From leaving academia to finding my way back
And how this shaped my approach
Hi, I'm David.
Iām a French researcher and professional trainer. Iāve had a highly unusual career, shuttling in and out of academia. Over the years, I learned techniques from marketing, journalism and design, which I adapted for research to enable fast, clear and compelling writing. Hereās how it came about.
After my PhD, I left academia ā forever, I thought ā and set up an educational charity. I had to continuously write grant applications for non-academic funders to keep it afloat. This experience taught me to write in plain language with a focus on convincing, rather than on technical details.
Meanwhile, a finding I had made during my PhD nagged me. Over the next years, I did bioinformatics research in my spare time and managed to author one paper. I didnāt know it then, but this paper would be my way back to academia...
Learning what happens on funding panels
My first stroke of luck was to land a job at a UK research charity: the Wellcome Trust. Being on the other side of the fence, I learned what went on in funding panels. One day I heard of a ācareer re-entryā fellowship. I had never thought Iād go back to research, but seized the opportunity.
I wrote my application applying the techniques learned in the charity ā and it worked! The panel was enthusiastic, and considered the paper I had published in my spare time the equivalent of a postdoc. I found myself a research fellow... 8Ā years after having left academia.
My goal: help you write & present effectively, so you have time for research!
I continued to develop efficient methods for designing proposals, papers, talksā¦ and enjoyed passing them on so much that I decided to become a trainer. After 10 years, these methods are condensed into short, practical books and shared through a blog.
These books will help you design compelling proposals, articles, talks, CVsā¦. At last, you'll have less admin and more time for research... :-)
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