Preface ix Other books in this series This book is a part of series of books to help non-native English-speaking research- ers to communicate in English.The other titles are: English for Presentations at International Conferences English for Academic Correspondence and Socializing English for Research:Usage,Style,and Grammar English for Academic Research:Grammar Exercises English for Academic Research:Vocabulary Exercises English for Academic Research:Writing Exercises Acronyms and Abbreviations I have used and/or coined the following acronyms for use throughout this book. KF:key finding(a very important result of your research) KFP:key finding paragraph(a paragraph where a key finding is introduced and discussed) NS:native speaker(someone whose first language is English) NNS:non native speaker (someone whose first language is not English) OV:original version PV:paraphrased version RV: revised version S:sentence S*: this sentence contains incorrect English Note:Throughout the book I use X,Y and Z to replace the technical words used by the author of the example text. Glossary The definitions below are my definitions of how various terms are used in this book. They should not be considered as official definitions. adjective:a word that describes a noun (e.g.significant,usual) adverb:a word that describes a verb or appears before an adjective (e.g.signifi- cantly,usually) ambiguity:words and phrases that could be interpreted in more than one way active:use of a personal pronoun/subject before a verb,e.g.we found that x =y rather than it was found that x =y direct object:in the sentence 'I have a book',the book is the direct object indirect object:in the sentence 'I gave the book to Anna',book is the direct object, and Anna is the indirect object
Preface ix Other books in this series This book is a part of series of books to help non-native English-speaking researchers to communicate in English. The other titles are: English for Presentations at International Conferences English for Academic Correspondence and Socializing English for Research: Usage, Style, and Grammar English for Academic Research: Grammar Exercises English for Academic Research: Vocabulary Exercises English for Academic Research: Writing Exercises Acronyms and Abbreviations I have used and/or coined the following acronyms for use throughout this book. KF: key finding (a very important result of your research) KFP: key finding paragraph (a paragraph where a key finding is introduced and discussed) NS: native speaker (someone whose first language is English) NNS: non native speaker (someone whose first language is not English) OV: original version PV: paraphrased version RV: revised version S: sentence S*: this sentence contains incorrect English Note: Throughout the book I use X, Y and Z to replace the technical words used by the author of the example text. Glossary The definitions below are my definitions of how various terms are used in this book. They should not be considered as official definitions. adjective: a word that describes a noun (e.g. significant, usual) adverb: a word that describes a verb or appears before an adjective (e.g. significantly, usually) ambiguity: words and phrases that could be interpreted in more than one way active: use of a personal pronoun/subject before a verb, e.g. we found that x = y rather than it was found that x = y direct object: in the sentence ‘I have a book’, the book is the direct object indirect object: in the sentence ‘I gave the book to Anna’, book is the direct object, and Anna is the indirect object
Preface infinitive:the root part of the verb (e.g.to learn,to analyze) ing form:the part of the verb that ends in-ing and that acts like a noun (e.g.learning,analyzing) link word,linker:words and expressions that connect phrases and sentences together (e.g.and,moreover,although,despite the fact that) manuscript:an unpublished written work that is going to be submitted for publication modal verb:verbs such as:can,may,might,could,would,should noun:words such as:a/the paper,a/the result,a/the sample paragraph:a series of one or more sentences,the last of which ends with a para- graph symbol ( passive:an impersonal way of using verbs,e.g.it was found that x =y rather than we found that x =y phrase:a series of words that make up part of a sentence redundancy:words and phrases that could be deleted because they add no value for the reader section:a principal part of a paper e.g.the Introduction,Results,Discussion sentence:a series of words ending with a period ( Use of initial capital letters The various section headings used throughout a paper have been given an initial capital letter(Abstract,Introduction,Methodology etc.).An example: In your discussion of the literature-here discussion is used in a general sentence, it could be replaced by a synonym,for instance,analysis In your Discussion you need to-here Discussion refers to the Discussion section of the paper. Tenses The following tenses are referred to in this book. FUTURE SIMPLE:we will study,he will study etc. PRESENT SIMPLE:we study,he studies etc. PRESENT CONTINUOUS:we are studying,he is studying etc PRESENT PERFECT:we have studied,he has studied etc. PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS:we have been studying,he has been studying etc. PAST SIMPLE:we studied,he studied etc
