It started with a casual conversation over lunch; two program directors swapping stories about curriculum development, ideas to enhance adjunct support and a genuine love for teaching and different learning modalities. Little did we know that an informal conversation would spark a wider discussion on how we could grow professionally and expand our impact. This became the launching point that set us on a new and exciting scholarship path. We had received invaluable advice from a friend and mentor who shared that we just needed to start with getting our feet wet with publishing and, from there, to find somewhere to present our work. So that first year, we committed to just that. Neither of us could have predicted the journey we were about to embark on, leading not only to numerous published articles and domestic and international conference presentations, but also to building a consulting business dedicated to assisting other faculty with their writing.
Now that we have found ourselves on the side of being asked for mentorship and advice, we often encourage others to find a writing partner or a co-author, even if just for one project. It’s not only the volume of writing that is reduced, it is also the stress, the decision fatigue and perhaps even the disappointments that you shoulder together. At a minimum, we like to highlight the value-add of working with a mentor or an accountability partner. When you know there is a co-author waiting for your section to be written or a mentor who is going to push you to meet a due date, that extra bit of motivation can make all the difference.
For us, we discovered not only shared content interests and professional experiences but also similar work habits and a level of drive that never felt unbalanced and always worked in our collective favor. A few publications became two international conference presentations and soon, we were hooked. The experiences with different publishers and conference expectations grew until our scholarship felt like it had many arms. We wrote some book chapters, which led to co-editing and publishing two research handbooks. In-person branched off into the world of virtual presentations, which also opened our eyes to a more global audience and an invitation to serve as keynote presenters for an audience from all over the world.
“Our faith is a reminder to use the gifts and talents we have to serve others and coaching and mentoring allow us to lean into this calling”
To say there haven’t been challenges, that we have never felt unmotivated or that we haven’t received a rejection notice from an editor would be untrue. But the partnership we have formed and the benefits that have come as a result of sharing the ups-and-downs are what gave us the confidence for our biggest project to date: launching a consulting business and the opportunity to pour into others as they either start on their own journey or find new ways to turn up the volume on their current scholarship outputs.
Our mission is simple: to provide the time, space and support needed, in the form of a beautiful retreat, to work on scholarly writing. This approach connects two of our professional joys, writing and traveling. We realized early on, during an international education conference in Hawaii, that creativity flowed when we found ourselves enjoying the peaceful setting an academic conference provided and we eventually were inspired to recreate this environment for others, with an added bonus of writing support and encouragement. The goal is to remove the distractions that often monopolize our time, energy and focus. The process of attending one conference, sharing our work, brainstorming future projects and leaving energized with our next idea is a practice that continues to work for us. It really is our best piece of advice.
We are grateful for the doors that have opened along our journey and give God the glory. Our faith is a reminder to use the gifts and talents we have to serve others and coaching and mentoring allow us to lean into this calling. Whether it has been a while since you put your ideas on paper, if you have never found the courage to start the writing process or you are in the final stages of finalizing your work, we encourage you to keep going, one small step at a time.
