Aims of the course:
- to familiarise students with a range of perspectives on the value and purposes of science writing
- to explore a range of styles and techniques for writing about science, with a focus on writing narrative non-fiction books and essays.
- to develop students' skills as effective and engaging science writers
Learning outcomes:
As a result of the course, within the constraints of the time available, students should be able to:
- Critique science writing and recognise what makes science writing appropriate to particular audiences and aims
- Develop ideas for, and draft, of a piece of non-fiction writing (a book chapter or a long feature, of approximately 5,000 words), using elements of narrative storytelling.
- Develop a proposal and pitch for a popular science book
- Edit their work to enhance their writing for particular readerships and production contexts.
Target audience:
- Students who aren’t necessarily practicing scientists or trained in science, but who are interested in communicating science to the general public
- Students who are academics at any stage of their careers and are keen to write effectively about their science for a wide audience, beyond their peers
- Students who are keen to write popular science books or long features for journals and magazines
Course content overview:
- This course introduces the craft of writing about science for non-specialist readerships, also known as popular science writing.
- Students will learn how to read, analyse and critique the work of other science writers, to develop their own skills in effectively communicating science to non-specialist publics.
- Students will each develop an idea and draft text for a long piece of narrative non-fiction writing of their choice, most likely a chapter for book or a long feature.
- Students will practise their own science writing, with short writing exercises alongside their own work to produce a long feature or a chapter for a book.
- Feedback from tutors will be available throughout the course.
- Students will learn how to get their writing published.
Schedule:
Orientation Week: 7-13 July 2025
Purpose/Learning outcomes: By studying this week the students should have:
- Grasped navigation around the VLE and from VLE to links and back
- Tested their ability to access files and the web conferencing software and sorted out any problems with the help of the eLearning Helpdesk
- Learnt how to look for, assess and reference internet resources
- Used forums to introduce themselves to other students
- Contributed to a discussion forum to introduce themselves to other students and discuss why they are interested in the course, what they hope to get out their studies and also to respond to News item sent out on behalf of tutor
Teaching Weeks: 14 July-17 August 2025
Week 1 What makes good science writing?
Purpose: To introduce the basics, and look at some of the main challenges, of writing about science for non-specialist audiences. We will also look at a range of ideas about what it is and what it is for, and why we do it. By studying this week the students should have:
- An understanding of a range of perspectives on what popular science writing is
- An appreciation of a range of views on the value and purposes of science writing
- An understanding of the basic skills and of how to avoid the common pitfalls in science writing
Week 2 Shaping a structure and telling a story
Purpose: We’ll explore ways to structure your writing and develop your writing style. By studying this week the students should have:
- Insights into the importance of structure to lead readers through a longer piece of work.
- Knowledge of techniques to make writing more stylish and engaging.
- An appreciation of how elements of storytelling can be usefully applied to science writing to help readers engage with, understand and enjoy longer pieces of writing.
Week 3 Editing: how to write better
Purpose: Here we will discuss the role of editing in adapting and enhancing writing, for a range of outcomes (such as length, different readerships, or another medium). By studying this week the students should have:
- An understanding of the uses of editing
- Skills in editing their own (and others’) work to achieve a particular aim
Week 4 Publishing your book
Purpose: To introduce students to the conventions of the publishing world. By studying this week the students should have:
- An overview of the market for popular science/narrative non-fiction books
- Insights into how to pick and develop an idea for a popular science book
- An understanding of how to a develop a book proposal and how to get an agent and publisher
Week 5 Managing information
Purpose: Writing about science involves managing information from many kinds of sources. This session explores ways of gathering, storing, organising, selecting and representing information about your topic. Students will learn about:
- The responsibilities and ethics of factual writing
- Finding a range of sources (primary, secondary, archive, live, mass media etc.)
- Referencing, citation and sourcing that respects other authors and equips the reader
- Potential pitfalls, including copyright, plagiarism and libel
Feedback Week: 18-24 August 2025
Week 6 What Next?
Purpose:
- Sharing of students’ work among peers
- Assessment of student learning
- Assessment of student satisfaction
- Encouragement of further study
Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.
While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).
Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards,etc).
Certificate of Participation
A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course
What our students say:
"The personal feedback on the writing exercise and to each post in the forums was exceptional. The best l have seen for an online course."
"Many thanks to Helen for putting together such a great course, and to all for your comments and advice. Reading about your work and writing has had the side-effect of sparking an interest in new topics, and my pile of books to read has grown accordingly!"
"This course has been wonderful. I have received a lot of information in little time. Helen has taught us the skills that are necessary to write properly about science for the public."
“It did a fantastic job of exploring the field of popular science writing from beginning to end. I also managed to connect to a group of like minded individuals for future writing encouragement/collaboration, which was a welcome surprise!”
