I recently read an unpublished manuscript titled 'Why is academic writing so academic?' by Joshua Rothman (2014, https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/why-is-academic-writing-so-academic ). I found the short be very insightful and thought-provoking. However, the paper inspired me to further interrogate my understanding of the word 'academic', hence, I ask 'What's academic about academic writing?