120921 edanz how to write and get your science published

2nd International Neural Regeneration Symposium

Warren Raye, PhD

Senior Life Sciences Editor

Edanz Group

21 September 2012

How to write and get your science published

论文发表指南论文发表指南论文发表指南论文发表指南

Customer ServiceIntroductionAbout me …

Customer ServiceIntroductionToday’s presentation

• Scientific publishing

• Before you start …

• Avoiding rejection

• Manuscript structure

• Hints and tips

• Edanz Journal Selector– Your target journal in minutes not days

今天演讲内容将涉及以下几个方面

Scientific publishingAdopt a winning strategy

Publication recordWin games

Footballer Scientist

Preparation

Communication

Knowledge

Tactics

Physical fitness

Team members

Rules of the game

Opposition

Understanding

Manuscript

Submission process

Published literature

Results

Scientific publishingAdopt a winning strategy

Publication recordWin games

Footballer Scientist

Preparation

Communication

Knowledge

Tactics

Physical fitness

Team members

Rules of the game

Opposition

Understanding

Manuscript

Submission process

Published literature

Results

要想成功发表论文必须使用有效的技巧

Scientific publishing

清晰的写作有助于和国际同行交流

科研成果只有在发表后才算最终完成

Exchange ideas globally

Scientific publishing You must publish in English

• The international language of science

• Other scientists want to hear from you!

• A more effective science communicator

• International reputation

• Funding

• Career advancement

英语是国际通用的学术交流语言

Scientific publishing The submission process

EditorManuscript +

cover letterReject

Results novel?

Topic relevant?

New experiments

Improve readability

Add information

论文投稿过程

Results novel?

Topic relevant?


EditorManuscript +

cover letter

Peer review

Results novel?

Topic relevant?

New experiments

Improve readability

Add information

论文投稿过程


Accepted—

publication!

EditorManuscript +

cover letter

Peer review

Results novel?

Topic relevant?

New experiments

Improve readability

Add information

论文投稿过程


EditorManuscript +

cover letter

Peer review

Revision

Results novel?

Topic relevant?

New experiments

Improve readability

Add information

论文投稿过程


Accepted—

publication!

EditorManuscript +

cover letter

Peer review

Revision

Results novel?

Topic relevant?

New experiments

Improve readability

Add information

论文投稿过程

Scientific publishing

• 3–12 months …

• Why so long?

– Manuscript type

– Availability of peer reviewers

– Fast tracking

– Number of revisions

Publishing timeline

论文发表为什么需要这么长的时间？

Scientific publishing Peer review improves your manuscript

• Few papers are accepted without revision

• Rejection and revision are integral

• Peer review should be a positive experience

Acceptance

Minor

revision

Major

revision

Rejection

同行评审有助于提高稿件质量

Scientific publishing What do journal editors want?

• High quality research

• Clear & concise English

• Novel

• Interesting to journal’s readership

• Stands up to peer review

• Quickly assess your work

期刊编辑希望看到高质量的学术内容

Scientific publishingPublication ethics

• Multiple submissions

• Plagiarism

• Author contribution

• Conflicts of interest

• Data fabrication/falsification

学术不端行为终将会被“抓现形”

Before you start … Things you need to consider

• Read

• Journal selection

• Evaluate significance

动笔之前，你需要考虑

Before you start … Reading improves manuscript writing

How?

What to do

Argument

structure

Structure & style

Get new ideas

Journal quality

What not to do

好的读者会成就好的作者

Before you start …Make time to read

• At least …

– 20–30 min each day

– 60 min, once a week

• Discuss with colleagues

– Journal club

Read often

经常阅读是必要的

Before you start …How to read an article

• Start to finish?

• Section by section?

• Efficiency

• Where is the relevant information?

应有效利用时间

阅读文章的好方法

Before you start …

Title and Abstract first

Strategies for reading


Figures & Tables, then Results

Discussion for interpretation

Self-assess knowledge of topic



Have you read similar papers?

