Springer- How to Author

Author Academy how to write and get your science

published

Warren Raye, PhD

Senior Editor

Edanz

Customer ServiceIntroductionAbout me

Senior Life Sciences Editor

Customer ServiceIntroductionTodays presentation

Section One: Academic publishing

Section Two: Before you start

Section Three: Manuscript structure

Section Four: Hints and tips

Edanz Journal Selector

Your target journal in minutes not days

Scientific publishingAdopt a winning strategy

Publication recordWin games

Cricketer Scientist

Preparation

Communication

Knowledge

Tactics

Physical fitness

Team members

Rules of the game

Opposition

Understanding

Manuscript

Submission process

Published literature

Results

Scientific publishing

Clear communication is essential

Your research is not complete until it has

been published!

Exchange ideas globally

Scientific publishing You must publish in English

The international language of science

Other scientists want to hear from Indian

researchers!

Become an effective science communicator

Funding

International reputation

Career advancement

Scientific publishingThe submission process

Accepted

publication!

EditorManuscript +

cover letter

Peer review

Revision

Reject

Results novel?

Topic relevant?

New experiments

Improve readability

Add information

Scientific publishing

312 months

Why so long?

Manuscript type

Availability of peer reviewers

Fast tracking

Number of revisions

Other?

Publishing timeline

Scientific publishing Peer review improves your manuscript

Few papers are accepted without revision

Rejection and revision are integral to the

Peer review should be a positive experience

Acceptance

Minor

revision

Major

revision

Rejection

Scientific publishing Journal editors and reviewers ask themselves

Is the manuscript novel?

Is the manuscript of interest to our readers?

Novelty

Significance

Aims & Scope

Target Audience

Scientific publishing What do journal editors want?

High quality research

Clear & concise English

Stands up to peer review

Original & novel advances a field

Interesting to journals readership

Active research area

Quickly assess your work Cover letter

Appropriate references

Scientific publishingPublication ethics

Multiple submissions

Plagiarism

self-plagiarism

Author contribution

Data fabrication/falsification

Conflicts of interest

Before you start Section Two

Read

Study design

Journal selection

Evaluate significance

Before you start

Both sides of the brain are essential

Work in harmony

Reading and writing are connected

Reading

Reading Writing

Logic Creativity

Before you start Reading improves your writing

Read often

2030 min each day

60 min, once a week

Discuss with colleagues

Journal club

Assists with journal selection

Ideas for next manuscript

Before you start How to read an article

Start to finish?

Section by section?

Efficiency

Where is the relevant information?

Before you start

Results: figures, tables,

schematics, equations

Discussion

Self-assess

knowledge of topic

Title and Abstract

Introduction and

Methods if necessary

How to read an article

Introduction: aims

Before you start Study design

Critical

What is your hypothesis or research question?

The aim(s) of your study

What methods are appropriate?

Do you have the relevant resources?

Identify your controls

Before you start Study design

Sample sizes (n) large enough?

Which statistical test(s)?

When in doubt talk to a statistician!

Ethics approval

Before you start Journal Selection

Before you start Choosing a target journal

Novelty

SignificanceAims & Scope

Target Audience

Journal selection must be based on an honest

evaluation of your manuscript

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

aimhigh, medium or low impact

Before writing the Title, Abstract, Introduction or

Discussion sections

Before you start Factors to consider

Aims & scope

Publishing frequency

Impact factor

Target audience

Open access

Prestige

Cost

Publication type

Which factor is most important to you?

What is your publication goal?

Before you start

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

Before you start

Are my findings of relevance only to a specific

geographical region or ethnic population?

Are there implications for other regions and

populations?

High impact factor journals may consider

specific findings if they are the first of their

kind or of international significance.

Evaluating significance: relevance

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

Green aviation

Stem cells

Global warming

Before you start

Incomplete

data

Reasons for rejection: the science

Inappropriate

methodology

Poor analysis

Weak research

motive

Inaccurate

conclusions

Before you start Reasons for rejection: the science

Scientifically irrelevant

Unclear

Not explicitly stated

Not supported by your data

Weak research

motive


Hinders proper analysis

Conclusions questionable

Invalidates study

Incomplete

data


Old, out-of-date techniques/models

Not approved/unusual methods

Invalidates study

Inappropriate

methodology


Does not stand up to scrutiny

Inappropriate methods

Conclusions questionable

Invalidates study

Poor analysis


Based on assumptions

Questionable interpretation

Invalidates study

Inaccurate

conclusions

Before you start Reasons for rejection: the manuscript

Rationale and aims

not stated

Citations

Inappropriate data

presentation

Poor grammar and

style

Journal requirements

not met


Clearly and explicitly stated

Why?

