VC-backed startup, The Science Writing Revolution, is enabling academics to publish scientific papers burnout-free
Ivy Cavendish, CEO of The Science Writing Revolution. Courtesy of Ivy Cavendish.
We spoke with Ivy Cavendish, founder and CEO of The Science Writing Revolution. TSWR’s goal is two-fold: close the opportunity gap in publishing and reduce the mental health and resource cost of writing papers.
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO LAUNCH THE SCIENCE WRITING REVOLUTION?
Around the time that TSWR was born, I was working on my Ph.D. in English Literature and co-working with a friend. He had just completed his PhD research in computational biology but was struggling to write his thesis. As a literature academic, I thought that I could help him out by creating a system of writing.
Twenty-five hours later, he had produced 16,000 words. His thesis passed viva with minor corrections. That's when we thought — What if everyone could have access to a tool enabling effective scientific writing?
WHAT CHANGE DO YOU HOPE TO SEE WITH THE SCIENCE WRITING REVOLUTION?
Our hope is to empower a collective of individuals to write with confidence.
There's a glaring problem in the academic community. We have scientists on mental health leave because they have been so destroyed by the process of ‘publish or perish.’ I know too many scientists who are told they can't get a day off until they publish a paper. Others end up using their m/paternity leave - not to recuperate - but to write a paper so as not to fall behind expectations.
I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that scientists are the superheroes of any age. Humanity moves forward with science and technology, and yet scientists are being failed.
With our writing method, scientists know where to start, which steps to take, and how long it will take to finish their work. Mental health tools are also embedded within our tool and are based on dialectical behavioral therapy. It's all science-based.
WHAT DOES THE FUTURE HOLD FOR THE SCIENCE WRITING REVOLUTION?
We just received an investment from Bethnal Green Ventures, a tech-for-good accelerator. They only invest in companies that are capable of positively influencing 100 million lives. With this investment, we plan on launching our MVP, TooWrite, by the end of the year.
ANY TIPS FOR EARLY-STAGE ENTREPRENEURS?
Fall in love with the problem, not the solution. If you want to do a startup, I massively encourage you to find a problem you will love - something you will go to war over.
Rejection is redirection. Some of the best pivots we ever had came from rejection. At that moment, take some time to lick your wounds. Drink some wine. Shout at some birds. Then ask yourself 2 questions: have I presented the information wrong, or is there something fundamentally wrong with the information that I am presenting? After some reflection, make the necessary pivots and celebrate the progression.