Inspired by our talk on how to unlock the power of academic blogging: storytelling, tips and tools at BISA’s virtual conference, Zara Qadir, Founding Editor, and Mira Mookerjee, Editor and Website Curator, highlight a few key points on how to create an impactful blog post.
What are the key elements that make a blog post engaging and impactful for readers?
At the Global Souths Hub, we’ve spent the past year exploring this question and experimenting with different formats and styles. This blog shares key lessons from our presentation at the British International Studies Association (BISA) on 30 April 2025, (watch the video Unlock the power of academic blogging: Storytelling, tips and tools).
We believe that academic research is not as readily accessible as it should be. Through blogging, your research can reach a wider audience and make a bigger impact. However, how you communicate your ideas matters just as much as what you say. In this article, we have distilled our top 10 practical tips to help your academic blog connect with readers, convey your message clearly, and inspire action.
1. Be Creative with Your Format
There are many accessible formats for sharing your research and ideas—such as expert commentaries, Q&As, listicles, explainers, reviews, event write-ups, and multimedia like podcasts or videos. First, think about what format would capture your message in the most effective and interesting way.
2. Start with Storytelling
Storytelling makes factual content relatable and memorable. Think of your blog as a conversation, use examples and real world instances. One way of doing this is by…
3. Zooming In and Zooming Out
We love this technique and it can be very powerful. Start from a specific moment — your daily routine, a lived experience, a vivid scene — and then expand into the bigger picture. Celestina Atom, a final year doctoral researcher at the Department of Social Sciences, Humanities and Law, does this excellently in her blog piece on Rebuilding After Conflict: Highlights from BISA 2025. Here, she looks at Belfast’s history before zooming out onto peacebuilding in Nigeria, which her research focuses on.
4. Bring Your Blog to Life
Metaphors, analogies, and vivid language helps readers see what you mean. These literary tools bring abstract ideas to life, make your ideas more understandable and help drive your message home. It’s important to create vivid mental pictures. You can do this by using your five senses, such as by capturing the environment you are describing through specific sights, scents, sounds etc. Our Social Media Manger and Contributing Writer Purniya Awan’s blog on Lahore’s smog did this beautifully, beginning with her personal struggle with smog before linking it to wider climate injustices (Choking on Smog: Lahore’s Air Crisis Threatens Health and Wellbeing).
5. Use Your Voice – And Don’t Be Afraid to Be You
Your blog should sound like you. Be passionate, be bold, and don’t be afraid to be informal where appropriate — think about ways to connect with your audience.
6. Write in First Person
Use “I,” “we,” “us,” and “our.” This makes your writing personable and draws the reader in.
7. Ask Questions – Engage Your Reader
Don’t be afraid to talk to your reader. Ask questions to invite them to reflect. What do you want your audience to take away? Do you want your reader to leave with a specific message? Do you want to inspire them to act?
8. Be Clear, Concise, and Direct
In a blog, when space is tight every sentence has to have a clear purpose, try to cut out any sentences that don’t relate back to your key arguments.
Think about your key messages. What are you trying to convey/argue? Make sure this comes through in the first few lines and keep your scope focused. If you have five points to share, consider narrowing them down to one strong idea for the post. Avoid vague language or unnecessary explanations.
9. Keep Your Writing Open
By open, we mean accessible. Ensure that a non-expert can read your blog post, you can do this by avoiding overly technical terms. Where technical terms are necessary, we suggest always explaining them, or alternatively including links with short explanations. Avoid any ambiguity and always spell out any acronyms, especially in the first instance.
If you also mention someone in your piece, (even if they are a very well-known academic or person), don’t assume that all your readers will know who they are – we always suggest giving some context or linking to their professional page.
10. Mix Up Your Sentence Length
Academic prose can be long – but shorter sentences makes the text easier to read and helps the message stand out. Vary your rhythm when writing, as shorter sentences can feel more natural and engaging — like someone speaking to you.
After you’ve written a first draft of your piece, think about the structure…
Titles, Sub-headings, and SEO
Impactful titles are important. After writing the piece, spend some time thinking about your title. It can be playful and creative (with alliterations) but ultimately it should be appropriate and specific. Use topical or keywords that people might be searching for. Titles in the form of a provocative question often work well, especially since people are curious to find out the answer.
Sub-headings are also your friend — they help readers skim and help with search engine optimisation. Someone reading should be able to get the jist about what the paragraph (and article) is about from just reading your sub-headings.
And finally, images
Strong visuals can enhance your message, but before using an image, make sure you have the right permissions – and confirm the source is reliable. If you have your own photos make sure you have permission, but otherwise use free stock image platforms like Unsplash, Pixabay, Freepik, or Pexels for free, high-quality options. Our personal preference is Unsplash as images are original and not AI generated. Always provide a caption and source to explain what the post is about.
Don’t miss this step!
Editing is key— please don’t skip this step! Read your piece at least three times: first to check the flow and strength of your argument, then tighten for clarity, conciseness, and readability, and finally to catch any grammar or punctuation issues.
We suggest asking someone outside your field to read it too—their fresh perspective can be incredibly valuable. A new reader will be able to spot assumptions you’ve made that you might not have noticed, and help you clarify your argument.
Blogs are powerful
Blogs can help us share knowledge, tell untold stories, and spark important conversations.
Let us know what you’re working on – we’re always happy to chat blog ideas! You can read our guidance and how to submit an article to the Hub on our How to contribute to the Hub page.
You can find out more about our Global Souths Hub contributors here.
Check out our
Global South Studies blogs page for a list of platforms you can contribute to.
Resources to help with your blogging
- How to write an academic blog post – T&F
- How to write up your event for the hub – Global Souths Hub
- Reflecting on our Lens: Decolonising Imagery within International Development – EADI blog
- How to tell the world about your research: blogs and blogging with The Loop (VIDEO)
- Author guidelines for The Loop
- Want to foster community and give your students a voice? Start blogging – Times Higher Education (2024)
- Creating a video abstract for your research – T&F
- Unlocking the Power of Academic Blogging (SLIDES)
