We all await for those sweet words to come our way, “I think
we’re ready to start writing up your data in to a manuscript.” Finally, you get a chance to start writing up
your projects as a first author and can tell the world (or rather the small
group of people that study the same thing you do) about all the cool science
you’ve been doing. I was excited when I
started to write up my data. Finally I
felt like I was making some progress.
However as I started the manuscript writing process, I realized I was in
for an experience. One that I wish
somebody had told me about. So for right
now, I will share some of the major things I’ve learn as I am currently writing
my first manuscript as a first author.
Once my manuscript has been sent back (most likely), revised and is
published (fingers crossed), I’ll share what else I learned along the way.
Four things I wish I
had known before starting to write a manuscript
1) Ultimately, it your PI’s call as to what
goes into your paper.
Even though you did the hands on work and
have been actively writing and editing the paper, your PI has the final say. Their grants funded your work and paid for
your salary. Also, it is their name and
reputation on the line when they publish your work. This may vary from PI to PI as to how much
input you get to have on the content of your paper. I know that I started out with a certain idea
of how my work should be written and presented however it was not the best
way. And it can be challenging getting
used to having your idea for your work being changed into somebody else’s idea
for your work. I’ve been told that this is
part of the process that everybody goes through. I felt like I was doing something wrong every
time the draft came back and was substantially from what I had sent two days
before. Apparently, this is normal. Crappy, but normal.
2) Communication
between you and your co-authors is really important.
The clearer you and your PI are about the
direction of your paper the better. You
both waste less time trying to get on the same page about how to write up your
work and which experiments to you need to prioritize to fill in the hole in
your story. I recommend having a meeting
with your PI before you start writing so you can start on the same page and
then have regular meetings to keep you on schedule with your writing and also
to keep communication flowing.
3) It is
another full time job – so now you have two: research and writing. And they are supposed to be done at the same
time.
Finding a balance between writing and doing
bench work is challenging not to mention balancing your interests outside of
lab. Good luck. I feel like all grad school is a balancing
act.
4) It
will take way longer than you think to write the paper.
Even the best planned
timeline for getting a draft to co-authors and getting a draft submitted will
go awry. Get used to it. It gets done when it get done. Learn from all the delays that come your way.
This was written Kaitlin McDaniel, a 5th year Pathobiology student.