In early March 2016, NCFR Board President Bill Allen invited NCFR members to participate in the first of several brief surveys designed to help the NCFR Board better understand members' views of NCFR and the work it does.This article discusses the results of the survey, and next steps. 

In my conversations with successful authors, I have noted recurring themes that define productive writing practices across disciplines, as well as practices that interfere with productivity. Success in writing derives from some very different approaches grounded in a few key principles.

Let's talk about the elements of really great titles mindful that we are not trying to win Booker or Pulitzer prizes; we are trying to write great social science for professional audiences.

In this article, we'll examine writing communities that are sometimes quite informal and involve establishing writing dates with a colleague or two, and more formal writing groups that meet weekly in concentrated writing sessions. We'll end with a brief nod to the all­important, and rather quirky, rituals that writers privately embrace.

To write, we need a place of our own. In this article we'll take a look at where writers work and how they manage space to suit the requirements of their writing.

Regardless of how successful the writer, there is a continuous internal chatter of self-doubt as well as a few external critics who will question your work. In my experience as an editor, whether I'm working with a new professional or a well-established scholar, writers experience doubts about the quality of their work. 

The style in which empirical articles are written is straightforward, with an introduction and literature review, a method section, results and discussion sections, and a conclusion. The issues of concern are (1) the overall quality of writing and (2) the adherence of a manuscript to "house style."

As the person responsible for advancing NCFR's policy initiatives, it is my job to help create tools to help you as an individual or affiliate impact family policy. As such, the purpose of this article is to begin that education by helping you understand the context in which you as an individual or a representative of NCFR can influence family policy.