Convincing Qualitative Research: What Constitutes Persuasive Writing?

We review ontological, epistemological, and methodological concerns in writing up research, distilled from selected inductive studies published in leading academic journals. From this analysis of practices emerges the following categorization, (a) rhetoric, (b) craftsmanship, (c) authenticity, (d) reflexivity, and (e) imagination, which informs the writing up of appealing and convincing qualitative research. We give examples and propose actionable writing heuristics. We offer reflections and recommendations on how qualitative research writing could be improved and its diffusion accelerated.