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Scientific Writing for Beginners (8): Revise, Revise, Revise
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Follow these steps to refine your figures:
• Design each figure by highlighting the features you want to share with your readers;
• Keep only what’s necessary (panels, shadings, contours, labels, and writings);
• Arrange all the figures in a logic way.
Test: You should be able to give a 15-min talk using these figures alone.
The four goals of an illustration are precise, clear, fluid and familiar.
Being Precise:
A common mistake is a figure is much more complex than the text.
“Everything should be as simple as it can be, yet no simpler.” --Albert Einstein
Being Clear:
A good figure has a well-written caption, which begins with a title phrase.
Test: A well-written caption should provide enough information to stand alone.
Being Fluid and familiar:
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Match the information in the text with that in the illustration;
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Use familiar units;
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Use consistent layout.
You may read something like this in a paper: “Figure 5 clearly shows (a brief statement).” And you look at the figure, and wonder what the heck the authors are referring to… Yes, this happens, but make sure it does not happen to your next paper J
Do not assume the readers can see through your eyes; describe what you want others to see in words, sentences, and paragraphs if needed.
Before you submit the manuscript, you should revise it many times.
You may feel bored. You may feel you are wasting time. However, revising is the key to strong scientific writing.
Follow these steps to refine your manuscript:
• You need to obtain some distance from the current version.
(Go for a long walk, go have a drink…)
• You have to become a good reader, if you want to become a successful reviser.
• You should solicit criticism of your writing.
As for how to revise the manuscript AFTER you have seen reviewers’ comments, it is a different matter. I hope to discuss this in future.
References: The craft of scientific writing by Michael Alley (1987, 1996)
Zuojun: This concludes the series. I will write about the English language itself next. Stay tuned.
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