Diagramas De Flujo

Results as a ‘‘story’’:

the key driver of an article

Because the results govern the content and structure of the whole article, it is

important to be as clear as possible about the main points of your results ‘‘story’’

at the beginning of the writing process. We suggest that your first task when

preparing to write a paper is to identify from your results a clearly connected story

which leads to one or more take-home messages. This term refers to what readers

remember after they have put the paper down: what they talk to their colleagues

about over a cup of coffee next day, for example.

To move towards this clear story, focus on your tables and figures first. For

each one, write a list of one or two bullet points highlighting the main message(s)

of the data presented. Sort the figures and tables into the best order to connect the

pieces of the story together. Draft some bullet points into a list to form a takehome

message. Then sit down with all your co-authors and discuss the story of

the paper that you will write. Aim to reach agreement on:

. which data should be included;

. what are the important points that form the story of the paper; and

. what is/are the take-home message or messages.

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