Tips for science blogging from Holly Dunsworth

Tips for science blogging from Holly Dunsworth (read the full interview on her interview about Social Media for Science here):

• It’s not for everyone, but everyone should appreciate the myriad reasons for why it’s done.
• Be social. If you blog, you need to be on Facebook and Twitter to share your posts.
• Reciprocate. If you want people to share your work, you need to share theirs.
• Have patience. If dialogue is what you want, it’s going to take a lot of work and a lot of time.
• Do it. If you don’t enjoy it, then stop doing it.

 I am  definitely taking these tips to heart. I do need to expand my social network to other scientists who blog/share about science. I am primarily a scientist, and I actually like doing research, I am not as social as I could be, if blogging/science communication were my full-time job. I find that it is especially difficult for me to keep up with Twitter.

Lol, the patience is no problem. Submitting papers, and waiting for reviews, has helped me learn patience very well.

The one that resonates the most with me is the last bit. I love talking with people about science, and things that I find fascinating. Blogging is a great way to share science more broadly. For me though, it is personally important because it motivates me: 1)to find the words to explain my interests in common language; and, 2) to learn more details about the research that interests me so that I can explain it to others.