Mer’s Bites of Bytes » Publish & share, & ye shall not perish!

Since 2003 I no longer submitted any abstracts/proposals to any regular conferences, except if there’s a bigger purpose to attend besides the conference itself. I got tired with big conferences where everything is too big and vague, with too many parallel sessions. My first year of PhD studies, I still sent abstracts to compete for an acceptance though I only attended when funded. Later on, still during my grad student era, as soon as I published articles internationally, I started getting invitations to speak, which of course came with funding. And like a never-ending miracle, invitations keep coming. Weird, isn’t it? Think about it…. I never understand why I could be that lucky.

However, every time after I spoke at the conference, I always think that it could be my last one. Fortunately, so far, I am still wrong. Just when I start thinking that nobody would invite me anymore and my global travel record would be halted forever, I usually get some ‘exciting’ emails. That’s exactly what happened last year after my Yogyakarta invitation. I thought, “Oh, next year I don’t have any travel abroad”. Voila! Suddenly I got two invitations from the University of Cambridge and RMIT University in Melbourne. The latter is to present at the Global Ideologies and Urban Landscapes conference. And the first is to speak at the workshop on Subversion, Conversion, Development: Public Interests in ICT. The organizer invited me after reading (and liking, of course, not hating ;)) my articles, particularly the Warnet to Netwar one. I guess my senior colleague was right when he told me, “Mer, once you published, you never know what comes out of it.”

Publications literally bring me places. Yes, traveling the globe without spending any penny. Even though, every time I published something, I would tell myself, “What is this!?&%%@$!? Ouch…. I should have done it better…” Ouch, this made my school chair thinks that I suffer an impostor syndrome!!

Anyway… I highly value the quality of publishing and I believe in the power of writing. I also believe in the power of sharing. In fact, some invitations came to me because I — my publications — was found through the Internet as I put my writings online. I don’t believe that academics should be so discreet (and stingy!) about their publications. Academics should have given access to public to read their writings. High quality peer-reviewed journal articles should be shared to public. Books and book chapters, too.

I don’t share my articles to be invited to speak in conferences. I share because I believe in free flow of and equal access to information and knowledge. However, of course, I don’t mind to taste a sweet side-effect of it….. I don’t need the whole world to like my writing, just one person in every country would be enough, hehe…. and one invitation per person…. haha.

Publish or perish, professors? Uhmmm…. I believe that motto should be modified. Publish and share, and ye shall not perish!

p.s. apology for the rambling nature of this posting — I am in bed, having a ‘cabin fever’ after being in bed for too long…

14 Comments so far

you’re so lucky! i wish i can be like you

mer: oh sure i’m so lucky! but your life is superb, Rani!

Creme de la creme .. that’s what you are. Ngga semua profesor bisa laku kayak kacang goreng begini, Teh :D.

mer: haha, thanks, but i think i am just like any body else. kacang goreng? enakkkkk, aku suka

This is the reason why I said that i’m gonna be one of your blog’s fans

makasih mbak mer, for sharing info and articles

cheers

mer: you’re welcome, Fiki. it’s my pleasure. btw, i’m a reader of your blog too

Wow, super duper yummy!
Teeeeeeeeeeeeeh, I envy you………

Sun sayang dari tanah jawa mwah mwah

mer: thanks, Ima…. hugs and kisses from here.

Very encouraging..

mer: great!

Impostor syndrome is thought to be particularly common among women who are successful in their given careers and is typically associated with academics, NOT a psychological disorder. (Edun
Order, disorder, normal. abnormal, paranormal.
It is quite common for women to be abnormal (=above average).

mer: ya ya…. i have known all of these….. abnormal could be below average

I hope you will be invited to some conference in Stockholm!

mer: yes, I’ve never been to Stockholm and would love to go there!

After all, you are indeed worth it

mer: ooh……ah…… really?

yes, I don’t believe that academics should be discreet. and I do believe that academics should write, first of all.

and I see, you love to write and to share and that’s why you are invited and welcome by many. one of them is me

mer: thanks for the encouragement. i’d do it even if it were for only one person, you.

ps: is this impostor thing curable?

mer: dunno. most likely not…. hik.

No wonder! Hmm, how’s your archepoems, eh?

mer: wow… it feels like a dream to read your comment here! … about archepoems uhm… well i still do poems. how are you?

“Archepoems”, Yuswadi Saliya & Merlyna Lim?
Poems & Publication without medium?
Great teachers such as YW & ML share the light & joy of life… Thank you for both of you also many thank you for all great ‘guru’.

mer: i am just a guru. yw is a maha guru.

how about:
“publish or ye shall not be professor”
(judulnya ngumpulin kum hehe…)

but I agree about the big conferences. I prefer small workshops, where people really understand each other topics, can discuss and work together.
[and yet I'm organising a huge conference this year :P]

mer: i think the famous “publish or perish” = “publish of ye shall not be professor”… tapi di indonesia bukannya kum bisa dikumpul dari yg lain? (di sini euweuh kum2an, pokoknya cuma 2: books and top journal articles, publikasi lain2 kelaut). btw, organizing a choir fest is more fun… haha…

hm… hidden purpose of my blog was *now, it is not hidden anymore* someone, would invite me for a cup of tea… and chat abt the things that i want to clarify with him… hm… still awaiting his call invitation like Lady Day's? oooh… i can only dream abt that….

mer: hahaha…. i love your reason….. that's one truly reasonable reason!

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Publish & share, & ye shall not perish!

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