How to write and publish a scientific paper - Barbara Gastel, Robert A. Day 2022

Essays
How to write opinion (Letters to the editor, editorials, book reviews, and essays)
Doing other writing for publication

Some journals and other media include personal essays by scientists or others in science-related fields. These essays commonly focus on professionally related personal experiences and the insights gained from them. Venues containing such essays include “Working Life” in Science magazine, “A Piece of My Mind” in the medical journal JAMA, and the cleverly titled “Narrative Matters” in Health Affairs.

If you have an experience to share, consider submitting an essay. Some pointers: Just as for other submissions, read the instructions from the journal. Also, read essays published in the journal to get a sense of the norm. Write about an experience to which the journal’s readers can relate. For example, your essay may show how you addressed an issue that many readers contend with, depict how your experience transformed your understanding of a professionally related situation, or maybe share an especially heartwarming experience from your career. Do not use such an essay only to complain. Save rants for your significant other, your dog, or maybe your therapist.

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Regarding the writing itself: Begin the essay strongly. One way is to start with an especially engaging part of the tale. You can then provide background and tell the rest of the story. Give the story a beginning, middle, and end. Include both narrative and reflection. As writers often are told, show rather than tell. For example, rather than saying that stress was affecting you physically, describe (briefly) your sleeplessness, headaches, and lack of appetite. Consider thinking cinematically. Write simply, concisely, and vividly (though in general not melodramatically). Use lively verbs and minimize the use of adjectives and adverbs. Be clear, clear, clear. And revise, revise, revise. Perhaps get feedback from colleagues or others.

Realize that acceptance of essays, like that of other journal submissions, can be very competitive. Therefore, do not be discouraged if your essay is not accepted. If your essay is indeed accepted, realize that even if you have strong writing skills, the journal might request considerable revision, and you may have extensive back-and-forth with an editor.

Over the years, personal essays in journals have addressed a wide range of subjects—including communication of science. “Working Life” essays about such communication include the following:

· “Paper Writing Gone Hollywood” (DOI: 10.1126/science.355.6320.102)

·  “How I Became Easy Prey to a Predatory Publisher” (DOI:10.1126 /science.caredit.aax9725)

·  “Reviewers, Don’t Be Rude to Nonnative English Speakers” (DOI: 10.1126/science.caredit.aaz7179)

·  “How I Conquered My Fear of Public Speaking and Learned to Give Effective Presentations” (DOI:10.1126/science.caredit.aaz2161)

·  “Poster Presentations Are a Great Way to Showcase Your Science” (DOI: 10.1126/science.caredit.aba1279)

·  “How I Learned to Speak Up for Myself about Authorship” (DOI: 10.1126 /science.caredit.abd2832)

·  “Don’t Erase Undergrad Researchers and Technicians from Author Lists” (DOI: 10.1126/science.caredit.abf8865)

·  “Two Surnames, No Hyphen: Claiming My Identity as a Latin American Scientist” (DOI: 10.1126/science.caredit.abj4464)

· “How I Transformed Myself into a Confident Presenter—Thanks to Lady Gaga” (DOI:10.1126/science.caredit.abh2491)

Blogs and podcasts designed for one’s professional community or more general audiences also can be fine forums for personal essays relating to science. In particular, scientists’ tales in such venues can engagingly convey science to members of the general public. For advice in this regard, and more generally on writing science-related personal essays, see “Science and the Art of Personal Storytelling” by Ben Lillie (2016).

Especially if you have an enlightening science-related experience to share, consider venturing beyond the usual formats in which scientists write. You may find yourself with your largest readership.