Category Archives: journal article

peer reviewing your first paper

Patter now has over 800 posts. It’s pretty hard to find things on here, even when you know what you’re looking for. Some of the elderly posts are, I hope, still useful. I’ve decided to start an occasional ‘best of’ … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, feedback, journal article, peer review, refereeing, reviewing, reviews | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

writing a journal article – how many references?

I’ve been asked about how many references go in the literature section of a journal article. A supervisor had offered a view – one reference per sentence is best, perhaps two. But, the person asking me said, they had seen papers … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, citation, citations, journal article, literature review | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

PhD by publication

I’ve been asked a few times recently about the text that accompanies published papers for the PhD by publication. So who am I to refuse? This is a slide show that I use to raise some key questions that people … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, examiner, journal article, journal publication, PhD by publication, viva | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

revise and resubmit

Yep. Those dreaded words when you get the email back from the journal. R and R. Anything but Rest and Relaxation. Groan. In essence, the message says We have considered your paper and we have decided that – well it’s … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, journal article, reviewer speak, revise and resubmit, revision | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

five clues – choosing the right journal

Journal editors often report that the major reason for desk rejecting papers – that is they send the papers back to the author rather than send them out to reviewers – is that the paper doesn’t fit their journal. The … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, choosing the right journal, journal, journal article, journal publication, publishing | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

writing for publication – some beginning strategies​ …

This week – in fact, as this post publishes – I’m running a workshop on academic writing. I do run these kinds of workshops relatively often. And I do really like an opportunity to have a bit of fun. Always. … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, journal, journal article, journal publication, writing workshop | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

writing a bio-note

Most of us have to produce bio-notes. The bio-note is a little verbal selfie that goes with a book chapter, a journal article, or sometimes a conference presentation. Book authors also have to provide brief bio-notes which might go in … Continue reading

Posted in academic selfie, academic writing, bio-note, chapter, journal article, paratext, reader | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

explain your terms – writing a journal article

That picky reviewer. They’ve questioned your words. Asked you to clarify. Suggested that you have things wrong. What’s that about? Reviewers often take issue with the ways in which writers use particular terminology. They may politely suggest that some clarification … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, definition, journal article, sentence skeleton, terms, theory | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

writing from a research project – find the point

It’s often tricky to work out how to turn a piece of finished research into a journal article. Or two. Or even three. This trickiness is in part because it’s hard to get your head out of the whole that … Continue reading

Posted in academic writing, journal article, research project, the point | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

‘internationalising’ a journal article

Thankyou for your paper… blah blah blah revisions… blah blah… You need to make sure that your paper speaks to an international audience. It’s not uncommon to get this kind of reviewer feedback on a journal article, particularly in the … Continue reading

Posted in conclusion, internationalising, introduction, journal article, literature review, now what, so what | Tagged , , | 4 Comments