Dear friends,
After five fabulous years, the time has come for us to pack up our pencils and log off our laptops. The SUWT sessions on 18thDecember will be our last.
It has been an amazing journey and we have loved watching you grow and thrive in your writing practice. We are so proud of all the papers, theses, and conference presentations we have helped you write, and the professional networks we have helped you build.
SUWT has always been a labour of love. Our hosts have given their time voluntarily because they see the value of an online writing community for academics. But in the age of the metric, it has become increasingly difficult for us to carve out time for SUWT and devote our energies to an activity that is neither recognised nor respected by our institutions. As much as we love and believe in SUWT, the model is simply not sustainable.
We have had several hosts over the last five years and I owe each of them an incredible debt of gratitude. I am particularly grateful to Sharon McDonough, who has been my partner in crime since the very beginning. Hosts new and old have helped build an amazing community and I could not have done it without them.
And speaking of community, here at SUWT we have made it our mission to make academia a kinder, more compassionate place. We have strived to celebrate even the smallest of wins, cry together over the losses, and seek silver linings in even the darkest of clouds. And we hope that won’t stop when we go. Please take this mission and make it your own. In your small corner of academia, we encourage you to continue supporting each other and fostering a culture of care and mutual respect.
And of course, keep writing! Together, alone, in person, online, with tea, with coffee, with cake, with cats. However you like to write, go to it.
It is with a heavy heart that we sign off, but in the words of You’ve Got Mail (one of my favourite films about writing), we have loved being part of your lives.
Please join us for our final sessions (4th and 18th December) and use the comments section of this post and/or our Twitter accounts to share your memories of SUWT and tell us about any further work we’ve helped you produce.
With sadness, hope, respect, and all the good writing vibes,
Dr Siobhan O’Dwyer
Shut Up & Write Tuesdays 
Thank you for your service. For me, you started a reflection in my own work and discussion with colleagues about getting our research done. Best wishes for the new year!
Only just found out you’re gone… thank you so much, you helped me during my PhD and beyond. I was looking for you again to recommend to others. Sad to see you go, but will-keep-writing… Thank you!