x Preface infinitive: the root part of the verb (e.g. to learn, to analyze) - ing form: the part of the verb that ends in – ing and that acts like a noun (e.g. learning, analyzing) link word, linker: words and expressions that connect phrases and sentences together (e.g. and, moreover, although, despite the fact that) manuscript: an unpublished written work that is going to be submitted for publication modal verb: verbs such as: can, may, might, could, would, should noun: words such as: a/the paper, a/the result, a/the sample paragraph: a series of one or more sentences, the last of which ends with a paragraph symbol ( ¶ ) passive: an impersonal way of using verbs, e.g. it was found that x = y rather than we found that x = y phrase: a series of words that make up part of a sentence redundancy: words and phrases that could be deleted because they add no value for the reader section: a principal part of a paper e.g. the Introduction, Results, Discussion sentence: a series of words ending with a period ( . ) Use of initial capital letters The various section headings used throughout a paper have been given an initial capital letter (Abstract, Introduction, Methodology etc.). An example: In your discussion of the literature – here discussion is used in a general sentence, it could be replaced by a synonym, for instance, analysis In your Discussion you need to – here Discussion refers to the Discussion section of the paper. Tenses The following tenses are referred to in this book. future simple: we will study, he will study etc. present simple: we study, he studies etc. present continuous: we are studying, he is studying etc. present perfect: we have studied, he has studied etc. present perfect continuous: we have been studying, he has been studying etc. past simple: we studied, he studied etc
Preface xi Punctuation The following punctuation marks are referred to in this book. full stop comma semi colon () parentheses 'blah' single quotes blah” double quotes
Preface xi Punctuation The following punctuation marks are referred to in this book. . full stop , comma ; semi colon ( ) parentheses ‘blah’ single quotes “blah” double quotes
Contents The symbol indicates that inexperienced writers should pay particular attention to this subsection. Part I Writing Skills 1 Planning and Preparation. 3 1.1 Think about why you want to publish your research #................... 5 1.2 Give yourself enough time to plan and write your manuscript #.... 5 1.3 Choose an appropriate journal,preferably with a high impact facte0r… 5 1.4 Download the instructions for authors from your chosen journal AND from a high impact journal in the same field #......... 6 1.5 Read and analyze papers for your literature review, and note how they are structured... > 1.6 Identify what the editor is looking for................... 8 1.7 Choose one paper as a model and note down useful phrases #....... 9 1.8 Think about the order in which to write the various sections #...... 9 1.9 Create separate files for each section...... 10 1.10 Chat with non experts#. 11 1.11 Give mini presentations to colleagues.... 11 1.12 Decide what your key findings are and whether you really have a contribution to make #......... 11 1.13 For each section,think about how you can highlight your key findings 12 1.14 Always have the referees in mind #........ 13 1.15 Referees and English level.. 14 1.16 How to keep the referees happy. 14 1.17 Write directly in English and find ways to improve your writing skills# 15 1.18 Consult online resources #.............. 44444444444444444444444444444444 16 1.19 Summary.… 17 xiii
xiii Contents The symbol # indicates that inexperienced writers should pay particular attention to this subsection. Part I Writing Skills 1 Planning and Preparation ........................................................................ 3 1.1 Think about why you want to publish your research #.................... 5 1.2 Give yourself enough time to plan and write your manuscript #..... 5 1.3 Choose an appropriate journal, preferably with a high impact factor .................................................................................... 5 1.4 Download the instructions for authors from your chosen journal AND from a high impact journal in the same field # .......... 6 1.5 Read and analyze papers for your literature review, and note how they are structured ..................................................... 7 1.6 Identify what the editor is looking for ............................................. 8 1.7 Choose one paper as a model and note down useful phrases #........ 9 1.8 Think about the order in which to write the various sections # ....... 9 1.9 Create separate files for each section............................................... 10 1.10 Chat with non experts # ................................................................... 11 1.11 Give mini presentations to colleagues ............................................. 11 1.12 Decide what your key findings are and whether you really have a contribution to make #......................................... 11 1.13 For each section, think about how you can highlight your key findings #........................................................................... 12 1.14 Always have the referees in mind # ................................................. 13 1.15 Referees and English level............................................................... 14 1.16 How to keep the referees happy....................................................... 14 1.17 Write directly in English and find ways to improve your writing skills #....................................................... 15 1.18 Consult online resources #............................................................... 16 1.19 Summary.......................................................................................... 17
