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Writing Resources: Home

This guide is a support tool for authors. Here you will find information on the basics of academic writing, as well as techniques and strategies that can inform the basis of your writing process.

About the Writing Resources Guide

This guide offers a collection of resources and tools to support the development of writing skills. It covers various topics, from academic and scientific writing fundamentals, to organization strategies, reference management tools, peer support and review opportunities, and guidance on promoting your work after publication.

Foundations of Academic/Scientific Writing

The Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education, developed by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), outlines six frames that help learners understand the various ways and reasons information is created, used, interpreted, and shared. The six frames are below and not in any particular order:

  • Authority is Constructed and Contextual

    • In writing, understanding that authority varies by discipline and context helps writers choose and justify sources.

  • Information Creation as a Process

    • Writers consider the purpose, format, and audience of the sources they use.

  • Information Has Value

    • Writers acknowledge intellectual contributions of both their peers and themselves.

  • Research as Inquiry

    • Reinforces that strong writing begins with curiosity and evolves through exploration and revision.

  • Scholarship as Conversation

    • Encourages writers to situate their arguments within broader scholarly conversations. 

  • Searching as Strategic Exploration

    • Helps writers find, evaluate, and synthesize information that supports their research question.

Read about the Framework for Information Literacy.

 

Structure of Scientific Manuscript

 

There are several ways to structure a manuscript. The IMRAD format, which is widely adopted by many journals, is recommended. 

IMRAD responds to the following questions:​

  • Introduction: What did you/others do? Why did you do it?​

  • Methods: How did you do it?​

  • Results: What did you find?​

AND

  • Discussion: What does it all mean?​​

The Conclusion, Acknowledgements, References, and Supporting Materials follow this.​

Most journals also use a structured abstract with similar headings, though the requirements vary by study type and journal. More at https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/policy/structured_abstracts.html

 

Steps for Developing a Manuscript 

 

Along with IMRAD, here is an approach with steps to consider as you prepare your manuscript. The order of steps may vary depending on your workflow. The steps are as follows:

  1. Prepare the figures and tables

  2. Write the Methods

  3. Write up the Results

  4. Write the Discussion. Finalize the Results and Discussion before writing the introduction. This is because, if the discussion is insufficient, how can you objectively demonstrate the scientific significance of your work in the introduction?​

  5. Write a clear Conclusion

  6. Write a compelling Introduction

  7. Write the Abstract

  8. Compose a concise and descriptive Title

  9. Select Keywords for indexing

  10. Write the Acknowledgements

  11. Write up the References

Source: https://www.elsevier.com/connect/11-steps-to-structuring-a-science-paper-editors-will-take-seriously

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