About the Journal

Formerly known as the Canadian Journal for Studies in Discourse and Writing/Rédactologie, Discourse and Writing/Rédactologie (DW/R) is the official journal of the Canadian Association for the Study of Discourse and Writing. Since 1982, the journal has been publishing articles of interest to teachers of technical, professional, scientific and academic writing. The journal shifted to a no-fee open-access format in 2011 with a broader focus on discourse and writing studies. The work is published electronically under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA 4.0). This license allows users to adapt and build upon the published work, but requires them to attribute the original publication and license their derivative works under the same terms. Currently the journal is hosted by the Public Knowledge Project at the Bennett Library of Simon Fraser University.

Indexed in: 

Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ)

EBSCOhost Database 

Érudit Publishing Platform 

Aims and Scope

DW/R aims to promote all approaches to writing and discourse research within all disciplines. The journal publishes papers that focus on the context of academic writing and discourse in professional settings and post-secondary education.  Papers focusing on any research methodology are welcome, including theoretical discussions, quantitative and statistical approaches, qualitative approaches, and textual analyses.

Some examples of discourse and writing topics that we consider in-scope for our journal include:

  • Well-researched and evidenced-based discussions of writing pedagogy
  • Critiques or reimaginations of theories that inform writing such as (but not limited to) rhetorical genre theory, academic literacies, activity theory, social cognitive theories
  • Critical examinations of the state of equity, diversity, and inclusiveness in writing and discourse pedagogy and theory
  • Examinations of oral discourse and oral pedagogies and rhetoric
  • Papers discussing the state of research methodology in writing and discourse, describing and proposing new approaches or guidance for the analysis of data
  • Analyses of the academic, public, and political discourse that circulates around the topic of writing and writing pedagogy
  • Studies and current debates on topics including (but not limited to):
    • Writing centre pedagogies and issues
    • Undergraduate writing
    • Doctoral writing
    • International student writing
    • English as a second language writing
    • Technical and professional writing

Authors uncertain if their paper fit the above criteria are welcome to query the editors with a brief description of their paper.