Importance

Rationale and aims

not stated


Research too specialized

Author guidelines not followed

Journal requirements

not met


Self-citations

Old, inaccurate, irrelevant

Citations


Long, complex sentences and

paragraphs

Non-native expressions

Gaps in the logic

Too much information

Poor grammar and

style


Illogical representation

Duplication of results

Too much data

Raw data

Inappropriate data

presentation

Before you start Reasons for rejection: other

Research too specialized

Not suitable for target audience

Inappropriate journal

selected

Before you start Reasons for rejection: other

Hot topics

Increased competition

Unlucky timing

Manuscript structureSection Three

You are telling a story

Beginning Middle End

Must be easy to read and easy to understand

Manuscript structureTell 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.

Manuscript structureIMRaD

Introduction

Methods

Results

and

Discussion

Assertion

Evidence

Affirmation

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

Manuscript structureAbstract

Concise

Describe problem(s) addressed

Objectives/hypotheses

Techniques; avoid details

Most important results

Concluding statement

Manuscript structureIntroduction

What problem was studied?

The answer to this question should be in

your Introduction


Manuscript structureIntroduction Beginning

Sufficient background information

Puts your work into context

Comprehensive literature review

Cite publications

General

Specific

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

Manuscript structureIntroduction End

State the methods used

Clearly and explicitly state specific aims of

your study

Manuscript structureMethods

Subheadings

Past tense

New methods must be described in sufficient

detail that they can be reproduced

Established methods can be referenced

Manuscript structureResults

Use subheadings

Past tense to describe your results

Present tense when referring to figures and

tables

Do not explain the results

Do not duplicate data among figures, tables

and text

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

Manuscript structure

What do these findings mean?

The answer to this question should be in

your Discussion


Discussion

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?

Manuscript structureDiscussion Middle

Interpret your results

Compare with other studies

Same or different?

Unexpected results

Briefly describe limitations

How could experiments be improved?

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 to the readers

Self-citations

Old references

75% of references from last 5 years

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips

Section Four

Clear communication

Language

Cover letters

Responding to reviewers

Coverage and


Information is easier to

interpret when placed

where most readers

expect to find it

Good writers are aware of

these expectations

Readability

Coverage and


Subject

Verb

1. Verb placement

Readers expect verbs to closely follow subjects

Sentence

.

Subject and verb far apart = poor readability

Subject

Coverage and


Subject

Verb

1. Verb placement

Readers expect verbs to closely follow subjects

Sentence

.

Subject and verb far apart = poor readability

Subject

Verb

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.

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.

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

Coverage and


Readers focus on information at the end of a

sentence.

.

take-home information

SubjectVerb

3. Stress position

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.

Coverage and


Topic position

.

Stress position

SubjectVerb

Readers expect a sentence/phrase to be a story

about whoever shows up first

4. Topic position

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

Consider the reader

Only need to read once

Do not have to read slowly

Can understand author logic immediately

Coverage and


Sentence length

We examined numerous peer-reviewed

journals

Easy to read articles had an average

sentence length of 17 words

Sentences that are 1520 words

One sentence: one idea

Coverage and


Goals to aim for

Maximum 2530 words per sentence

Not more than four 30-word sentences in the

whole manuscript

Think about reader expectation and match

the expectation with the contents

Coverage and


Simple is best

Simple language is best

Makes your science more relevant

Minimizes confusion maximizes

understanding

Science is complex

Use simple language to help more people

understand your work

Coverage and


Before you submit

Register online

Cover letter

Potential referees

Potential editors

Declare conflicts of interests

Format and resolution of graphics files

Copyright and payment forms

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!

Competition for publication space and editors attention is very high

This is a poor cover letter

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

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

journals target audience?

Coverage and


Dear Dr Graeber,

Please find enclosed our manuscript entitled Amyloid-like inclusions in the brains of Huntingtons 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 Huntingtons disease (HD) patients; however, the role of

these inclusions in the disease process has remained unclear. One suspected disease-causing mechanism in Huntingtons

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

more stable anti-parallel -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

journals readers

An effective cover letter

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips Peer review improves

your manuscript

Few papers are accepted without revision

Rejection and revision are integral

Peer review is a positive process

Acceptance Minor

revision

Major

revision

Rejection

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

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)

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 reviewers 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 Smiths model.

Disagreement

Coverage and


Cryptic questions

The authors hypothesized to look for thepharmacokinetics of the insulin using this 4 mmneedle; However they didn't do bioequivalenceanalyses for glucose pharmacodynamics. That is oneof my concerns about this methodology.

Cosmetic changes

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

Coverage and


Online resources

Edanz

edanzediting.com

Springer Exemplar

www.springerexemplar.com/

Google Scholar

scholar.google.com/

Purdue Online Writing Lab

owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/

Coverage and


Free resources

Coverage and


Edanz Journal Selector

Coverage and

Staffing PlanHints and tips Help your readers

understand

If you cant explain something simply, you dont understand it well.

Albert Einstein

Write to express not impress

Consider your audience their native language may not be English

Thank youGood luck!

Any questions?

Contact Edanz

[email protected]

Follow us on Twitter

@JournalAdvisor

Downloads and further reading

edanzediting.com

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