Familiar with the terminology?

Do you understand the relevance

of the hypothesis?


Figures & Tables, then Results

Discussion for interpretation

Self-assess knowledge of topic


Refer to Introduction and

Methods if necessary


Last paragraph of Introduction for aims

Before you start … Which journal?

如何选择正确的投稿期刊？

Before you start …Timing

• Choose your target journal:

– After you have decided you have enough

results for a publication

– After a decision has been made on how high to

aim—high, medium or low impact

– Before writing the Title, Abstract, Introduction

or Discussion sections

不要在写好文章之后才选择目标期刊

Before you start …Factors to consider

• Aims & scope

• Publishing frequency

• Impact factor

• Target audience

• Open access

• Prestige

• Indexing status

• Publication type

你认为哪个因素最为重要？

你的出版目标是什么？

Before you start …Choosing a target journal

Novelty

SignificanceAims & Scope

Target audience

• Journal selection must be based on an honest

evaluation of your manuscript

必须要客观现实地评价你的文章的重要性


New findings

Evaluating significance: novelty

• How new are my results compared

with those already published?

Medium to high

impact

Low to medium

impact

Incremental

advances

Conceptual

advances

观念上的先进性将提高文章的重要性

Before you start … Evaluating significance: relevance

Regional?

Global?

• Are your findings specific to a geographical

region or ethnic population?

如果你的研究结果能够为广大群体所用，文章的重要性将更为突出

Before you start … Evaluating significance: appeal

• Is my work in an area of ‘popular appeal’?

• Examples:

– OLEDs

– Cloud computing

– Food irradiation

– Medical devices

– Higgs boson

– Artificial intelligence

– Stem cells

– Global warming

对一般群体具有吸引力的研究也能够凸显文章的重要性

Customer ServiceAvoiding rejection

Incomplete

data

Reasons for rejection: the science

Inappropriate

methodology

Poor analysis

Weak research

motive

Inaccurate

conclusions

如果学术内容质量不过关，文章将被拒稿

Customer ServiceAvoiding rejection Reasons for rejection: the manuscript

Rationale and aims

not stated

Citations

Inappropriate data

presentation

Poor grammar and

style

Journal requirements

not met

如果表达不好，文章将被拒稿

Customer ServiceAvoiding rejectionReasons for rejection: other

Inappropriate journal

selected

Unlucky timing

其他拒稿原因

Manuscript structureYou need to tell a story

Beginning �� Middle �� End

• Must be easy to read and easy to understand

你的文章需要以“讲故事”的方式呈现出研究结果

Manuscript structure‘Tell them three times’

• Introduction = Beginning

– Assertion

– ‘tell them what you are going to tell them,’

• Body = Middle

– Evidence

– ‘tell them,’

• Conclusion = End

– Affirmation

– ‘tell them again what you told them’.

让读者感受到肯定的表达以及充分的证据

Manuscript structureIMRaD

• Introduction

• Methods

• Results

• and

• Discussion

Assertion

Evidence

Affirmation

按照这个顺序写文章符合思维逻辑

Manuscript structure

Title

Abstract

Introduction

Discussion

Methods

Results

The ‘write’ order

• For maximum clarity and consistency:

After selecting target journal

During your research

Write last

文章并非是按照段落的前后结构依次写作的

Manuscript structureAbstract

• Concise

• Describe problem(s) (10%)

• Objectives/hypotheses (20%)

• Techniques; avoid details (10%)

• Most important results (40%)

• Concluding statement (20%)

摘要必须做到能“独立成文”

摘要是文章最重要的部分

Manuscript structureIntroduction

What problem was studied?

The answer to this question should be in

your Introduction


研究了哪些问题？

Manuscript structureIntroduction Beginning

• Sufficient background information

– Puts your work into context

• Comprehensive literature review

• Cite publications

General

Specific

以简短概要的形式提供给作者背景信息

Manuscript structureIntroduction Middle

• Rationale

– The reason(s) for doing this work?

