Abstract
Academia is in crisis with ever-increasing work demands, ongoing pressure to publish and competition for research funding, and financial insecurity through casualisation, which jeopardises the attainability of work-life balance. Writing groups, however, can benefit research academics through reducing these types of stress-related issues, increasing scholarly productivity. and facilitating collaborative communities of practice. In this chapter, we explore the role of online writing groups emerging during COVID-19 lockdowns. We conducted 19 semi-structured interviews with researchers globally who attended online groups. We asked participants how they were able to sustain their writing practice; how they compare writing alone with online groups; and in what ways their writing contributed to their sense of self. Bourdieu's theory of practice was used to provide a conceptual basis when analysing the data. Participants revealed writing groups assisted in developing writing skills and academic identity, and in increasing resilience and wellbeing.