What strategies can you use to align scientific writing with research goals?

2 Know your audience and purpose

Another key factor that influences how you write is your audience and purpose. Your audience is the group of people who will read your writing, and your purpose is the reason why you are writing. Depending on your audience and purpose, you may need to adjust your writing style, tone, language, and structure to suit their needs and expectations. For example, if you are writing a grant proposal, your audience may be funders or reviewers who are looking for evidence of the feasibility, originality, and impact of your research, and your purpose may be to persuade them to support your project. In this case, you may need to write more formally, concisely, and convincingly than if you are writing a blog post for a general audience who are interested in learning more about your research topic, and your purpose may be to inform or educate them. In this case, you may need to write more informally, engagingly, and accessibly.

3 Choose the appropriate document type and format

Different types of documents have different conventions and expectations for scientific writing. For example, a journal article, a conference paper, a thesis, a report, a poster, a presentation, and a press release all have different formats, sections, and lengths that you need to follow. Moreover, different journals, publishers, institutions, and organizations may have their own specific guidelines and requirements for formatting, referencing, and submitting your documents. Therefore, you need to choose the appropriate document type and format for your research goals, audience, and purpose, and follow the instructions and criteria carefully. This will help you to organize your writing effectively, and to meet the standards and expectations of your readers.

5 Provide sufficient and credible evidence

Another essential aspect of scientific writing is to provide sufficient and credible evidence that supports your claims, arguments, and conclusions. This means that you need to cite and reference the sources that you use to back up your statements, and to acknowledge the contributions and limitations of your own and others' research. You also need to use reliable, relevant, and up-to-date sources that are peer-reviewed, published, or verified by experts or authorities in your field. You also need to present your evidence clearly, logically, and objectively, and to avoid bias, distortion, or exaggeration that may compromise your credibility or validity.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?