– Why is it important?

– Justify your work

• Explain how you addressed the problem

• Do not state results from your work

告诉读者研究的重要性

Manuscript structureIntroduction End

• Clearly and explicitly state specific aims of

your study

在最后一段阐述研究的具体目的

Manuscript structureMethods

• Subheadings

• Past tense

• New methods must be described in sufficient

detail that they can be reproduced

• Established methods can be referenced

如何开展的研究？

Manuscript structureResults

• Use subheadings

• Past tense to describe your results

• Present tense when referring to

figures and tables

• Do not explain the results

• Avoid duplication

有哪些研究成果？

Manuscript structureDisplay items

• Present data quickly and efficiently

• Most significant result as a figure or table

• Keep it simple — use separate panels if

necessary

• Label all parts of figures

• Legends must be able to ‘stand alone’

图表是有效的沟通方式

Manuscript structure

What do these findings mean?

The answer to this question should be in

your Discussion


Discussion

研究成果有何意义？

Manuscript structureDiscussion Beginning

• Avoid just restating results

• Answer the research question(s) posed

• Emphasize the major finding(s) first

• What is your major conclusion, based on the

results you have presented?

不要仅重复结果部分

Manuscript structureDiscussion Middle

• Interpret your results

– Compare with other studies

• Same or different?

• Unexpected results

• Briefly describe limitations

– How could experiments be improved?

如果你自己不阐述实验的局限性，那么审稿人会这么做

Manuscript structureDiscussion End

• Restate major conclusion(s)

– In summary … or In conclusion …

• Possible applications and implications

• Suggest future work

“Clinical and research priorities include furthering our understanding of thepathogenesis of M. pneumoniae-associated CNS disease, development ofmore reliable serologic assays, and defining the role of quantitative PCR indistinguishing acute infection from asymptomatic carriage and prolongedpost-infection shedding”

– Bitun & Richardson Curr Infect Dis Rep 2010, 12:282-290

Manuscript structureA good reference list

• Provides relevant information for the readers

• Self-citations

• Old references

• 75% of references from the last 5 years

参考文献列表需要经常更新。经常阅读是必要的。

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips

Consider your reader

• Clear communication

• Language

• Cover letters

• Responding to reviewers

需要让读者易于理解你的结果

Coverage and


Reader expectations

• Information is easier to

interpret when placed

where most readers

expect to find it

• Good writers are aware of

these expectations

• Readability

读者希望信息出现在某些特定的地方

Coverage and


Subject

Verb

1. Verb placement

• Readers expect verbs to closely follow subjects

Sentence

.

Subject

最好让主语和动词紧邻

Coverage and


Subject

1. Verb placement

• Readers expect verbs to closely follow subjects

Sentence

.

Subject

Verb

最好让主语和动词紧邻

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips Avoid reader confusion

• Readers become confused if subject and verb

are separated by too much content

The smallest of the URF's (URFA6L), a 207-nucleotide (nt)reading frame overlapping out of phase the [NH2]-terminalportion of the adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase) subunit 6gene, has been identified as the animal equivalent of therecently discovered yeast H-ATPase subunit 8 gene.

主语和动词如果相聚很远，读者将感到困惑

Coverage and


The smallest of the URF's is URFA6L, a 207-nucleotide (nt) reading frame overlapping out of phase

the [NH2]-terminal portion of the adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase) subunit 6 gene, has been

identified as the animal equivalent of the recently discovered yeast H-ATPase subunit 8 gene.

The smallest of the URF's (URFA6L) has been identified as the

animal equivalent of the recently discovered yeast H-ATPase

subunit 8 gene; URFA6L is a 207-nucleotide (nt) reading frame

overlapping out of phase the [NH2]-terminal portion of the

adenosinetriphosphatase (ATPase) subunit 6 gene.

