How to write for a scholarly journal
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A workshop hosted by the South African Journal of Science aimed at postgraduate students and early career researchers with little or no experience in writing and publishing journal articles. A recording of the workshop is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bADqylF8qqA&t=618s
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How to write for a scholarly journal
- 1. 8 June 2022 9:00 – 15:00 @SAJS_Official @ASSAf_Official PROGRAMME 9:00 – 9:05 Welcome 9:05 – 10:35 How to find inspiration in a blank page – Chrissie Boughey 10:40 – 11:40 How to write a journal article – Leslie Swartz 11:45 – 12:30 How to write for a non-specialist audience – Emese Bordy 12:30 – 13:15 How to avoid plagiarism – Nadia Grobler 13:45 – 14:30 How to spot a predatory journal – Susan Veldsman 14:30 – 15:00 Q&A How to write for a scholarly journal
- 2. 8 June 2022 9:00 – 15:00 Emese Bordy Associate Professor in Geology, University of Cape Town SAJS Outstanding Article Awardee 2021 Nadia Grobler Online Publishing Systems Administrator: SAJS Chrissie Boughey Emeritus Professor, Centre for Postgraduate Studies, Rhodes University Associate Editor: SAJS Leslie Swartz Professor of Psychology, Stellenbosch University Editor-in-Chief: SAJS Susan Veldsman Director: Scholarly Publishing, ASSAf Co-Chair, IAP report on Combatting Predatory Journals and Conferences @SAJS_Official @ASSAf_Official How to write for a scholarly journal Meet the presenters
- 3. 8 June 2022 How to write for a scholarly journal @SAJS_Official @ASSAf_Official #AcademicWriting Chrissie Boughey Emeritus Professor Rhodes University Writing: What the research tells us
- 4. A lot of research on writing • Focuses on the products of writing (i.e written texts) • It analyses texts • It tells us what the products should look like • So, it gives us descriptions of what, for example, journal articles look like
- 5. The problem is . . . • That this kind of research doesn’t tell us about how to produce those perfect texts • It doesn’t tell us how to address the actual writing of a text
- 6. The other side of writing research • Looks at writers as they write • Identifies what writers do as they are writing
- 7. This kind of research on writing • Began in the 1970s • Has increasingly become more sophisticated in the methods it uses • Has looked at writers writing • all sorts of different kinds of texts (academic text, fiction, reports …) • in a wide range of languages (including writers using non alphabetic writing systems)
- 8. Over time • It became possible to identify what ‘successful’ writers did and to compare what they did with what ‘unsuccessful’ writers did • This gave allowed us to identify successful writing strategies • The strategies were then developed into an ‘approach’ to teaching writing
- 9. So, what did the successful writers do? • They wrote for themselves first to find out what they wanted to say • They used informal writing strategies (freewriting, journaling) • They did not worry about the formalities of writing (spelling, grammar, punctuation) at this stage • They wrote in any language • They used writing as a tool for learning
- 10. In academic writing • Finding out what you want to say means identifying your knowledge claims • A knowledge claim is a statement about what you believe to be true • Importantly, a knowledge claim is always supported by evidence • So, finding out what you want to say also means identifying the evidence • In the early parts of an article, the evidence will come from the literature • In the latter parts it will come from the data
- 11. Over time • They moved into writing for a prospective reader (the reader of a journal, the examiner of a thesis…) • As they wrote, they imagined the reactions of this intended reader to what they were saying (‘If I say this, they’ll say that, so I can’t say this’) • Writing thus became a process of drafting and redrafting a text in response to this imaginary conversation
- 12. If they got stuck • They moved back into the less formal ‘generative’ writing they had used to find out what they wanted to say in the first place
- 13. Even at the drafting stage • They did not pay a great deal of attention to the form of the writing
- 14. Finally, • When they thought they had satisfied or ‘silenced’ their reader they moved into editing their text • Editing involved a process of polishing the text to ensure it was technically perfect and stylistically appropriate
- 15. The strategies used by successful writers • Allow us to identify three stages in a writing process
