This document provides tips and strategies for effective scientific writing. It discusses structuring papers, using outlines and reverse outlines, paragraph structure with topic sentences, polishing and revising with plain language, ethics of writing and figure preparation, setting aside time for writing, and not letting good data be explained poorly through bad writing. It also covers writing micro-articles, determining significance, using active voice, nominalizations, and sentence structure.

1. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Tips and Tricks for Effective
Writing
University of Nottingham
9 March 2016
Mary Williams @PlantTeaching
mwilliams@aspb.org

2. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
How to write papers more effectively
Structure
The mini article
Outlines and reverse outlines
Paragraph structure: Topic sentences!
Polishing and revising: Use plain language
Ethics of writing
Getting published
Read the instructions for authors!
Pre- and Post-publication peer review
Ethics of figure preparation

3. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Set aside time for writing
Don’t leave it until the last minute

4. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists

5. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Don’t let good data down through
bad writing
“For 90% of submissions, the
problem is not the novelty, but
the explanation of the novelty”
Lichtfouse, E. (2013). Scientific Writing for Impact Factor
Journals. Nova Scientific Publishers, Inc. (New York).
Is your explanation
clear enough for a
late-night reader?

6. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
A good structure is essential: The
two-funnel model of a paper
Start broadly: Why is
this topic important?
End broadly: Where
is this topic heading?
What can we expect
to come out of it?
Statement of what you did and why
Statement of what you did and why
Methods / Results
Introduction
Discussion

7. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
What is the general and specific
significance of your work?
www.plantcell.org/cgi/doi/10.1105/tpc.109.tt1009
Title
General Problem(s)
Specific Problem(s)
Unknown
Experiments
Results Description
Figure
Figure Legend
Interpretation
Specific Benefits
General Benefits
Novelty of the new
results
Lichtfouse, E. (2013). Scientific Writing for Impact Factor
Journals. Nova Scientific Publishers, Inc. (New York).
The
Micro-
article
Introduction
Discussion

8. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
What is the general and specific
significance of your work?
www.plantcell.org/cgi/doi/10.1105/tpc.109.tt1009
Lichtfouse, E. (2013). Scientific Writing for Impact Factor
Journals. Nova Scientific Publishers, Inc. (New York).
The
Micro-
article
Introduction
Discussion
Handout!

9. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Outlines and reverse outlines can be
extremely helpful
Don’t worry about
smoothing your writing
until you are reasonably
happy with the structure
Periodically rename your work-in-
progress so you have the option of
returning to an earlier version….

10. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Polishing: Use topic sentences-
People read in F or E patterns
http://www.jarimbi.com/writing-web-part-1/
Reverse outlining:
The first line of each paragraph should be sufficient to convey your meaning
Read just the headings and topic sentences of the handout

11. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
(i) Never use a metaphor, simile, or other
figure of speech which you are used to
seeing in print.
(ii) Never use a long word where a short
one will do.
(iii) If it is possible to cut a word out, always
cut it out.
(iv) Never use the passive where you can
use the active.
(v) Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific
word, or a jargon word if you can think of an
everyday English equivalent.
(vi) Break any of these rules sooner than
say anything outright barbarous.
-George Orwell, "Politics and the
English Language," 1946
(i) Never use a metaphor, simile, or other
figure of speech which you are used to
seeing in print.
(ii) Never use a long word where a short
one will do.
(iii) If it is possible to cut a word out, always
cut it out.
(iv) Never use the passive where you can
use the active.
(v) Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific
word, or a jargon word if you can think of an
everyday English equivalent.
(vi) Break any of these rules sooner than
say anything outright barbarous.
-George Orwell, "Politics and the
English Language," 1946
https://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/orwell46.htm
Polishing:
Use “plain
language”
http://www.npr.org/blogs/ombudsman/Polit
ics_and_the_English_Language-1.pdf

12. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Write “simple, declarative
sentences”
I am not, indeed, sure whether it is not true to
say that the Milton who once seemed not
unlike a seventeenth-century Shelley had not
become, out of an experience ever more
bitter in each year, more alien to the founder
of that Jesuit sect which nothing could induce
him to tolerate.
I am not, indeed, sure whether it is not true to
say that the Milton who once seemed not
unlike a seventeenth-century Shelley had not
become, out of an experience ever more
bitter in each year, more alien to the founder
of that Jesuit sect which nothing could induce
him to tolerate.
Example of bad writing from Orwell’s essay
What does it mean?

13. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Write “simple, declarative
sentences”
I am not, indeed, sure whether it is not true to
say that the Milton who once seemed not
unlike a seventeenth-century Shelley had not
become, out of an experience ever more
bitter in each year, more alien to the founder
of that Jesuit sect which nothing could induce
him to tolerate.
I am not, indeed, sure whether it is not true to
say that the Milton who once seemed not
unlike a seventeenth-century Shelley had not
become, out of an experience ever more
bitter in each year, more alien to the founder
of that Jesuit sect which nothing could induce
him to tolerate.
Example of bad writing from Orwell’s essay
What does it mean?

14. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
at this point in time now
due to the fact that because
during the period during
has a requirement for needs
have the ability to can
in a timely manner quickly, promptly
in advance of before
in regard to about, concerning, on
in order to to
in the event that if
in the near future shortly, soon
it has been shown that…
no later than June 1 by June 1
pertaining to about
until such time as until
with reference to about
with the exception of except
When possible, use words rather
than phrases
In the event that
If

15. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Simple sentence structure:
Subject, verb, object is best
Active voice
Passive voice
Yoda voice
Plants need water
S V O
We developed a model
S V O
Water is needed by plants
SVO
A model was developed
VO
Water plants need
A model we developed
S VO
S VO

16. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Use strong, meaningful verbs, and
avoid nominalization
This sentence provides an illustration of the problems with nominalizations.
This sentence illustrates problems with nominalizations.
This sentence provides an illustration of the problems with nominalizations.
This sentence illustrates problems with nominalizations.
She made the suggestion that we go out to dinner
We carried out an investigation into the temperature optimum
The collection of samples occurred at the same time each day
Rewrite:
Duke University Graduate School. Scientific Writing Resource. https://cgi.duke.edu/web/sciwriting/index.php
A nominalization is a verb that has been converted into a noun

17. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Duke University Graduate School. Scientific Writing Resource. https://cgi.duke.edu/web/sciwriting/index.php

18. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Duke University Graduate School. Scientific Writing Resource. https://cgi.duke.edu/web/sciwriting/index.php

19. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Use “plain language”
“Please write in a clear, direct, and active style. Write in the active [voice]
and use the first person where necessary. Try to avoid long sentences that
have several embedded clauses.”
British Medical Journal
The potentially superior antiplaque and better surface-active
properties of amine fluoride and stannous fluoride containing
mouth rinses were carefully investigated in a well-designed
double blind, crossover study in 10 healthy volunteers.‑
Rogers, Silvia M. (2014). Mastering Scientific and Medical Writing: A Self-Help Guide. Springer.
Rewrite. Avoid passive voice and unnecessary information

20. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Use “plain language”
“Please write in a clear, direct, and active style. Write in the active [voice]
and use the first person where necessary. Try to avoid long sentences that
have several embedded clauses.”
British Medical Journal
The potentially superior antiplaque and better surface-active
properties of amine fluoride and stannous fluoride containing
mouth rinses were carefully investigated in a well-designed
double blind, crossover study in 10 healthy volunteers.‑
Rogers, Silvia M. (2014). Mastering Scientific and Medical Writing: A Self-Help Guide. Springer.
Rewrite. Avoid passive voice and unnecessary information

21. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Use “plain language”
“Please write in a clear, direct, and active style. Write in the active [voice]
and use the first person where necessary. Try to avoid long sentences that
have several embedded clauses.”
British Medical Journal
The potentially superior antiplaque and better surface-active
properties of amine fluoride and stannous fluoride containing
mouth rinses were carefully investigated in a well-designed
double blind, crossover study in 10 healthy volunteers.‑
We investigated the antiplaque and surface-active properties of
mouth rinses containing amine fluoride and stannous fluoride in
a double blind, crossover study in 10 healthy volunteers.‑
Rogers, Silvia M. (2014). Mastering Scientific and Medical Writing: A Self-Help Guide. Springer.

22. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
At the end of every sentence
ask
Is the point of this sentence completely clear and
unambiguous?
Is the key word that carries the theme at the front
of the sentence?
Is every word in this sentence adding information?
Can I express any phrases in a single word?
Worksheet!

23. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
My own writing: Before polishing
Heme is a tetrapyrrole prosthetic group related to chlorophyll; the iron is
held in the middle of the ring by conjugation to nitrogen. Heme is a
particularly ancient compound that is found in all domains of life and is an
essential cofactor for the cytochromes that carry out redox reactions in the
electron transport chains present in mitochondria and plastids; heme also
is found in peroxidases and catalases. Side branches of the biosynthetic
pathway that leads to heme production also give rise to chlorophyll and
siroheme, an iron-containing prosthetic group found in nitrite reductase
and sulfate reductase. Plants produce and use heme in their plastids but it
can also be used in the mitochondria, cytosol and peroxisomes.

24. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
My own writing: Before polishing
Heme is a tetrapyrrole prosthetic group related to chlorophyll; the iron is
held in the middle of the ring by conjugation to nitrogen. Heme is a
particularly ancient compound that is found in all domains of life and is an
essential cofactor for the cytochromes that carry out redox reactions in the
electron transport chains present in mitochondria and plastids; heme also
is found in peroxidases and catalases. Side branches of the biosynthetic
pathway that leads to heme production also give rise to chlorophyll and
siroheme, an iron-containing prosthetic group found in nitrite reductase
and sulfate reductase. Plants produce and use heme in their plastids but it
can also be used in the mitochondria, cytosol and peroxisomes.
Organelles discussed two places

25. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
My own writing: Before polishing
Heme is a tetrapyrrole prosthetic group related to chlorophyll; the iron is
held in the middle of the ring by conjugation to nitrogen. Heme is a
particularly ancient compound that is found in all domains of life and is an
essential cofactor for the cytochromes that carry out redox reactions in the
electron transport chains present in mitochondria and plastids; heme also
is found in peroxidases and catalases. Side branches of the biosynthetic
pathway that leads to heme production also give rise to chlorophyll and
siroheme, an iron-containing prosthetic group found in nitrite reductase
and sulfate reductase. Plants produce and use heme in their plastids but it
can also be used in the mitochondria, cytosol and peroxisomes.
Chlorophyll mentioned two places

26. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
My own writing: Before polishing
Heme is a tetrapyrrole prosthetic group related to chlorophyll; the iron is
held in the middle of the ring by conjugation to nitrogen. Heme is a
particularly ancient compound that is found in all domains of life and is an
essential cofactor for the cytochromes that carry out redox reactions in the
electron transport chains present in mitochondria and plastids; heme also
is found in peroxidases and catalases. Side branches of the biosynthetic
pathway that leads to heme production also give rise to chlorophyll and
siroheme, an iron-containing prosthetic group found in nitrite reductase
and sulfate reductase. Plants produce and use heme in their plastids but it
can also be used in the mitochondria, cytosol and peroxisomes.
Confusing – chlorophyll doesn’t hold iron, heme does

27. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
My own writing: After polishing
Heme is an iron-containing tetrapyrrole prosthetic group in which the
iron is held in the middle of the ring by conjugation to nitrogen. Side
branches of the biosynthetic pathway that leads to heme production
also give rise to siroheme, an iron-containing prosthetic group found
in nitrite reductase and sulfate reductase, and chlorophyll, in which
the tetrapyrrole group is conjugated to Mn. Heme is a particularly
ancient compound that is found in all domains of life. Plants produce
and use heme in their plastids but it can also be used in the
mitochondria, cytosol and peroxisomes. It is an essential cofactor
for the cytochromes that carry out redox reactions in the
photosynthetic and oxidative electron transport chains and it is
found in peroxidases and catalases.
Structure
Related
structures
& their
functions
Pre-
eukaryotic
origin,
made &
functions
in plastid/
mito

28. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
At the end of very paragraph
ask
What is this paragraph’s unit of argument?
Is this unit of argument clearly stated in the theme
sentence?
Does every subsequent sentence support and
provide evidence for the theme sentence? If
not, then remove the sentence.

29. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
“Does this say exactly what you
want it to say in best way possible?”
OMG we’re
going to be here
all day.....

30. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Just be glad you have don’t have to
rewrite by hand / on a typewriter
Roald Dahl
(Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,
James and the Giant Peach)
Leonard Cohen
(Suzanne, So Long Marianne,
Chelsea Hotel, Hallelujah)

31. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
http://aeon.co/magazine/science/what-can-ants-teach-us-about-agriculture/

32. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
http://read-able.com/

33. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 1: An ethical writer ALWAYS acknowledges the contributions of
others and the source of his/her ideas.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

34. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 1: An ethical writer ALWAYS acknowledges the contributions of
others and the source of his/her ideas.
Guideline 5: Whether we are paraphrasing or summarizing we must always
identify the source of the information.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

35. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 1: An ethical writer ALWAYS acknowledges the contributions of
others and the source of his/her ideas.
Guideline 5: Whether we are paraphrasing or summarizing we must always
identify the source of the information.
Guideline 8: A responsible writer has an ethical responsibility to readers, and to the
author/s from whom s/he is borrowing, to respect others’ ideas and words, to credit
those from whom we borrow, and whenever possible, to use one’s own words
when paraphrasing.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

36. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 1: An ethical writer ALWAYS acknowledges the contributions of
others and the source of his/her ideas.
Guideline 5: Whether we are paraphrasing or summarizing we must always
identify the source of the information.
Guideline 8: A responsible writer has an ethical responsibility to readers, and to the
author/s from whom s/he is borrowing, to respect others’ ideas and words, to credit
those from whom we borrow, and whenever possible, to use one’s own words
when paraphrasing.
Guideline 9: When in doubt as to whether a concept or fact is common
knowledge, provide a citation.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

37. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 1: An ethical writer ALWAYS acknowledges the contributions of
others and the source of his/her ideas.
Guideline 5: Whether we are paraphrasing or summarizing we must always
identify the source of the information.
Guideline 8: A responsible writer has an ethical responsibility to readers, and to the
author/s from whom s/he is borrowing, to respect others’ ideas and words, to credit
those from whom we borrow, and whenever possible, to use one’s own words
when paraphrasing.
Guideline 9: When in doubt as to whether a concept or fact is common
knowledge, provide a citation.
Guideline 12: Because some instances of plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and even
some writing practices that might otherwise be acceptable (e.g., extensive
paraphrasing or quoting of key elements of a book) can constitute copyright
infringement, authors are strongly encouraged to become familiar with basic
elements of copyright law.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

38. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 17: Generally, when describing others’ work, do not rely on a
secondary summary of that work. It is a deceptive practice, reflects poor
scholarly standards, and can lead to a flawed description of the work described.
Always consult the primary literature.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

39. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 17: Generally, when describing others’ work, do not rely on a
secondary summary of that work. It is a deceptive practice, reflects poor
scholarly standards, and can lead to a flawed description of the work described.
Always consult the primary literature.
Guideline 23: Authorship determination should be discussed prior to
commencing a research collaboration and should be based on established
guidelines, such as those of the International Committee of Medical Journal
Editors.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

40. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of writing
Guideline 17: Generally, when describing others’ work, do not rely on a
secondary summary of that work. It is a deceptive practice, reflects poor
scholarly standards, and can lead to a flawed description of the work described.
Always consult the primary literature.
Guideline 23: Authorship determination should be discussed prior to
commencing a research collaboration and should be based on established
guidelines, such as those of the International Committee of Medical Journal
Editors.
Guideline 24: Only those individuals who have made substantive
contributions to a project merit authorship in a paper.
Roig, M. (2014). Avoiding plagiarism, self-plagiarism, and other questionable writing practices: A guide to
ethical writing. Office of Research Integrity.

41. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
http://www.comeon-project.eu/publications/

42. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Read the Instructions for Authors

43. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists

44. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists

45. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Which journal should you send your
paper to?
Talk to your coauthors

46. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Which journal should you send your
paper to?
Look at your
references

47. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Which journal should you send your
paper to?
Factors to consider:
Reputation, impact factor
Time to decision
Cost to publish
Open access options
Editor / editorial board
Visibility (altmetrics)
Homework for the next conference you attend:
•Visit each of the publishers in the exhibition area
•Find out which journals they publish
•Meet the staff (they are likely to be handling your
paper soon)
•(You might even get a pen!)

48. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Reviews by working scientists
Multiple editors involved in pre-review
Rapid turnaround
New category: Rapid Report
Most frequently cited plant journal 2014: 73,318

49. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Peer review (classic)
Authors
submit to
journal
Thanks, but
no thanks
Editor
evaluates.
Suitable?
Maybe
No
Reviewers
evaluate.
Suitable?
No Author
revises
manuscript
Maybe Editor
evaluates.
OK?
Yes
Thanks, but
no thanks
ACCEPT!
Reviewers
evaluate.
OK?
YesMaybe
Not
yet
No
What
the
world
sees

50. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Now / future: Pre-pub peer review,
open review, post-pub peer review
Authors
submit to
journal
Thanks, but
no thanks
Editor
evaluates.
Suitable?
Maybe
No
Reviewers
evaluate.
Suitable?
No Author
revises
manuscript
Maybe
Editor
evaluates.
OK?
Yes
Thanks, but
no thanks
ACCEPT!
Reviewers
evaluate.
OK?
YesMaybe
Not
yet
No
Authors
put
manuscript
on Biorxiv
Open peer
review feedback
Post-pub peer
review feedback
Pre-pub peer
review feedback
What
the
world
sees

51. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Which system works best for the author?
Which system works best for the reviewer?
Which system works best for the public?
What are the pros and cons of:
Pre- versus post- peer review?
Single blind peer review (author named, not reviewers) versus
Double blind peer review (author and reviewer not named) versus
Open peer review (all named)

52. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
F1000Research, PeerJ, EMBO J.
Find a plant paper on F1000Research or PeerJ or EMBO J
Skim the reviewer comments and author responses
Do you think being “open” changes the nature of the reviews?
Find a plant paper on F1000Research or PeerJ or EMBO J
Skim the reviewer comments and author responses
Do you think being “open” changes the nature of the reviews?
Non-anonymous

53. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
has_user_comments[filter]
In search bar include
Non-anonymous

54. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Anonymous

55. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Ethics of figure presentation
Blatt, M. and Martin, C. (2013). Manipulation and Misconduct in the Handling of
Image Data. Plant Physiology. 163: 3-4.
1. Raw image data must be saved and archived intact ….
2. Simple adjustments, applied uniformly, to the entire image are generally acceptable ….
3. Cropping and resizing an image is usually acceptable, but both may be construed as
inappropriate …..
4. Digital filtering of an image is not encouraged because it can easily mask important
information .…
5. Combining images is acceptable only if it is clear to the reader that the images are
from separate sources. It is acceptable to combine the images of two similar gels or two
parts of the same gel in one figure, but only if a visible gap is left between the images or
the images are separated and each surrounded by a box. It is not acceptable to splice two
gel images together so that they appear to be adjacent tracks from a single gel.
6. Selective alteration or processing of one region of an image is not acceptable .…
7. When comparing digital images, it is important that they be acquired under identical
conditions ….
8. Image data should be documented both with representative images as well as with
quantitative statistical analysis of sufficient numbers of experiments ….

56. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
http://ori.hhs.gov/education/products/RIandImages/guidelines/photoshop_videos/default.html

57. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Rossner, M., and Yamada, K.M. (2004). What’s in a picture? The temptation of
image manipulation. J. Cell Biol 166: 11–15.
http://jcb.rupress.org/content/166/1/11.short

58. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
http://ori.hhs.gov/THELAB http://ori.hhs.gov/rcr-casebook-stories-about-researchers-worth-discussing

59. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
http://www.aspb.org/publications/ethics.cfm

60. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists

61. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Resources and References
General writing resources
Strunk, W. Jr. (1999).The Elements of Style. http://www.bartleby.com/141/
Guidelines and lessons for good scientific writing
Cargill, M., and O’Connor, P. (2011). Writing Scientific Research Articles: Strategy and Steps. Wiley.
http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-1444356216.html
Doumont, J., ed. (2010). English Communication for Scientists. Cambridge, MA: NPG Education.
http://www.nature.com/wls/ebooks/english-communication-for-scientists-14053993/contents (Free ebook - very useful)
Duke University Graduate School. Scientific Writing Resource. https://cgi.duke.edu/web/sciwriting/index.php Short, online course
for graduate students with examples and worksheets
Editorial (2010). Scientific writing 101. Nat Struct Mol Biol. 17: 139-139.
http://www.nature.com/nsmb/journal/v17/n2/full/nsmb0210-139.html
European Association of Science Editors. EASE Toolkit for Authors. http://www.ease.org.uk/publications/ease-toolkit-authors
Explorations of Style. Blog about academic writing by Rachel Cayley.
James Cook University. (2015). Academic and Thesis Writing Workshops.
Lichtfouse, E. (2013). Scientific Writing for Impact Factor Journals. Nova Scientific Publishers, Inc. (New York).
Moreira, A., and Haahtela, T. (2011). How to write a scientific paper--and win the game scientists play! Rev. Port. Pneumol. 17:146-
149. doi: 10.1016/j.rppneu.2011.03.007. http://www.elsevier.pt/en/linkresolver/320/how-to-write-scientific-paper-and-win/90020266
Nature Scitable Effective Writing. http://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/effective-writing-13815989
Nature Scitable Scientific Papers. http://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/scientific-papers-13815490
PhD2Published blog
Plaxco, K.W. (2010). The art of writing science. Protein Science 19: 2261 – 2266.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3009394/pdf/pro0019-2261.pdf
Rogers, Silvia M. (2014). Mastering Scientific and Medical Writing: A Self-Help Guide. Springer.
http://www.springer.com/medicine/book/978-3-642-39445-4
https://moodle.swarthmore.edu/pluginfile.php/179173/mod_resource/content/1/Good%20versus%20poor%20scientific%20writing%20from%20
Writing Center University of Wisconsin. (2014) The Writers Handbook: Reverse Outlines.
http://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/ReverseOutlines.html

62. © 2016 American Society of Plant Biologists
Resources and References
Guidance from journals
J Exp Bot: http://www.oxfordjournals.org/our_journals/exbotj/for_authors/
Nature: http://www.nature.com/authors/author_resources/how_write.html
Plant Cell: http://www.plantcell.org/site/misc/ifora.xhtml
Figures preparation and ethical issues
Blatt, M. and Martin, C. (2013). Manipulation and Misconduct in the Handling of Image Data. Plant Physiology. 163: 3-4.
Cromey, D.W. (2010). Avoiding twisted pixels: ethical guidelines for the appropriate use and manipulation of scientific digital images.
Sci. Eng. Ethics 16: 639–667
Rossner, M., and Yamada, K.M. (2004). What’s in a picture? The temptation of image manipulation. J. Cell Biol 166: 11–15
Peer Review Guidelines and Policies, Post-publication peer review
Bastian, H. (2014) A Stronger Post-Publication Culture Is Needed for Better Science. PLoS Med 11(12): e1001772.
doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001772
F1000Research: http://blog.f1000research.com/2014/07/08/what-is-post-publication-peer-review/
F1000: http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fncom.2012.00063/full
Mole. (2007). Rebuffs and rebuttals I: how rejected is rejected? J Cell Sci. 120: 1143-1144.
http://hwmaint.jcs.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/120/7/1143
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