Scholarly Writing Retreat: An NLN Mentoring Program

Marilyn H. Oermann, PhD, RN, ANEF, FAAN, Thelma M. Ingles Professor of Nursing at Duke University, is editor-in-chief of Nurse Educator and Journal of Nursing Care Quality. She is author or co-author of more than 130 peer-reviewed articles and 15 books, including Writing for Publication in Nursing (published by Springer). In 2017, Dr. Oermann was honored by the International Academy of Nursing Editors as recipient of the Margaret Comerford Freda Award for Editorial Leadership in Nursing Publication. She has facilitated the Scholarly Writing Retreat since 2008. 

Leslie H. Nicoll, PhD, MBA, RN, FAAN, is the President and Owner of Maine Desk LLC, a business focused on writing consultation and publication success. Dr. Nicoll is the Editor-in-Chief of CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing and Nurse Author & Editor. She is the author or co-author of more than 150 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and 7 books, including The Editor’s Handbook (2019) and Writing in the Digital Age: Savvy Publishing for Healthcare Professionals (2015). In 2014, Dr. Nicoll was honored by the International Academy of Nursing Editors as recipient of the Margaret Comerford Freda Award for Editorial Leadership in Nursing Publication. She has facilitated the Scholarly Writing Retreat since 2011.

Dr. Oermann and Dr. Nicoll will be joined by Leslie Block, managing editor of Nursing Education Perspectives, the NLN's research journal. Ms. Block was previously the managing editor of Nursing Research and senior editor of MCN, The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing.

Participants will be eligible to earn 1.2 CEUs after completing an online, post-retreat evaluation.

This program addresses the following Core Competencies for Nurse Educators©:

Competency 6:
Pursue Continuous Quality Improvement in the Nurse Educator Role

Competency 7:
Engage in Scholarship

Upon notification of acceptance, participants will be asked to sign an agreement indicating an understanding of their responsibilities and commitment to the program.  Participants will also receive a copy of the most current version of Manuscript Success, by Dr. Nicoll or Writing for Publication in Nursing by Dr. Oermann.

All participants will be provided with consultation, writing guidance and support from the faculty starting at acceptance through manuscript submission. With the understanding that most manuscripts submitted for publication require revision prior to acceptance, the faculty will work on revisions with participants for a period of time not to exceed one year. 

***travel and hotel expenses not included in tuition fee; light meals and snacks will be provided***

• Day 1: Friday, July 26, 3 - 6 pm eastern 
  • Welcome, introduction of all participants and faculty.
  • Selection by each participant of a writing partner and review of writing partner’s introduction.
  • Work on drafts with review by Dr. Oermann and Ms. Block.
• Day 2: Saturday, July 27, 9 am - 4 pm eastern (breakfast available at 8:30am and lunch provided from noon - 1 pm)
  • Morning work on drafts: individual consultations with Dr. Oermann and Ms. Block; use writing partner for critique and feedback.
  • Afternoon work on drafts: Print 1 copy of draft or sections for which you want feedback; find new partner from previous day and give draft (or sections) for peer review.
  • Review of next steps regarding finishing manuscript and submission.
• Day 3: Sunday, July 28, 9 am - 12 noon eastern (breakfast available at 8:30 am)
  • Work on finishing manuscripts
  • Discussion on what comes next
  • Adjourn with goal to submit to selected journal by September 1, 2024

• Welcome, introduction of all participants and faculty.
• Discussion of Manuscript Success and preliminary exercises (synopsis, journal due diligence).
• Presentation by Dr. Nicoll, “Being Strategic and Successful in Professional Publication.”
• Discussion of writing progress and exercises.
• Presentation by Dr. Nicoll, “Using Writing Resources Effectively.”
• Review of process to complete a manuscript suitable for journal submission by Session 2.

Virtual Session 2: Saturday, November 4, 2023, 10 - 4 pm eastern (individual sessions during afternoon)

• Discussion of process of writing the first draft of the manuscript; receiving feedback; working on revisions.
• Presentation by Dr. Nicoll, “The Final Hurdle: Submitting, Revising, Celebrating!”
• Discussion of timeline for each participant to submit their manuscript within four weeks of the conclusion of the session (if not done already) with estimation of consultation time needed from Dr. Nicoll and Ms. Block to complete this task.

Please note: Submissions are accepted online only. You must have a SurveyMonkey Apply account to submit an application.