@ThomsonPat

U Nottingham & Adelaide University. You can find me on Bluesky, LinkedIn and threads, as well as my academic writing blog patter, https://xitter.cf/t.co/kEazsy40gV

 Adelaide Australia
patthomson.net
Joined October 2011
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So how many academics does it take to change a light bulb? And what does this have to do with making a claim about research results? patthomson.net/2026/10/18/th…

the lightbulb test

I’ve got a soft spot for academic writing jokes.  Here’s one. How many academics does it take to change a lightbulb? The hedger: “This paper tentatively suggests that, within the li…

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We have now published twenty insiders guides and we have a little on line celebration. Scan the QR code for all things book chat with me and Helen Kara and some of our authors on October 6.
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This week on patter. Three playful ways to deal with a fierce inner critic. patthomson.net/2026/09/02/wr…

write with the criticism you’re afraid of

What do you do if you have a bit of a writing block?  Sometimes not being able to generate a sentence is the problem. But just as often it’s not –  you have the ideas but something else is st…

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This week on patter I’ve written about rereading the things you jot down in your researcher journal patthomson.net/2026/08/23/de…
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This week patter has a writing strategy to integrate reflection and reflexivity. patthomson.net/2026/07/30/re…

reflection and reflexivity: a strategy for academic writing

I wrote recently about the difference between reflection and reflexivity. Reflection looks back at what you have done and asks what you can learn from it. Reflexivity turns the lens on you, the per…

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This week another take on using quotations patthomson.net/2026/07/13/ho…
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I’ve got a bit tired of hearing that nobody at all will read your thesis. patthomson.net/2026/07/07/pe…

people do read your thesis

That tweet is back. You know the one. A PhD thesis, it says, is the only book in the world read cover to cover by exactly three people: the author, the proofreader, and the examiner. The screenshot…

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This week I’m looking at the difference between reflection and reflexivity. patthomson.net/2026/06/30/wh…

what’s the difference between reflection and reflexivity?

When you first started postgraduate study, someone probably told you that you had to be reflexive. You may even have been told to include a section on reflexivity in your thesis. No, you don’t have…

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This week I’ve worked on a ROAM strategy for first drafts. It’s a strategy about readers, objectives action and impressions and draws on Bernhoff s Writing without Bullshit. patthomson.net/2026/06/21/ro…

ROAM: four questions before you draft

Josh Bernoff, who wrote Writing Without Bullshit, had a suggestion for anyone about to start drafting. Work out your ROAM first. What’s ROAM I hear you ask? Well, it’s a set of ques…

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It’s important to check your decisions when analysing data. Here’s a little bit of serious fun which might help. patthomson.net/2026/06/15/ha…
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On the processes of revising. patthomson.net/2026/06/07/lo…

Love your revisions

George Saunders won the Man Booker prize in 2017 with his novel Lincoln in the Bardo. Earlier that year he wrote about his revising process. My method is: I imagine a meter mounted in my forehead, …

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A little bit of serious fun about peer review. patthomson.net/2026/06/01/ho…

How to be Reviewer 2

Everyone in academia knows Reviewer 2. You ‘ve probably received their comments. You may even in a dark moment, have been them. This post is a practical guide to achieving full Reviewer 2 status. I…

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Thinking about your post thesis plan? These three words can help. patthomson.net/2026/05/25/ke…

Key words – dissemination, communication, sharing

Doctoral researchers are sometimes asked in their viva what their plans for dissemination are. Gulp. But this is a question worth thinking about. It’s not a trick question. Examiners are genu…

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This is a little question compared to the big ones about AI, but it’s one I’ve been asking myself a lot recently. patthomson.net/2026/05/18/wh…
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The @RSC_Learning and @CultureLearning have produced three new rapid evidence reviews for dance, music and drama. They show the significant benefits of arts education for children and young people. There is also more research needed rsc.org.uk/research/current-…
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prof pat thomson retweeted
Michael Merrifield@AstroMikeMerriMay 12
How totally totally crass to find the destruction of the thousand careers of a thousand dedicated staff “exciting.” 1/3 timeshighereducation.com/new…

Nottingham ‘would run out of money’ by 2031 without further cuts

Vice-chancellor defends deep job losses at embattled institution, insisting restructure will help it adapt to changed environment in higher education

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This week on patter @R_LehnerMear talks about turning her doctoral thesis into a scholarly monograph patthomson.net/2026/05/10/fr…

From thesis to monograph

This is a guest post written by Dr Rachel Lehner-Mear. She has recently published a book reporting her doctoral research on mothers and primary school homework. There’s nothing quite like holding y…

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This week I’ve posted about another key word - coherence in research design. patthomson.net/2026/05/03/ke…
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What does it mean for scholars to write concisely? This week’s patter has a quick look. patthomson.net/2026/04/26/ke…

key word – coherence in academic writing

Gratuitous pic of my dog Ted. A coherent piece of writing is one where the parts connect to the whole. That sounds obvious, but it can be difficult to achieve. That’s partly because the whole is su…

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This week patter has been reading about knowledge production and placemaking patthomson.net/2026/04/20/pl…
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