I have grown to loath scientific writing. Why? Because it is boring. It provides an insight into what it what, but it does so in an unimaginative and characterless way. It does not make me want to read these articles, but writing that way is the way academia expects things to be. Don’t dare deviate. Like I have mentioned before, this was not always the case, scientific writing 50 years ago was much more interesting to read. Partially this stems from the fact that articles were succinct and to the point: 2-3 pages were all that was needed to convey the information (or an opinion about something, but nowadays, few journals allow opinion pieces). Authors could also write, which was largely an artifact of not being constrained to a narrow field. Many people had interests outside their area of specialty. Modern academics are often too narrowly focused.
Look, I hate to say it, but the act of writing a thesis, or an academic paper does not make you a good writer. Good, interesting writing comes with time, and a good whack of experience. Twenty year olds are rarely that good at writing, but neither necessarily are people who have spent a lifetime writing nothing but scientific articles.
So how does one become a good writer? Firstly one has to obtain a writing style, which is not something that happens overnight. Putting words together to form readable sentences is something that improves with age and experience. It also has to do with reading. Reading a wide variety of things, from magazines to fiction and non-fiction on various topics will do a great deal to improve ones writing style. Subconsciously while reading your brain picks up on words, and stylistic features of how sentences are constructed. If you don’t read, then I’m afraid becoming a good writer will be a challenge (if not impossible). If you are writing in English, and it is not your native language, it is extremely important to read English material.
Write outside the box. If you are writing scientific things, try writing a blog (or four) with a style that is interesting for others to read (because really, that’s the point). Try explaining your work in simple terms to others (i.e. people not from your microcosm of academia). Over time your blog posts will improve, and your writing style will develop.
Remove distractions. For me I get easily distracted on the net, and end up spending time researching things off on a tangent, in many ways I am somewhat of a knowledge junky (i.e. I love reading non-fiction). One way of reducing the impact of digital noise it by turing it off. If you need to search for something online focus the search to that one item, in one tab. Use a paper book to keep notes – inherently it seems old-fashioned but it works because you are interpreting information and writing it down, possibly adding sketches, or visual interpretations. This lends itself to a differing cognitive experience that the one where one is tempted to cut-and-paste the raw information.
Get some fresh air. Walk through a forest, and leave your digital paraphernalia at home. Go to a cafe, watch the people passing by. Sit on your porch, or under a tree. There are many things you can do to help you think of new ideas, or a new way to approach a writing task. My best writing happens in small snippets in cafes. You can use a small writing pad, or iPhone notes. Jot down some ideas.
P.S. If you want to broaden your reading skills, start with a good non-fiction book. I highly recommend a book by British author John Lewis-Stempel. Start with The Wild Life: A Year of Living on Wild Food.
The Craft of Coding 