I received some great news at Easter an academic journal accepted an article I submitted for publication. Finally, I will be a published author.

It gets better. I have also just received an email from the editors of a soon to be released book on family business that my chapter for their book has also been accepted.

So after 4 years of submitting various articles, I am to be published not once but twice.

I’m excited, however, my favourite person and daughter greeted the news of the journal article acceptance with muted interest. The timing of the email confirmation coincided with our watching the final of Great British Bake-off and I have to say they seemed much more interest in the winner than my own triumph. They say that’s not true and that they are excited for me too.

Getting published is so important in academia. Without publications, you have no worth in the academic world and no prospects of employment in the University sector. The latter is not that important to me as I am not actively seeking an academic career, a good thing as the tertiary sector has been decimated by the Coronavirus.

For me, it’s about recognition that my academic research has some value. The academic journal article is based upon my first piece of research from my Honours Research and the book chapter a case study from my PhD Research. Both have been greatly been enhanced by the input of co-authors, however as the principal author should my contributions ever be cited I won’t be referred to as “et al”!

It has provided added incentive to work on my PhD Research. My objective has been to finish in the middle of the year but that was ambitious and I now think it might be possible to submit by Christmas or more realistically early in the New Year.