The document provides guidance on writing and publishing scientific commentaries, emphasizing the importance of clarity, timeliness, and relevance. It outlines the characteristics of effective commentaries, including their focus on single issues, brevity, and constructive approaches, alongside a detailed process for pitching to journals. Additionally, it suggests specific elements to include, such as informative titles, succinct stand-firsts, and a structured main body that frames the issue and proposes concrete solutions.

2. Pitching, writing and publishing
scientific commentaries
Ninad Bondre
Senior Science Editor and Advisor
International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP)
Owen Gaffney
Director, International Media and Strategy
Stockholm Resilience Centre
Communications Consultant, Future Earth

3. A portfolio approach to research
communication
• Academic papers
• Blogs
• Press releases/stories/interviews
• Social/audio-visual media
• Commentaries and op-eds
• Policy briefs
• Discussions and meetings

4. Front-half
Back-half

5. Possible, high-quality outlets
• Nature (World View/Comment)
• Science (Policy Forum)
• Nature Geoscience
• Nature Climate Change
• Nature Plants
• Nature Energy (New!)
• The Lancet

6. The perfect commentary
• Expresses clear views/opinions/recommendations
• Timed to inform an important ongoing activity or a
forthcoming event
• Aims to stimulate thought and action; shape the
policy agenda

7. Ideal commentaries are
• Timely and relevant
• Novel
• Brief and to the point (500-1500 words)
• Focused on single issues & include examples
• Single authored or with a limited number of co-
authors
• Constructive even when critical

8. Agenda-setting
Provocative
Action
Road-map
Solution
Arguments
Contemporary
Personal voice
Who
What
To whom
When
How
Impact

9. Nature commentary guidelines
Comment pieces are generally agenda-setting, authoritative, informed and
often provocative expert pieces calling for action on topical issues pertaining
to scientific research and its political, ethical and social ramifications. They
road-map a proposed solution in detail; they do not simply snapshot a
problem.
Alternatively comment pieces can be writerly historical narratives or
conceptual or philosophical arguments of pressing contemporary relevance,
told with authority, colour, vivacity and personal voice. These attempt to bring
an original perspective before the widest readership, through erudite
reasoning and telling examples.
Specifics: e.g. who must do what exactly to whom, when, how, over what
time period; and, importantly, what will be the impact of heeding your call to
action, and of not doing so?

10. Pitching a commentary
• Get to know the journal(s)
What has the journal published on your topic in the
recent past? When and why?
• Get to know the editors
Invite editors to conferences/workshops; seek them
out at conferences (e.g. NPG/AAAS booths)

11. Title
• Brief and informative
• Ideally no longer than 60 characters (5-10 words)
• Active verbs
• No question marks
For example:
Realizing China’s urban dream
Time to stop celebrating the polluters

12. Stand-first
• Succinct summary of the recommendation(s)/main
message
• Ideally no longer than 300 characters
For example:
Planetary stability must be integrated with United
Nations targets to fight poverty and secure human well-
being, argue David Griggs and colleagues.

13. Main body
• Frame the issue/present the problem
• Diagnose the causes
• Propose remedies (remember: who should do what,
how, when, etc.)
• Provide concrete examples, case studies that support
the diagnosis and solutions
Some examples that we worked on are in the following
slides