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Self-Paced Scientific Writing Training Materials

This series of 14 lessons and exercises is provided by Jessica Moore exclusively for Vanderbilt University.

Introduction

  • Papers vs. Proposals

    A paper's results are known and proposal's results aren't, so the two documents should set up their arguments differently

    Lesson 1
    ​    Exercise 1

Module 1

  • Sections of Papers and Proposals

    Lesson 2—Displaying data & Exercise 2
    Organize your data to set up a story and design your figures so they're easy to interpret

    Lesson 3—Linking experiments & Exercise 3
    Results and research plan sections
    Relate each result or experiment to the overall story

    Lesson 4—Explaining rationale & Exercise 4
    Introductions and specific aims
    Get editors and reviewers excited! Exercise 4

    Lesson 5—Putting results in context & Exercise 5
    Discussions
    Make sense of results and address experts’ concerns

    Lesson 6—summarizing & Exercise 6
    Abstracts and specific aims

Module 2

  • The Writing Process

    Lesson 7—Getting started & Exercise 7
    Know your document's message before you start writing, and plan each section around it

    Lesson 8—Drafting and developing & Exercise 8
    Don’t worry too much, but plan ahead

Module 3

  • Revision Techniques

    Lesson 9—Organization within a section & Exercise 9
    Make strings of sentences into unified paragraphs that progress logically

    Lesson 10—organization within paragraphs & Exercise 10
    Indicate where your paragraphs are going

    Lesson 11—emphasis & Exercise 11
    Place key ideas strategically

    Lesson 12—structure for flow & Exercise 12
    Use old information as context for new information

    Lesson 13—transitions & Exercise 13
    Indicate the relationship of a sentence to the previous one

    Lesson 14—clear sentences & Exercise 14
    Say what you mean, use your verbs, and get rid of fluff