xiv Contents 2 Word Order.............. 19 2.1 Basic word order in English# 21 2.2 Compare word order in your language with word order in English.… 21 2.3 Choose the most relevant subject and put it at the beginning 0 f the sentence#.… 22 2.4 Choose the subject that leads to the most concise sentence............. 23 2.5 Don't make the impersonal it the subject of the sentence................ 23 2.6 Don't use a pronoun (it,they)before you introduce the noun(i.e.the subject of the sentence) that the pronoun refers to. 23 2.7 Put the subject before the verb#. 24 2.8 Keep the subject and verb as close as possible to each other #....... 24 2.9 Avoid inserting parenthetical information between the subject and the verb# 25 2.10 Don't separate the verb from its direct object #...... 26 2.11 Put the direct object before the indirect object #............. 26 2.12 How to choose where to locate an adverb.................... 27 2.13 Put adjectives before the noun they describe, or use a relative clause 29 2.14 Do not insert an adjective between two nouns or before the wrong noun#. 29 2.15 Avoid creating strings of nouns that describe other nouns #.......... 30 2.16 Ensure there is no ambiguity in the order of the words #.............. 30 2.17 Summary.… 32 3 Breaking Up Long Sentences 33 3.1 Think above all about the reader #................... 35 3.2 The longer your sentence,the greater the chance it will be misundersto00d#… 35 3.3 Short sentences are not a sign of inelegance and superficiality........ 36 3.4 Why and how long sentences are created #.............. 37 3.5 e 38 3.6 as welas.. 40 3.7 Other link words that introduce additional information: moreover in addition,furthermore.. 40 3.8 Link words that compare and contrast: whereas,on the other hand;although,however................ 41 3.9 Link words that give explanations:because,since,as,in fact........... 42 3.10 Link words that express consequences:owing to, due to,as a result of,consequently,thus etc.... 42 3.11 which and relative clauses#... 43 3.12 -inng form....... 45 3.13 in order to...... 46 3.14 Excessive numbers of commas #...................... 47
xiv Contents 2 Word Order ............................................................................................... 19 2.1 Basic word order in English #.......................................................... 21 2.2 Compare word order in your language with word order in English ......................................................................................... 21 2.3 Choose the most relevant subject and put it at the beginning of the sentence #............................................................................... 22 2.4 Choose the subject that leads to the most concise sentence............. 23 2.5 Don’t make the impersonal it the subject of the sentence................ 23 2.6 Don’t use a pronoun (it, they) before you introduce the noun (i.e. the subject of the sentence) that the pronoun refers to ................................................................. 23 2.7 Put the subject before the verb #...................................................... 24 2.8 Keep the subject and verb as close as possible to each other #........ 24 2.9 Avoid inserting parenthetical information between the subject and the verb #................................................................. 25 2.10 Don’t separate the verb from its direct object #............................... 26 2.11 Put the direct object before the indirect object # ............................. 26 2.12 How to choose where to locate an adverb........................................ 27 2.13 Put adjectives before the noun they describe, or use a relative clause # .................................................................. 29 2.14 Do not insert an adjective between two nouns or before the wrong noun #.............................................................. 29 2.15 Avoid creating strings of nouns that describe other nouns # ........... 30 2.16 Ensure there is no ambiguity in the order of the words # ................ 30 2.17 Summary.......................................................................................... 32 3 Breaking Up Long Sentences................................................................... 33 3.1 Think above all about the reader #................................................... 35 3.2 The longer your sentence, the greater the chance it will be misunderstood #............................................................................... 35 3.3 Short sentences are not a sign of inelegance and superficiality......... 36 3.4 Why and how long sentences are created # ..................................... 37 3.5 and #................................................................................................. 38 3.6 as well as.......................................................................................... 40 3.7 Other link words that introduce additional information: moreover, in addition, furthermore .................................................. 40 3.8 Link words that compare and contrast: whereas, on the other hand; although, however.............................. 41 3.9 Link words that give explanations: because, since, as, in fact ........... 42 3.10 Link words that express consequences: owing to, due to, as a result of, consequently, thus etc. ................................... 42 3.11 which and relative clauses #............................................................. 43 3.12 - ing form ......................................................................................... 45 3.13 in order to......................................................................................... 46 3.14 Excessive numbers of commas # ..................................................... 47