wish to share. Grammarly, ChatGPT, Obsidian, and graphics illustration software are likely features. If you have a skill to share and wish to present at this swap, sign up to present here.

Prior Workshops & Series

SPRING 2022

  • Fresh Start: Scheduling Tools
  • Literature Review
  • Writing for Publication
  • Abstracts
  • Write for Speed I and II
  • Reverse Outlining
  • Getting and Using Feedback
  • Summary/Paraphrase
  • Punctuation
  • Overcome Writing Stalls
  • Engaging Audiences
  • Passive/Active Voice

FALL 2021

  • Schedule to Prioritize Writing
  • Deal with Inner Writing Critics 
  • Summarize & Paraphrase & Avoid Plagiarizing
  • Literature Review
  • Abstracts
  • Productivity & Well-Being
  • How to Prepare to Write
  • Edit for Clarity: Top 3 Sentence Issues
  • EDT Info Session (with Graduate School and Library experts)
  • Write for Speed

SPRING 2021

  • Schedule to Prioritize Writing
  • Writing for Publication
  • Summarize & Paraphrase & Avoid Plagiarizing
  • Literature Review
  • Write Concisely with the Writer’s Diet
  • Citation Management Software
  • How to Prepare to Write
  • Edit for Clarity: Top 3 Sentence Issues
  • EDT Info Session (with Graduate School and Library experts)
  • Write for Speed
  • Writing Your Teaching Philosophy

FALL 2020 

  • Schedule to Prioritize Writing
  • Summarize & Paraphrase & Avoid Plagiarizing
  • Literature Review
  • Productivity & Well-Being
  • How to Punctuate (with Stephanie G’Schwind)
  • Edit for Clarity
  • Edit for Flow
  • EDT Info Session (with Graduate School and Library experts)
  • Write for Speed

SPRING 2020

  • The Magic Writing Workshop
  • Habits that Build & Sustain Writing Momentum
  • Writing for Publication
  • Productivity & Well-Being
  • ETD (Electronic Thesis & Dissertation) Information Session
  • Create Your “Shelter in Place” Research Writing Action Plan 

HOW TO SERIES:

  • Edit for Flow (organization & development)
  • Edit for Wordiness (sentence-level editing for clarity & concision) 
  • The Literature Review: How to Prepare & Organize
  • How to Punctuate
  • Passive Voice: When & When Not to Use

SPECIAL PROGRAMS

Construction Management/School of Education Workshop Series: 

The NUTS & BOLTS OF WRITING IN GRADUATE SCHOOL

2/19: Writing as Construction
2/26: Frame & Connect
4/1: Engineering Sentences
4/8: Clarity & ReVision