Last week, on his blog, author Kelsey Timmerman discussed a historical limitation of academic writing. He suggested that academic writing is often too far removed from average readers to meaningfully impact them. Academic writing can present exciting and important ideas, but those ideas will be lost if no one can interpret them. All authors, he explains, have an obligation to try to reach their audience:
“There is no excuse for bad writing. Writing that isn’t clear and concise is bad writing. An author of any article or story who doesn’t write with empathy for his or her reader, needs to work harder.”
Timmerman knows a thing or two about making an impact through the written word. He has written two books, Where Am I Wearing? A Global Tour to the Countries, Factories, and People That Make Our Clothes and Where Am I Eating? An Adventure Through the Global Food Economy, both of which call readers to examine and challenge globalized systems that they are – wittingly or unwittingly – part of. In addition to his accessible writing having appeared in publications like the Christian Science Monitor and Condé Nast, Timmerman’s books have been selected for common reads programs at more than twenty North American colleges and universities.
The concepts and calls to action that Timmerman presents in his books seek to connect people around the world. Likewise, in person Timmerman aims to bring communities together to discuss ways to effect change. Interested in hearing him speak? Contact Books In Common.