- 16. A writing process Generative Writing Drafting Editing Focus on identifying ideas ‘Informal’ writing No concern for reader Moves into concern for reader Imaginary conversation Drafting and redrafting Focus on making meanings stand up to critique Focus on form – on saying things better at a linguistic level Focus on technical aspects of writing
- 17. Importantly • Movement between the three stages was not linear • Writers began with generative writing • Moved into drafting but • If they got stuck went back to generative writing
- 18. Many writers • Ignore the generative writing (i.e. using writing as a tool to find out what they want to say) • Move straight into writing for an audience (drafting) • Even worse, they combine writing for an audience with editing
- 19. Some generative writing strategies • Freewriting • Keeping a reading journal
- 20. Freewriting • Identify a question to answer (‘What’s the relationship of x to y?’ ‘What does xxx really mean?) • Set a time limit (3,5,7 minutes) • Write without stopping for the entire time • Don’t worry about spelling, grammar, punctuation • Write in any language • When the time is up, stop! • Read what came out
- 21. A reading journal • Typical strategies for reading include highlighting, underlining and making notes • These focus on identifying important points, on understanding and remembering • Academic writing requires us to make knowledge claims (statements about what we believe are true) and to support them with evidence • This is particularly true of the literature review section • How does highlighting, underlining or making notes allow you to identify those knowledge claims?
- 22. A reading journal • Open a folder on your computer or buy a notebook • Write a complete reference for everything you read at the top of a new file or new page • Sit somewhere comfortable • Read without taking notes, highlighting or underlining • Focus on what the author is saying, what claims they are making and what the evidence is for those claims • When you have finished reading, write an entry in your journal
- 23. Dear Diary . . . • How does this text agree or disagree with other texts I have read? • How does it relate to my article/study? • What’s interesting about it? • What do I agree with/disagree with?
- 24. Drafting: your audience • Other sessions in this workshop will help you to know your audience better • Ask questions like • What do they know (so what don’t I need to tell them)? • What don’t they know (so what do I need to tell them)? • What objections can they make? • How does this evidence support the claim I am making? What’s missing? • Your aim is to ‘silence’ your reader
- 25. Editing • Sit alone in a closed room and read your text aloud to yourself • You will often hear mistakes you can’t see
- 26. Remember • An article is about presenting new knowledge to your audience • What are your knowledge claims? • How well supported are those claims with evidence?
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- 108. Writing journey 1 How to write for a non-specialist audience Emese M Bordy 8 June 2022 How to write for a scholarly journal @SAJS_Official @ASSAf_Official #AcademicWriting
- 109. Writing journey 2 Good writing is a JOURNEY n ot a d e s t i n a t i o n
- 110. Writing journey 3 I am a geologist… ... and, so now I have more rock pictures than family pictures…
- 111. Writing journey 4 My aim Your ROADMAP To write well for a non-specialist audience
- 112. Writing journey 5 Topics What? Is good writing Who? Is the audience Why? Is it important How? Is it achieved So what? Is the implication
- 113. Writing journey 6 What is good writing in Science? 1. Lucid thought = lucid writing 2. Concise, informative and coherent 3. Audience-centred yet impactful 4. A creative process, not a singular action
- 114. Writing journey 7 Who are our non-specialist readers? 1. Decision makers in hiring, promotion, awards or funding committees 2. Policy makers in science-policy advisory bodies 3. Collaborators in trans- and interdisciplinary teams for robust knowledge synthesis 4. Family, friends and the general public – as outreach activity is a must for all engaged scholars 5. Fellow scientists across disciplines = the readers of the most read, most trusted, brand-name but broad scope science journals
- 115. Writing journey 8 1. Jargon free + concise yet informative, effective + accessible HUGE tension: being light on terminology = verbose 2. Meticulously crafted using the fewest words for highest impact and clarity = time consuming Why is this type of writing different? “If I had more time I would write a shorter letter.” Mark Twain
- 116. Writing journey 9 1. Polish your everyday written communication: impactful emails, WhatsApp messages, Instagram caption, slash the word-count in short assignments How can you practice this type of writing?
