Me write pretty one day: how to write a good scientific paper

Citation: William A. Wells (2004/06/21) Me write pretty one day: how to write a good scientific paper. The Journal of cell biology, 165(6) (RSS)
DOI (original publisher): 10.1083/jcb.200403137 doi: 10.1083/jcb.200403137
Semantic Scholar (metadata): 10.1083/jcb.200403137 doi: 10.1083/jcb.200403137
Sci-Hub (fulltext): 10.1083/jcb.200403137 doi: 10.1083/jcb.200403137
Internet Archive Scholar (search for fulltext): Me write pretty one day: how to write a good scientific paper
Download: http://jcb.rupress.org/content/165/6/757.abstract
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Summary

In his article, Wells provides the key steps to writing an effective scientific paper. The foundation for any well written paper is a main point, the reason for the paper. Wells suggests the writer have a clear message he or she wants to convey and that it should be repeated throughout the paper. A scientific paper should be written in a manner that is understandable to a general audience, as it may be read by readers not belonging to the field of the writer. Wells advises the writer prevent themselves from getting lost in the minute details and instead layout a plan of getting from A to D by way of B and C. The next important step of an effective paper is the format, how the paper should look. Wells suggests making a map, an outline of how the paper should look, from sentence structure to the placement of images, charts, and graphs. The structure of the paper is vital, beginning with the title which should convey exactly what the paper is about. The Abstract should be a miniature version of the paper with a background, the question(s) being asked/answered, status of the work now and where it continues. The Introduction should set up the question being asked and the Background is the big picture. Wells argues that the Results should be arranged either chronologically or with the most important results first, and that the data be arranged logically with just enough information for the reader to easily follow. The Discussion should not be a copy of the Results or Introduction, but should lead with a short summary of the main point of the paper and the question being asked. It should be organized with the most important findings first, and include any unanswered questions. The language of an effective paper should be clear and concise and not leave the reader wondering what the writer is attempting to say. The flow of the paper should be smooth and that may take the rearranging or cutting out words or entire sentences. The writer will not be able to make their point if the reader is unable follow their logic.