A well-structured article is imperative to the success of your paper, firstly in aiding it through the publication process - but, more importantly,
it is vital in helping you present your research in an objective, logical, informative sequence of figures and text. Ultimately, the structure allows us to:
Tell a story to the audience.
Let us begin with the examination of a typical journal article in terms of structure, and purpose of each respective section. We will do this chronologically, which (we state now and cover later in '
Get Writing') is not necessarily the recommend way of writing the text itself.
Perhaps it is possible for you to examine the structure of a handful of articles relevant to your field.
Getting a feel for the standard structural approach, as well as style of scientific writing will raise awareness and make these things easier for you when writing your text.
Title
This is like the strap-line of a newspaper!
It is the first thing the potential reader will see: first impressions count! .
From your title readers will determine if your paper is relevant to them.
This should be clear , concise and (obviously!) relevant to the article text.
Aim for an interesting and informative title with no abbreviations.
(Work with your supervisor and co-authors to ensure this is good!)
Keywords
These are the searchable terms and will help potential readers find your article.
Do not assume the search engine automatically includes the words within the title - so please repeat these. Tip: When you have your keywords, use these to search and see if papers relevant and similar to yours appear - you may also gain extra references this way!
Abstract
This is viewable to all public - so make it good!
When a reader has decided your article is relevant to them the next thing they will do is read the abstract. Here they will decide if it is important and interesting enough to warrant their time! Be aware that reviewers will also decide if they want to referee the paper based on this abstract! No pressure! The abstract must summarise:
What you did, why you did it and what you found.
Try to make the abstract: Interesting, understandable, clear and brief.
(See guidelines to Authors for Journal Abstract Length requirements)
Introduction
Keep it brief.
- The main objective here is to provide a quick overview of the field, where it is at, and how your work fits in with respect to this. Review papers are particularly good references to include here.
- Look at the Guidelines for Authors! Some journals specify format or limit the number of references allowed here.
- Finally, every paper deserves it's own introduction! It should be unique, as every paper itself is! (or should be!). Take the time to write this properly and originally.
Methods
Describe your experiment in as much relevant detail as possible.
If the reader were interested enough and wishes to replicate your experiment, they should be able to achieve this from your paper alone. You have an incentive to do this, this way they cite you in future papers too!
It is important to bear in mind the impression a poorly explained method leaves. It can easily cast doubt over the integrity of the results - as such the discussion and conclusions of your paper - in both the reviewer and readers eyes!
Some helpful notes for what to include in an introduction:
- Don't describe procedures which are already published - boring and a waste of space.
- Do cite any standard procedures or work based on others before you.
- Do describe equipment and materials used adequately.
- Don't use obscure abbs!
Results
Pretty self-explanatory.
- Don't include too many details of the data - just the key take home results. Otherwise the reader will get bored and confused.
- Ensure you are true to your results - don't mess with them!
- If you have unexplained results which you are 100% sure are NOT measurement artefacts - keep them in. Report your science honestly.
- Include graphs and figures!
- Ensure you provide statistical analysis.
- If you do have long tables or relevant (but not key) data - put them in supplementary information.
Discussion
Provide a strong discussion of your data in a confident, honest, enthusiastic manner. Keep your audience on board!
Conclusions
This is not a repeat of the introduction! This is a clear justification of your work and how it advances the field. Mark some territory by stating some ideas of future experiments or ongoing work. This way, people may come to you first about this.
References
References are integral to your text.
- They help you to justify the context of your work (without having to write a thesis...)!
- They can assist the reader. Good referencing allows the reader to learn more and better understand your work.
- Please TRIPLE check your references!. After every draft. Just in case. It is poor practice and can upset people if you get these things wrong.
- PLEASE read the guidelines to authors (again!) They specify the style your references must be in. Format this in your text document, or software like Mendeley can create .bib files for you in a given style. It's not worth upsetting the editor in getting this wrong!
Acknowledgements
Remember to appropriately acknowledge your funders, as well as colleagues who have provided discussion, support but have not made the author requirements.
Supplementary
Supplementary information is generally designed for supporting data or files which aid the reviewer or for publication alongside the manuscript. Data, tables and text (like appendixes), which are too long or of limited interest to the audience are suitable supplementary materials.