Writing an article for Sconul Focus

Hi,

Helen asked me to contribute a short piece about an article I wrote for Sconul Focus recently. The link to the article is here. I work in UCD and did the Academic Writing course that Helen runs in Maynooth a year or so ago and at the time had a couple of ideas about what to write for my first real piece for a library publication. At the course, I developed the idea a bit more of writing something about my own experiences as a new librarian and wrote a synopsis of what I was going to cover. I then contacted Antony Brewerton, the editor of Sconul Focus, with the idea and he was interested, saying he would build an issue around the idea of new and changing librarianship. It took a good few drafts to get the final version, more drafts than I foresaw, but I found it a good experience to write and it was certainly beneficial to get other people's feedback before publishing it, as they saw things I wouldn't have seen. Sconul Focus is a good place to start I think, as you don't necessarily need background reading and references, and it is a pretty informal editorial process too. I'm wondering what to write about next now, I hope to go for a peer reviewed journal next, but getting the time is always the problem.

Anyway, the article is published now anyway and it wasn't too painful to write. I like the idea of having a job where I can write and be published, and be encouraged to do so. I studied English in college and have always loved reading and writing so I'm looking forward to being more active now in writing and this blog is a great help.

Thanks

Mark