- 117. Writing journey 10 2. Read a lot, critically How can you practice this type of writing?
- 118. Writing journey 11 3. Keep asking: Could I put it more shortly ? More clearly-structured ? How can you practice this type of writing? “The draft needs fixing, but first it needs writing” Don Murray Vigorous writing is concise. A sentence should contain no unnecessary words, a paragraph no unnecessary sentences, for the same reason that a drawing should have no unnecessary lines and a machine no unnecessary parts.“ William Strunk Jr., Elements of Style BE rigorous to be vigorous
- 119. Writing journey 12 4. Form peer-feedback teams to seek critical comments: it takes ONLY two to tango…(and only one to eat a mango!) How can you practice this type of writing?
- 120. Writing journey 13 5. Remind yourself of the fundamentals - Examine style guides or editorials of respected journals’ before writing and esp. during revising - Start your own collection of tips - E.g., How can you practice this type of writing? https://sites.duke.edu/scientificwriting/ https://www.annaclemens.com/ http://railsback.org/writing1.html http://railsback.org/writing2.html https://www.criticalthinking.org//
- 121. Writing journey 14 1. Polish your communication skills every turn 2. Read a lot, critically 3. Edit, edit, edit 4. Team-up 5. Remember the fundamentals of writing well Inshort:
- 122. Writing journey 15 1. Communicating clearly = The paper of your roadmap to success 2. Improves credibility and performance, even among specialists 3. Research visibility for collaboration networks, feedback loops impact Whyistheskillofwritingwellimportant? Summary
- 123. Writing journey 16 I hope you are more ready for Your writing journey Emese M Bordy Emese.Bordy@uct.ac.za Safe travels!
- 124. How to avoid plagiarism Nadia Grobler 8 June 2022 How to write for a scholarly journal @SAJS_Official @ASSAf_Official #AcademicWriting
- 125. What is plagiarism? Definition of plagiarism (from the University of Oxford): “Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own, with or without their consent, by incorporating it into your work without full acknowledgement. All published and unpublished material, whether in manuscript, printed or electronic form, is covered under this definition.”
- 126. • Journals screen manuscripts for potential plagiarism Ethical publishing – journals and plagiarism • Plagiarism policy • In severe cases, consequences could be: • Rejection of submitted paper • Retraction of published paper • Informing the authors’ institution • Imposing sanctions (banning the author)
- 127. Types of plagiarism •Global plagiarism: Plagiarising an entire text •Verbatim plagiarism: Directly copying someone’s words, without using quotation marks or citing the source. •Paraphrasing plagiarism: Rephrasing someone else’s ideas and presenting them as your own. •Patchwork plagiarism: Copying phrases, passages, and ideas from different sources and compiling them into a new text. •Self-plagiarism: Recycling previous work that you’ve already submitted or published Source: https://www.scribbr.com/category/plagiarism/#types
- 128. How to avoid plagiarism in 6 steps…. Adapted from: 1. Note-taking and keeping track of your sources 2. Outline your first draft (original ideas) 3. Identify ideas and details from your source notes (supporting your ideas) 4. Decide which details to paraphrase or quote from your sources 5. Credit the original author (cite and reference) 6. Use similarity detection software
- 129. ● Note-taking system in place while conducting research and in your pre-writing process 1. Note-taking and keeping track of your sources Source: https://cdn.scribbr.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Plagiarism-lecture-slides.pptx ● Keep a list of all the sources you consult, even if you’re not yet sure you’re going to use them ● Sources include anything from research papers and websites to multimedia such as videos, images. ● Capture the following information: ● Author/Institution/Publisher ● Source title ● Publication date ● Page numbers of specific quotes or passages ● URL or DOI for online sources ● Access date for online sources
- 130. • Original thesis statement and main ideas • Ensure that you have not substituted others’ ideas or words for your own 2.Outline your first draft (original ideas) Source: https://writingcommons.org/section/information-literacy/information-literacy-perspectives- practices/information-has-value/plagiarism/ 3. Identify ideas and details from your source notes • Purposefully selected details from credible, relevant sources to support your thesis statement and main ideas
