Scientific writing 3.0: A reader and writer's guide - Jean-Luc Lebrun, Justin Lebrun 2021

Structures for readers and structures for writers
Headings-subheadings: the skeleton of your paper
Paper structure and purpose

The skeleton gives a frame to the body. With it, the reinforced body takes shape; without it, the human would be a jellyfish. The skeleton of a paper is its structure. The skeleton supports the various parts of the body according to their functional needs. Composed of headings and subheadings set in a logical order, the structure reinforces the scientific contribution. The skeleton is standard but it allows for variations in shape and size. Headings are generally the same from one article to the next (introduction, discussion, conclusions) but subheadings differ. The most sophisticated parts of the skeleton are also the most detailed (backbone, metacarpus, metatarsus). The most detailed part of a structure contains the largest amount of contributive details.

The Scientific Paper: 300 years of History

In an article published in The Scientist entitled “What’s right about scientific writing,” authors Alan Gross and Joseph Harmon defend the structure of the scientific paper against those who claim it does not represent the way science “happens”. The structure, refined over more than 300 years, has enabled readers to evaluate the trustworthiness and importance of the presented facts and conclusions. The authors praise the standard narrative. They also observe that today, as a result of the increased role played by visuals, it is necessary to go beyond the interpretation of linear text.

Structures for readers and structures for writers

Before they begin writing, many writers think deeply on their content to plan out what they’re going to say, and where they’re going to say it. They divide their content into little sections, each of which is separated by a heading or subheading. Subsequently, they use these headings to remind themselves of the general topic that the content should follow. This system makes for organised writing, and this is a good thing. But is it enough?

As usual, this type of writing is writer-focused. The structure is created to help the writer organise and develop their thoughts. But if there is one thing you should be hyper-aware of by this point, it is that the writer needs to be first and foremost reader-focused. To understand how to best write a structure for the reader, you must first understand how readers use structures.

So ask yourself the question: as a reader, how do you use the structure? Do you carefully read through all of it, memorising each line, trying to reconstruct the mental model of the writer’s logic for the paper? Or do you instead browse over the headings and subheadings until a keyword catches your eye, prompting you to go straight to that part of the paper? You see, readers use the structure not as a skeleton, but as a collection of potential entry points. Readers may identify two headings of interest from the structure and read only the paragraphs under these headings before moving on to something else! A good structure allows them to skip through your paper effectively, instead of having to read large chunks of text that may be irrelevant to their needs or interests. A good structure is a writer’s nod of understanding to the time-pressed reader.