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Writing & Speaking Programs

Good writing and speaking skills are essential tools for advancing a scientific career, yet researchers rarely receive proper training. We’re fixing that. The communications experts at Still Point enable our clients to write and present their work more effectively and efficiently: in reports, journal articles, applications for grants and other funding, and scientific meetings.

Our programs have grown out of our many years of professional experiences as writers, science editors and presenters. Our backgrounds:

  • Writing and editing manuscripts for top-tier scientific journals
  • Evaluating manuscripts for authors before submission to leading peer-reviewed journals
  • Writing and editing NIH grant proposals that have yielded many millions of dollars in funding, and
  • Presenting research results at prominent scientific conferences

We offer workshops, seminars and individual coaching tailored to your needs, whether you work in academia, government agenices or the pharmaceutical industry. Our programs are systematic and comprehensive: they cover the entire pipeline of preparation and production, from conception to delivery of article or presentation. Just as crucially, we help authors to place their new work within the bigger picture, both in terms of the project and their own professional portfolios.

How will you benefit from our services?

By empowering your scientists to write, publish and speak more effectively, the Still Point program helps you in several ways:

  • Presenting research results effectively, whether in journals or at meetings, offers the highest validation of a scientist’s work. Our programs enable scientists to do this more easily, quickly and persuasively
  • Communicating your organization’s research attracts collaborators, colleagues, and employees
  • Competition for research funding is fierce in today’s environment. Compelling, strategic communication of your research success and your plans will give you an edge – whether you face an NIH review panel or a group of investors
  • Our programs can quickly improve scientific communications skills, so scientists can spend more time on their research

What will we do to help you achieve your goals?

  • Provide a learning framework designed to teach specific communication skills that can be used flexibly for different writing and speaking assignments
  • Give learners the opportunity to practice new skills in on-site simulations
  • Provide review sessions and materials to consolidate learning
  • Offer individual guidance on the three essentials of good communication: strategy, language, and confidence

Why should you hire us?

We have proven experience in helping scientists at all levels become better writers and speakers, from doctoral students to members of the National Academy of Sciences. Our client list includes many of the top universities, medical schools, government agencies and pharmaceutical companies.

Nature Biotechnology CoverChristopher G. Edwards, PhD was the founding editor of Nature Biotechnology (then called Bio/Technology), has worked as a consulting editor at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research for 14 years and has taught many scientists to write and publish more effectively. A graduate of the Coaches Training Institute, Chris has been a writing coach for nearly two decades. Beth Schachter, PhD left a career as an accomplished research professor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine to work as a science editor and a consultant to scientific laboratories. An author of 32 peer-reviewed papers and chapters, and an NIH-funded Principal Investigator for more than15 years. Beth has given platform presentations at major academic conferences in endocrinology, cancer research, and neuroscience. She taught at Mount Sinai and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and has given communications workshops to academic, government, and biotechnology audiences. She has also written for the New York Academy of Sciences, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Nature Biotechnology and the Ludwig Cancer Institute. John Roberts has been designing training programs and workshops for professionals for over 18 years. His programs have been used by many Fortune 500 companies, as well as rapidly growing small- and medium-sized companies.