6 STEPS TO WRITING AN ACADEMIC MANUSCRIPT

By breaking down an academic manuscript into chunks the work, those long intensive hours of writing, becomes manageable. Begin writing your academic manuscript by creating an overview for each category and then start filling in the detail, first at a high level and then gradually tunnelling deeper until you have a well considered and supported manuscript worthy of publication.

Step 1. Formulate a hypothesis and introduce the theory.

The best way to go about step 1 of the manuscript is to justify your theory by asking yourself a few pertinent questions: What is the problem, question or theory I am trying to solve? Why is it important? What do I know about this problem already? How is my question different to those which have already been asked? Once you have answered these questions in your own mind affirmatively, state these in the manuscript introduction. State what your study is about, explain how you drew your conclusions and the results or insights you gained.

Step 2. Write a literature review and begin building your source list.

Using the theory you have defined above begin looking at others in the field who have contributed to similar theories and the processes they used to draw conclusions. Make connections between what others have derived, your own hypothesis, and the major themes that tie varying primary sources together. Be sure to note what others have not covered as well as what they have discovered. Explain how your contribution to the literature will be unique. Where the findings of others’ is contradictory to your own theory or the hypothesis of others in the field describe the discrepancies and how they might be resolved. Where it is not possible to reconcile different theories explain why and how they might still add value to your theory.

Step 3. Outline your methods.

Describe the data and types of research you will be using to support your theory. Include in this part of the manuscript the independent variables used to measure information and justification for why these variables in particular. Explain the control processes in play to ensure the integrity of the data. Again justify the methods. Then go on to explain which methods of analysis you have chosen and why.

Step 4. Explain the integrity of the manuscript.

Showing that your manuscript has integrity is integral to gaining acceptance of the paper or of being published. Show that you have checked measures for internal consistency. Identify the methods of data reduction and confirmation that data is true. Explain what the results of the data mean in terms of the hypothesis and include how data proved the manuscript hypotheses to be right or wrong or both.

Step 5. Write a compelling conclusion

Reiterate what you have already stated about your hypothesis and results in a summary paragraph. Describe how you have solved your original problem, questions and theories. Explain the limitations that were specific to your theory and how these impacted the research. Articulate how your research was useful in understanding the subject and offering insights in the field. Follow this with recommendations for future research.

Step 6.

Step 6 of the manuscript is important if you hope to submit the manuscript to a professional journal. Writing for submission to a journal can be extremely stressful when you tally rejection rates, waiting periods and laborious processes.  Fortunately this is greatly outweighed by the rewards of discovery and the satisfaction of seeing your manuscript in print. The best advice on the road to publication is to consult colleagues and work with mentors who have been through the process themselves. They will offer guidance and support and most importantly while writing your manuscript – empathy.