- 131. 4. Decide which details to paraphrase or quote from your sources Paraphrase Quote Description When to use it? Tips Sources: https://cdn.scribbr.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Plagiarism-lecture-slides.pptx https://indwes.libguides.com/c.php?g=71133p=458617 • Putting another person's ideas in your own words • Reader needs to understand or be exposed to the argument of another author in order to understand your argument • Allows you to clarify a message, make it more relevant to your audience , or give it greater impact • Not sufficient to replace or switch a few words around • Recap the essential details without looking at the source so that the words will be your own • Online paraphrasing tools to play around with • Copying the authors’ exact words • Use quotation marks (‘’) • Meaning of a thought/idea will get lost through paraphrasing • Authors’ exact words make strong impact • Language is too technical to easily paraphrase • To give textual evidence • To analyse language • Only quote when necessary • Immediately add quotation marks when you copy directly from a source
- 132. In-text citations: • Briefly identify the source within the text itself (e.g. Jones5 reported that…) • Include it directly after quoted/paraphrased information (not at the end of each paragraph) • Lead quoted/paraphrased content with signal phrases or informative sentences • (e.g. according to Jones5 OR Jones5 reported that) 5. Credit the original author (in-text citation + reference) Source: https://cdn.scribbr.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Plagiarism-lecture-slides.pptx •A reference list gives the full information of all cited sources (quoted or paraphrased) at the end of a paper •Follow a consistent reference style (e.g. APA, MLA, Vancouver) • Journals have their own preferred referencing style (see author guidelines) •Reference management software like EndNote, Word Referencing tool
- 133. 3. Credit the original author (citation + reference) Examples | Paraphrasing | Citation + Reference In text citation Reference SAJS example Another example However, a similar comparative study conducted in South Africa by Chitaka et al.39 found that paper straws had lower climate change emissions than plastic. 39. Chitaka TY, Russo V, Von Blottnitz H. In pursuit of environmentally friendly straws : A comparative life cycle assessment of five straw material options in South Africa. Int J Life Cycle Assess. 2020;25:1818–1832. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11367-020- 01786-w Recent research has shown that plagiarism is an increasingly widespread issue (Smith Thomas, 2018, pp. 34–36). Smith, T. H., Thomas, L. (2018). New challenges in higher education. Free Press.
- 134. 3. Credit the original author (citation + reference) Examples | Quote | Citation + Reference In text citation Reference Source: https://libguides.newcastle.edu.au/paraphrasing-summarising/example-of-quoting Short quote is a sentence, phrase, or part of a sentence from the text, which is reproduced exactly. [40 words] South Africa’s National Biodiversity Assessment of 2018 considers the coast as including all ‘…terrestrial and marine ecosystem types with strong coastal affinities...’18. 18.Harris LR, Sink KJ, Skowno AL, Van Niekerk L, editors. South African National Biodiversity Assessment 2018: Technical report. Volume 5: Coast. Pretoria: South African National Biodiversity Institute; 2019. http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12143/6374 Block quote is a longer quote indented and formatted differently from your own text to identify it is text taken from an original source. [40 words] Rent-seeking is: The process whereby organisations or individuals expend resources to obtain actions from state institutions that allow these actors to earn ‘rents’ in excess of what they would earn in the hypothetical scenario of a competitive market.7 7. Muller SM. Academics as rent seekers: Distorted incentives in higher education, with reference to the South African case. Int J Educ Develop. 2017;52:58–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijedudev.2016.1 1.004
- 135. When not to cite? •Writing about your own experiences, observations, thoughts or conclusions about a subject •Writing up your own results obtained through lab or field experiments •Using your own media (photographs, video, audio, etc.) •Common knowledge (facts that everyone knows/accepts) •Common knowledge in a specific field (if you are writing for a broader audience you might need to cite) When in doubt – cite! Sources: https://guides.libraries.uc.edu/integrity/cite https://www.editage.com/all-about-publication/plagiarism/how-can-students-avoid-plagiarism.html
- 136. •Compares your document to a database of sources •Identifies similarity between your manuscript and that of other sources •Similarity should be assessed in context •Free online similarity detection software(*data protection) •Paid products (iThenticate, Turnitin) •Institutional subscription 6. Use of similarity detection software Source: https://libguides.newcastle.edu.au/paraphrasing-summarising/example-of-quoting
- 137. Example
- 138. Plagiarism vs Copyright? Source: https://scholarworks.duke.edu/copyright-advice/copyright-faq/copyright-and-plagiarism/ Plagiarism: Copyright infringement: Brief description Differences How to prevent it Presenting someone else’s work or ideas as your own. Unfair or unregulated use of someone’s property and the violation of their rights over it Ethical issue - you can plagiarise someone else’s work regardless of the copyright status Legal issue - depends on whether the work is protected by copyright as well as the specifics thereof Prevented through proper citation to the original source of the material. • Copying too much of a protected work, or copying for an unauthorised purpose, simply acknowledging the original source is not sufficient • Prevented by obtaining permission from the copyright holder beforehand Tip: Ask for permission when using quotations, illustrations, tables and other materials taken from previously published works that are not in the public domain
