Tag Archives: Yoni Freedhoff

Science blogging: The Essential Guide published March 2016

Peter Janiszewski announced in the blog (Obesity Panacea on the PLOS [Public Library of Science blog network) he co-owns and co-writes with Travis Saunders the launch of a book about science blogging.  (Coincidentally he and Saunders started their blog in 2008 the same year I started FrogHeart.) From a March 31, 2016 posting (Note: A link has been removed),

Back in the fall of 2008 when Travis and I first decided to emulate Yoni Freedhoff [Canadian physician at the University of Ottawa] and start our very own science blog, we had no idea what we were doing. I recall writing my first post while sitting in our shared office at Queen’s University [Ontario, Canada], agonizing over the tone of the writing. I spent the better part of an afternoon on that first post, and if you were to go back and read it today (please don’t – even I’m too embarrassed to read it) you might be surprised that it took that long to write something that uninspired.

We had countless questions, and few resources from which to draw answers.

I’m happy to report that such a resource has finally become available. For all the readers of Obesity Panacea who have thought about starting their very own blog but simply didn’t know where to begin or where to find answers to the many questions surrounding the practice, fret no more.

… Science Blogging: The Essential Guide has just been published.

First, this book is not aimed at Canadian science bloggers, most of the contributors are from the US. The publisher is Yale University Press and the publication date was March 1, 2016 with the paperback version being listed for under $20 (not sure if that’s US or Canadian currency). From the Amazon website Science Blogging: The Essential Guide page,

Here is the essential how-to guide for communicating scientific research and discoveries online, ideal for journalists, researchers, and public information officers looking to reach a wide lay audience. Drawing on the cumulative experience of twenty-seven of the greatest minds in scientific communication, this invaluable handbook targets the specific questions and concerns of the scientific community, offering help in a wide range of digital areas, including blogging, creating podcasts, tweeting, and more. With step-by-step guidance and one-stop expertise, this is the book every scientist, science writer, and practitioner needs to approach the Wild West of the Web with knowledge and confidence.

You can get a look at the Table of Contents (ToC) which allows you to assess what topics have been broached. Unfortunately, I cannot copy and paste the ToC here. (I’m not sure why it’s considered copyright material given that no one in their right mind would plagairize a ToC, especially one featuring over 20 essays from different authors.) Anyway, to take a look for yourself, just click on the book’s cover image. In addition to the ToC, there’s the foreword, the first chapter, and the afterword in the Amazon preview.

For someone who’s looking for a ‘Dummies’ or ‘Idiot’s’ style guide, this book doesn’t seem to be organized to get you started right this minute.