New and improved: How to write a research article—free tutorial

Author: Scott Epstein

Like designing a study or an experiment, writing a research article has a protocol—a formula—that, once you know it, you can easily follow. This formula helps both Editors and readers know where to find the information in your article quickly and efficiently, and following it will help you publish your work more quickly.

To help early career researchers (and others new to the journal publication process), we’ve developed a free, self-led tutorial—complete with a quiz at the end to help you test what you’ve learned. This tutorial will show you how to structure your manuscript, and how to set it up in a way that will help maximize your chances of getting it accepted at the journal of your choice.

Some of the things you’ll learn about in this tutorial:

• How to use the IMRaD structure (Introduction, Materials and methods, Results, Discussion)
• Titles: How to write the best title for your article
• Tips and advice for handling images, figures, and tables
• And more. 

And remember, if you’re interested in more help, you can learn more about the Nature Masterclasses offerings here. And if you’re interested in more advanced editing help with your manuscript, visit our colleagues at American Journal Experts. They offer a full range of scientific and English language editing services, plus other aid to help you get your work published faster. 

We’re rolling out a few more of these updated tutorials over the next week or so—including two on “Writing in English” and “How to submit a journal article manuscript.” So watch this space.