- 139. Test your knowledge Do you need to cite your source even if you paraphrased? YES NO YES
- 140. Test your knowledge When is it appropriate to quote? 1.If you want to make the reader aware of supporting arguments 2.If the language is too technical to easily paraphrase 3.Meaning of a thought/idea will get lost if otherwise stated 4.Options 2 3 5.All of the above 4
- 141. Test your knowledge What steps can help you to avoid plagiarism? 1. Keep track of your sources 2. Paraphrase or quote from your sources 3. Credit the original author 4. Use similarity detection software 5. All of the above All of the above
- 142. Closing remarks • Allow enough time for writing and revision • Increase your vocabulary by reading on a variety of topics • Be original – bulk of the work should be your own and not previously published • Only use quotes when necessary • If you had to look it up, you should probably cite it • Make use of the resources available to you (online plagiarism resources, similarity detection software, citation software, reference managers)
- 143. Thank you!!
- 144. Predatory publishing: practices to be aware of 8 June 2022 Susan Veldsman SAJS Webinar
- 145. SA Policy on Research Output 2 http://www.dhet.gov.za/Policy%20and%20Development%20Support/Research %20Outputs%20policy%20gazette%202015.pdf • To increase the research output in SA • To ensure quality research output
- 146. The DHET Funding Framework • The DHET recognises all journals listed in the – Clarivate Web of Science (Core collection) – ProQuest International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS). The IBSS was added in 2003 to ensure better coverage of the social sciences and humanities – SA journals for inclusion or exclusion for subsidy purposes. – Directory of Open Access Journals – SciELO SA
- 147. Total HE research publication output (subsidy units rounded off): 1993-2019
- 148. Increase in number of papers published by SA authors in predatory journals (2005 – 2014) 9 9 17 30 59 169 384 699 692 850 14 27 27 74 70 132 227 233 139 72 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Predatory - strong evidence Predatory - weak evidence
- 149. Defining “questionable” There are at least three publication practices which we believe should be regarded as questionable (if not unethical): • Unacceptable levels of publication intensity – by the editor or a member of the editorial board (in their journal) – by an individual in the journal (for example publication of excessively large number of papers (more than 2 (?) in the same issue – “Publication cartels” where two or more individuals (some times also members of the editorial board) co-author repeatedly in the same journal
- 150. The perverse consequence of the “Publish or perish” imperative The enormous pressure to publish and publish fast — preferably in the very best journals — influences both authors and editors. As long as authors are (mostly) rewarded for publishing many articles and editors are (mostly) rewarded for publishing them rapidly, new ways of gaming the traditional publication models will be invented more quickly than new control measures can be put in place. ASSAf Report: twelve year of scholarly publishing is SA, 2018
- 151. 8
- 152. 9 “Comatting predatory academic journals and conferences Study objectives ❑ Define predatory and unethical practices in academic journals and conferences ❑ Gauge their prevalence and impact ❑ Understand the primary drivers or root causes ❑ Examine efforts to-date to combat predatory journals and conferences around the world ❑ Provide concrete recommendations for a GLOBAL STRATEGY to address the problem, that engages all key stakeholders research community and academies libraries and indexing services publishers public and private sector funders of research universities and research administrators policymakers
- 153. 10 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Literature review
- 154. 11 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Landmark survey of researchers
- 155. 12 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Survey headlines ❏ Researchers at ALL career stages need to be on their guard ❏ Researchers in low and middle income countries are more vulnerable ❏ Some disciplines are more vulnerable than others - researchers in arts and humanities with predatory journals - researchers in transdisciplinary engineering sciences with predatory conferences ❏ At least 14% of respondents admit they have used a predatory journal or conference ❏ This equates to over 1.2 million researchers of the 8.8m around the world who could have used predatory outlets, with billions of dollars of research costs (people, materials, time) wasted as a result. This requires urgent attention.
