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Academic papers

Nov 30

Why does it take so long to write a journal paper?

By Academic papers, Academic papers, Writing

Writing a journal paper takes more time than doing the actual research—I’ve heard this complaint not only from PhD students but also from experienced research scientists. Why does it take so long to write a research paper?

Obvious reasons include procrastinating, having poor academic writing skills, and not knowing how to develop an outline. However, as a freelance editor who has worked with hundreds of authors, I know there are other reasons writing a journal paper takes longer than it has to. Here are some of the main reasons I have identified. I hope reading this post will help you understand how you could write a research paper faster. Read More

Apr 23

Writing geoscience papers: A list of useful resources

By Academic papers, Editing, Writing

Open book with globe behind to represent writing geoscience papers resources“About 10 percent enjoy writing; the other 90 percent consider it a necessary chore”, says David R. Lindsay in Scientific Writing = Thinking in Words.

Writing geoscience papers becomes less of a chore if you have access to all the resources you need. Having to pause in the middle of a sentence to look up whether a term is hyphenated or check the capitalization of a geological unit can slow you down. And being unsure about what to include in an illustration can set you back days or weeks.

To help you speed up the process of writing and editing geology manuscripts, in this article I will discuss several resources for earth scientists and editors. Read More

Dec 28

References: Citing a paper when the authors have the same last name

By Academic papers, References, Short and sweet

When you must follow a certain referencing style, such as APA or Chicago, you’ll come across a tricky citation every now and then. Take, for instance, a paper whose authors have the same last name.

In this example three of the authors have the same surname:

The publisher suggests citing this paper as

Saeidi, Sayedeh Parastoo & Sofian, Saudah & Saeidi, Parvaneh & Saeidi, Sayyedeh Parisa & Saaeidi, Seyyed Alireza, 2015. “How does corporate social responsibility contribute to firm financial performance? The mediating role of competitive advantage, reputation, and customer satisfaction,” Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 341-350.

But how do you cite this work in APA or Chicago? Read More

Nov 03

Should you use trademark symbols in scientific writing?

By Academic papers, Editing, Writing

Trademark symbols in academic writing with sticky note saying yes or no

When writing a research paper, you may need to mention a brand or a proprietary building material, machine, medicine, or any other commercial product. Should you use trademark symbols in scientific writing every time you mention the name of a trademark?

In product documentation, trademarks usually appear together with the ® or ™ symbol. But this doesn’t mean you have to use either of these symbols every time you write the name of a trademark. In fact, there’s no legal requirement to use trademark symbols in academic writing.

So, if you’re wondering if you should use trademark symbols in the research methodology, abstract, or introduction of your paper, the short answer is no. The following is a more detailed explanation of the use of trademark symbols in scholarly publications. Read More

Aug 10

Write your research paper outline: A concise guide

By Academic papers, Tips, Writing

After doing the actual research, it’s time to write your research paper outline. If your paper were a building, the outline would be its architectural plan. The purpose of a research paper outline is to help you plan your paper and organize its content in logical sections.

Here is a concise guide to writing a research paper outline and some advice on how to use it to write your paper. Read More

Mar 23

Verb tenses in scientific writing: Which tense should you use?

By Academic papers, Editing, English writing skills

Sticky notes with past and present verb tenses in scientific writing

If you’re fluent in English, using tenses in scientific writing should come naturally to you. You shouldn’t need to flip through a grammar book, ask a freelance editor, or search online for “methods tense” or “literature review tense”.

But verb tenses may start to haunt you if you’re writing an article for a top peer-reviewed journal and you know you have to get every detail right. For example, you may wonder, What tense should be used in methodology sections? Should the introduction or literature review be written in the present tense or past tense?

In this post I’m going to answer these and other questions on verb tenses in scientific writing to make it easier for you to understand which tenses to use in a research paper.

Read More

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