Writing for peer-reviewed publications is vital to the career success of the vast majority of academics, scholars, engineers, scientists, and research professionals. Research publication also plays a crucial role in the development of all fields and disciplines. And, as publication is something that’s so important, it must be done well.
However, many of these professionals don’t consider themselves to be good writers, so how can the average researcher write a good science article? The great news is that one doesn’t have to be a good writer in order to be able to write a good research paper. However, one does have to be a careful writer. And, although the creativity that usually defines good research sometimes spills over into the writing of the details (methods and outcomes) of that research, in general, good research writing does not require creative writing abilities. When it comes to writing for a peer-reviewed scientific or technical journal, researchers should learn and perform a specific formula for presenting scientific work in the best possible manner. This article is meant to offer the five most crucial elements of this formula.
- Tip #1
Planning & Executing Research With Publication In Mind
- Most projects start with the intention of writing an article as a result of the work, or at least with the thought that it might be a possibility.
- If this is the case, the research should be planned and executed with the publication in mind.
- One of the essential requirements of a research paper is to document the work in sufficient detail so that the reader can follow the reasoning presented and validate the conclusions drawn.
- In addition, the authors of a published paper must be willing to defend the work against criticism, and therefore they should have for later review the raw data used and significant details of the experimental procedure.
- Firstly, these objectives necessitate regular record keeping of all lab experiments.
- Traditionally, lab records (which contain details about daily experiments) have served this purpose, although today, it is often a virtual notebook of (ideally) well-organized digital files.
- Researchers should realize that they might need to refer to these records at any point in time and therefore preserve them.
- For instance, if they need to review the requirements for what is needed in a method section of an article, they will know what is needed to carry out the writing process for this method section well by referring to their lab records.
- Raw data is often reorganized, refined, shortened, and manipulated before it is presented in a publication.
- It is almost always necessary that the data be archived at each of these different stages.
- Researchers don’t want to be able to post a chart where the “image” of the chart is the only thing that’s left of the original data.
- Attending a high-level engineering and technology conference 2023 should help you learn more about how to go about planning a research paper for publication.
- Veteran Authors All Attest To The Fact That Planning Is Key
- Veteran researcher authors always have a clear idea of what is needed to write a good scientific article, and therefore they plan and execute a research project with the requirements of the publication in mind.
- For those with less experience, thinking about or envisioning what they want their research paper to look like (even before they put pen to paper) at the start of a research project will help ensure that they can meet the most important requirements of writing and publishing their work.
- By taking part in an upcoming conference 2023, you will get the chance to meet numerous veteran research authors from your field and pick their brains on successful research paper publications.
- Tip #2
Following Clear Composition & Systematic Methods
- Writing a research paper is inherently a creative process, and getting the writing right is one of the most crucial tips for journal publication that anyone can give.
- This would seem like a good choice for the scientific researcher, where creativity coupled with critical thinking is the key to success.
- Sadly, most scientists do not see themselves as skilled writers, finding the task of writing both daunting and stressful.
- Authors who don’t have any experience writing articles for scientific journals, should bear in mind that they don’t have to be good writers to write great research papers.
- This is because all research authors follow a predefined formular for scientific research writing that takes creative writing skills completely out of the question.
- A writing formula can sound like a recipe for mediocrity, and in some contexts, it would surely be true.
- The emphasis of a research paper should always be on the research itself, with words merely being tools used in the effective conveying of information.
- During the past three hundred and fifty years, academic journals have developed a unique form, composition, and structure that make the process more convenient for both writers and readers of research articles.
- Effective communication of scientific ideas is what lies at the basis of every world-class research paper.
- A major difference between journal-based scientific writing and the various forms of writing found elsewhere is the very limited reach of the scientific journal and publication medium.
- A scientific article doesn’t have to be everything for everyone.
- It’s a narrow genre with a narrow (albeit very important) purpose.
- A specific scientific community is not a random sample of humanity but a group that shares an established and understood basic scientific background, a set of widely accepted common goals, and an already established set of information communication mechanisms.
- Following the standard structure and organization of a science research article, the author is compelled in many ways.
- But these constraints allow the author and reader to focus on the content, which often results in a better article.
- Tip #3
- The growth of scientific knowledge is mostly gradual – researchers rely on knowledge from the past more often than they know it.
- Therefore, the cornerstone of science – which is a common body of expertise – necessitates mechanisms for conserving and propogating expertise within the scientific community.
- By far, the most widely used mechanism today is scientific publication.
- While there are many forms of research article publication, the two most common are conference presentation (with or without an unpaired written text) and the peer-reviewed journal article (both in print and online version).
- Because virtually all scientific advancements rely on past knowledge, it is essential that new work is placed in the proper context in relation to the past work on which it is based.