We identified the smallest of the URF's (URFA6L) as the animal

equivalent of the recently discovered yeast H-ATPase subunit 8

gene. URFA6L is a …

Avoid reader confusion

Coverage and


Which voice?

• Use the active voice as much as

possible

– Blood samples were collected from 256

patients.

– We collected blood from 256 patients.

主动语态还是被动语态？

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips 2. Active voice

• Sentences written in the active voice are:

Simple

Direct

Clear

Easy to read

Subject

Verb

Active

以主动语态写作易于读者理解

Coverage and


• Readers focus on information at the end of a

sentence.

.

take-home information

SubjectVerb

3. Stress position

将重要信息放于句子的结尾之处

Coverage and


Stress position

The dog sat when her mistress offered a treat.

The dog sat when a treat was offered by her mistress.

When the mistress offered her a treat, the dog sat.

• Readers, without thinking, concentrate on the

end of a sentence.

读者容易记住句尾的信息

Coverage and


Topic position

.

Stress position

SubjectVerb

• Readers expect a sentence/phrase to be a story

about whoever shows up first

4. Topic position

主题位置可以使读者将原有信息联系起来

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips Topic position

• Linkage and context

The family went into the courtyard to see the new

puppy. The dog sat when her owner offered a treat.

Everyone was so excited they broke into applause.

However, as the courtyard was situated right next to my

bedroom, the sound woke me from my sleep.

idea ideaideaidea

Topic link

sentence

Coverage and


Readability

“only 4% of readers understand a 27-word

sentence the first time”

• Your reader should

– only need to read once

– not have to read slowly

– understand your logic immediately

长句容易使读者感到困惑

Coverage and


Simple is best

• Simple language is best

• Makes your science more relevant

• Minimizes confusion – maximizes

understanding

• Science is complex

• More people will understand your work

简单的单词易于理解

Coverage and


Dear Editor-in-Chief,

I am sending you our manuscript entitled “Techniques to detect circoviruses in

Australian bird species” by Raye et al. We would like to have the manuscript

considered for publication in Virology Methods Online.

Please let me know of your decision at your earliest convenience.

Sincerely yours,

Warren Raye, PhD

Write a cover letter!

附信必不可少

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips Why are cover letters

important?

• Introduces manuscript to editor

• Acts as a guide for editor

• ‘Sells’ your work

• Speeds up publication process

期刊编辑会根据附信的质量做出重要的决定

Coverage and


Your cover letter

• Address to editor personally

• State manuscript title and publication type

• Brief background, rationale, description of

results

• Explain importance of your results

• Why would your findings be of interest to the

journal’s target audience?

不要只是拷贝和粘贴摘要内容

Coverage and


Dear Dr Graeber,

Please find enclosed our manuscript entitled “Amyloid-like inclusions in the brains of Huntington’s disease patients”, by

McGowan et al., which we would like to submit for publication as a Research Paper in Neurogenetics.

Recent immunohistochemical studies have revealed the presence of neuronal inclusions containing an N-terminal portion of

the mutant huntingtin protein and ubiquitin in the brain tissues of Huntington’s disease (HD) patients; however, the role of

these inclusions in the disease process has remained unclear. One suspected disease-causing mechanism in Huntington’s

disease and other polyglutamine disorders is the potential for the mutant protein to undergo a conformational change to a

more stable anti-parallel β-sheet structure…

To confirm if the immunohistochemically observed huntingtin- and ubiquitin-containing inclusions display amyloid features, we

performed Congo red staining and both polarizing and confocal microscopy on post-mortem human brain tissues obtained

from five HD patients, two AD patients, and two normal controls. Congo red staining revealed a small number of amyloid-like

inclusions showing green birefringence by polarized microscopy, in a variety of cortical regions.... ….detected inclusions

observed in parallel sections, suggesting that only a relatively small proportion of inclusions in HD adopt an amyloid-like

structure.