- 156. 13 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences
- 157. 14 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Why it is important to address these practices
- 158. “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Some personal accounts
- 159. 16 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Examples of resources already available
- 160. 17 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Common features of “predatory” journals and conferences ❑ They solicit articles from researchers through practices that exploit the pressure on researchers to publish and present their work. ❑ Features include, but are not limited to: - rapid pay-to-publish/present models without rigorous (or indeed any) peer review - fake editorial or conference boards falsely listing respected scientists - fraudulent impact factors or metrics - journal and conference titles that are deceptively similar to legitimate ones - aggressive spam invitations to solicit articles and abstracts, including outside of a researcher’s own expertise ❑ These genuinely fraudulent practices continue to evolve and are becoming more difficult to distinguish between low quality, unethical and questionable publishing and conferencing practices.
- 161. Seeking profit over contribution to scholarship 18
- 162. Misrepresentation of abstracting, indexing and metrics 19
- 163. Lack of transparency in governance, editorial and publication practices 20
- 164. A spectrum of predatory publishing practices When does a journal become deceptive? • When it is lying about its true purpose or misleading authors or readers about the journal status, costs involved, or services provided – Non-existent or improper peer review and misrepresenting the process by which its articles are selected. – Mimicry of other journals or websites. – No or fake editorial board – Alternative of fake Impact Factor – Lies about being indexed or members of publishing organisations – Hides the cost for publishing – Potentially illegal operations 21
- 165. A spectrum of predatory publishing practices When should a journal be considered low quality? – The more markers checked, the lower the quality. • Typical markers: • Low quality peer review • Breaches of good editorial practice • Services to authors and academia are lacking or poor • Use of aggressive and indiscriminate solicitation practices • Unclear about publishing charges • Lack of satisfactory archiving • Inactive editorial board 22
- 166. 23 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Drivers or root causes • The monetisation and commercialisation of the research sector, including an academic publishing system whose proprietary and commercial interests may lead to conflict with research integrity, with the author-pays model being especially prone to abuse. • Quantity-over-quality research evaluation systems, together with the institutional drivers and incentives that shape the behaviour of individual academics. • The lack of transparency (whether fully open, anonymised or hybrid) in the peer-review process, exacerbated by poor training, capacity and recognition of peer reviewers.
- 167. 24 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences RECOMMENDATIONS FOR RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS WHAT WILL YOU DO?
- 168. 25 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Universities, academies, wider academic leadership and researchers To act in concert regarding messaging around predatory practices that diminish and damage academic life, by (i) awareness raising of the dangers of predatory journals and conferences amongst their communities through training and mentoring services; (ii) championing and setting standards for research integrity and best practice; (iii) recognising peer-review as a highly valued responsibility; and (iv) recovering some ownership of the publishing process and strengthening its function as a vital scientific service to the scholarly community
- 169. 26 “Combatting predatory academic journals and conferences Study outputs