- The main mechanism for this is citation (or reference).
- In a scientific article, references are placed to other works, creating points of contact with the common collection of scientific literature in order to integrate the new work into the knowledge network.
- But given the skeptical attitude that is also part of science, citations are also used to help readers check the quality of new work and assess the strength of its conclusions.
- A citation can be formally defined as an acknowledgement of the original source of certain piece of information or data.
- Things that can be cited include journal articles, conference proceedings, books, student dissertations, journals, non-print sources (like films or other recorded media), websites or other online resources, computer hardware (such as a published data CD-ROM or software), and personal communications.
- The citation should be located in the text so that the elements that require the citation are clearly defined. Often it’s at the end of a sentence, but sometimes authors are required to put it in the middle of the sentence for clarity.
- 5 Most Important Uses Of Citations
- To Provide a sufficient working context to allow a critical analysis of the work by others and thus allow readers to measure themselves whether the author’s conclusions are justified.
- To provide the reader with basic sources and related material so that the current work can be understood by the target audience (thus creating a pool of knowledge resources).
- To form a connection of trust with the reader (for instance, proving that the authors know their field well and have done their homework comprehensively, etc.) and/or inform the reader that the article belongs within a specific school of thought.
- To provide examples of alternative ideas, data, or conclusions to compare and contrast with this work.
- To recognize and identify the sources on which to rely for this work (i.e., recognize the use of other people’s ideas or data), thus preserving honesty.
Take part in a virtual conference 2023 to gain a more in-depth understanding of why citations are so important.
- Tip #4
Think From The Perspective Of An Editor
- Anyone who submits a manuscript for peer review (or even as part of a PhD research proposal) dreads one thing above all else – being rejected (although journal editors prefer the phrase “refuse to publish”).
- There are many reasons why a manuscript can be rejected, and a good understanding of the reasons can help researchers ensure that their manuscripts have the best chance of acceptance.
- To be published in a scientific journal, an article must meet four important criteria –
- the content of the article must correspond to the scope of the journal,
- the quality of the paper (method and execution of the research, as well as the writing) must be high enough, the paper must present new results (with the exception of review articles and like), and
- the results should be significant enough to be worth reading (and therefore deserves to be published).
- Tip #5
Prepare A Stellar Cover letter
- Whenever a manuscript is submitted to a journal, the manuscript comes back to the editor first.
- And the first thing that an editor does is read the cover letter that comes with the manuscript.
- So, the cover letter creates the first impression that the editor has of the manuscript.
- Although editors think that cover letters are important, research authors should also understand why the cover letter is valued.
- The Entire Purpose Of The Cover Letter
- When an editor looks at a submission, his/her first decision is based on whether they think it would be productive for the manuscript to go through the peer-review process or if it should be refused without review.
- The cover letter offers them the information that they need to carry out that important first assessment (or at least it should).
- If the editor thinks the manuscript is worth reviewing, their next choice is which reviewer to send it to, based on a match between the reviewer’s expertise and the subject of the paper.
- The reviewer will then repeat the editor’s exercise, deciding to decline without examining the manuscript or, if not, to which associate editor to assign it.
- Finally, the editor will read the cover letter again and may again decide to decline without review.
- If the associate editor feels that the material deserves a review, he or she should find the right reviewers for the manuscript.
- Each editor can consult the complete manuscript and can even read it fully and carefully.
- But it’s the cover letter that is the first and most important indicator every copywriter looks at when making those decisions.
- Why Might A Manuscript Be Refused Without A Review?
- There are three basic reasons –
- First, the article may not fall within the scope of the journal’s review. Editors tend to decline some very good manuscripts simply because they would be better served by being published in another journal (if possible, editors try to recommend a more appropriate journal and encourage authors to give it a try).
- Another reason for refusing without review would be if the English of the manuscript is poor. While most editors have a great deal of respect for anyone who writes an article in a language that is not their first mother tongue, if they find that they have too much difficulty understanding the meaning of the sentences, they will not be able to adequately consider the technical merits of the work. As a result, editors would not waste the precious time of the volunteer reviewers working at their journals unless they believe the content of the manuscript is clear enough to be understood. However, when some editors do decline a manuscript, for this reason, they make sure to encourage authors to have the manuscript reviewed by a native English speaker (or possibly a commercial PhD research proposal writing service) and then resubmit it.
- Finally, an editor can decline an article without revision if it is clear that the article is not new or is not significant. Thus, the author’s purpose in writing the cover letter should be obvious – to provide enough information to ensure that the manuscript is not inappropriately rejected without examination.
- There are three basic reasons –
For more tips on how to get a research paper successfully published in a high-impact factor journal or scientific publication, check out IFERP.