We believe our findings would appeal to a broad audience, such as the readership of Neurogenetics. As a wide-reaching journal

publishing original research on all aspects of neuroscience…

Please address all correspondence to….

Give the

background to

the research

What was

done and what

was found

Interest to

journal’s readers

An effective cover letter

Coverage and


• Politely respond to all comments in a

response letter

• Make it easy to see the changes

– Refer to line and page numbers

– Different color font

– Highlight the text

How to revise your manuscript

应牢记同行评审人奉献了自己的时间，因此作者需要谦虚有礼

Coverage and


Revision

• Conduct additional experiments and

analyses as suggested

– If this is impossible, you must explain why

• You can disagree with reviewers, but

provide evidence (cite references)

不要忽略你不认同的意见

Coverage and


Reviewer Comment: In your analysis of the data you have chosen

to use a somewhat obscure fitting function (regression). In my

opinion, a simple Gaussian function would have sufficed.

Moreover, the results would be more instructive and easier to

compare to previous results.

Response: We agree with the reviewer’s assessment of the

analysis. Our tailored function makes it impossible to fully interpret

the data in terms of the prevailing theories. In addition, in its

current form it would be difficult to tell that this measurement

constitutes a significant improvement over previously reported

values. We have redone the analysis using a Gaussian fitting

function.

Agreement

Coverage and


Reviewer Comment: In your analysis of the data you have chosen

to use a somewhat obscure fitting function (regression). In my

opinion, a simple Gaussian function would have sufficed.

Moreover, the results would be more instructive and easier to

compare to previous results.

Response: We agree with the reviewer that a simple Gaussian fit

would facilitate comparison with the results of other studies.

However, our tailored function allows for the analysis of the data

in terms of the Smith model [Smith et al, 1998]. We have added

two sentences to the paper (page 3 paragraph 2) to explain the

use of this function and Smith’s model.

Disagreement

Coverage and


Cryptic questions

“The authors hypothesized to look for the

pharmacokinetics of the insulin using this 4 mm

needle; However they didn't do bioequivalence

analyses for glucose pharmacodynamics. That is

one of my concerns about this methodology.”

审稿人的问题并非永远显而易见

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips Understanding reviewer

comments

“The English needs to be improved”

“Your writing is difficult to understand”

• Grammar & spelling

• Long, complex sentences and paragraphs

• Gaps in the logic

• Poor manuscript organization

• Too much information

当审稿人和编辑对语言给出负面意见时，不要只关注语法问题

Coverage and


Free online resources

• Edanz

edanzediting.com

• Springer Exemplar

www.springerexemplar.com/

• Google Scholar

scholar.google.com/

• Purdue Online Writing Lab

owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/

利用可以获取的免费工具

Coverage and


Free online resources

Springer 期刊作者学院

Coverage and


Edanz Journal Selector

liwenbianji.cn/journal_selector

Coverage and


1. 1. 1. 1. 输入英文文本输入英文文本输入英文文本输入英文文本

文章摘要，简短描述，关键词语或者相似文章的摘要

Your target journal in minutes not days


Coverage and


2. 2. 2. 2. 过滤和完善过滤和完善过滤和完善过滤和完善

出版周期影响因子

修改示例文本或者完善结果

开放获取

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips3. 3. 3. 3. 缩小选项缩小选项缩小选项缩小选项

曾发表过的相似文章

匹配分析

期刊的基本信息

Coverage and


4. 4. 4. 4. 查看期刊网址做出最后选择查看期刊网址做出最后选择查看期刊网址做出最后选择查看期刊网址做出最后选择

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips Help your readers

understand

“If you can’t explain something simply, you don’t understand it well.”

– Albert Einstein

• Write to express not impress

• Consider your audience – their native language may not be English

简单的语言可以帮助更多的读者理解你的发现

期刊选定工具即将上线


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Thank youGood luck!

感谢各位，祝好运！

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Contact us

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