Writing Tips
A. Writing Tips on Abstract and Keywords
Some writing tips on the Abstract and Keywords writing are given as follows, when you write your papers, you may check it following them.
Abstract
An abstract should summarize the authors' main contributions of the paper not the subjective assessment of the writer(s). It should contain only what you are specifically reporting in the manuscript. And please note that the material in the abstract should not be repeated later word for word in the paper. When you write Abstract, you may refer to the list as follows:
a) What the problem to be resolved? Or what is the author's focus in this paper?
b) How do you solve the problem? Or what is the method or process to solve the problem?
c) What results do you achieved and what conclusions are drawn from the study of the problem?
d) What is new and original in this paper? How do you evaluate your results compared with existing achievements in quantitive words?
e) Note that to eliminate or minimize background information in abstract.
f) Limit the abstract within 150 words.
e) The descriptions referring to the research background are not suggested in the abstract.
And please check that the style of writing is in the third person throughout, especially in the abstract.
Keywords
Keywords are a list of the major topics embodied in your article. Be as specific as possible in describing the concepts or ideas in the article. According to the statistic of IEEE, most IEEE articles are well indexed if they use 5 to 8 indexing keywords. So, please check that the keywords are appropriate for information retrieval purposes, at least 4 keywords.
B. General Guidelines for Academic Writing
In general, it is inappropriate simply to write as you would speak in academic writing. In conversation, the listener can ask for clarification or elaboration easily, and thus the speaker can use imprecise language, ramble from topic to topic freely, and so on. Instead, academic writing must stand on its own, conveying the author's ideas clearly through words alone. As a result, academic writing requires substantial effort to construct formal language relevant to a well-defined topic. The best academic writing will be difficult to write but very easy to read.
Rules for academic writing are quite strict, though often unstated. Academic writing is used in scientific papers or reports whenever you want to convey your ideas to readers, with many possible backgrounds and assumptions. Unlike casual conversation or emails to friends, academic writing needs to be clear, unambiguous, literal, and well structured.
The checklist below will help you revise and polish drafts of academic papers. After checking your draft against these points, ask a colleague to help you in areas that need work or that you do not understand.
1. Is your contributions original or reasonably interesting?
2. Is your contributions (main ideas) clearly stated in the abstract?
3. Have you included enough evidence or proof carefully and explained how it proves your point?
4. Is your paper logical? Is there any contradiction in your paper?
5. If appropriate have you given enough references?
6. Is your sentence style straightforward and concise? (No wordiness)
7. Is your grammar basically correct? Have you proofread the final copy?
C. How to Write an Abstract of High Quality
Abstract is a part of the most importance in academic writing. An abstrct of a paper usually has a fairly standard form; it informs readers about the authors' main contributions with the information as follows:
1) What is the problem to be resolved? Or what is the author's focus in the paper?
2) How do the authors solve the problem? Or what method is used or processed to solve the problem?
3) What results are achieved and what conclusions have been drawn from the study of the problem?
4) What is new and original in the paper?
In writing an abstrct, the authors are suggested to pay attention to the following points:
a) Eliminate or minimize background information in abstract.
b) Limit the abstract to new information, i.e. the authors' main ideas and contributions.
c) Use short sentences as possible.
d) Be clear and brief. Abstracts should not be too short or too long, best within 100 words to 150 words.
D. Use the Right Vocabulary
It is important that you use the right vocabulary in your writing. The mistakes that occur regularly in nonnative speakers are usually due to confusion between two words such as:
△ Alternatively and Alternately: The former is preferred to the later (unless you really mean something that alternates).
△ Whereas and While: Use the word "whereas" instead of "while" (unless you are referring to simultaneous events).
△ Question and Problem: Do not use the word "question" as a euphemism for "problem." A question is what you ask and hope to get an answer from others. A problem is a difficulty that needs attention and thought and you want to seek a solution.
△ Less and Fewer: Less means a smaller amount: there is less water than before. Fewer means a smaller number: there are fewer people than before.
△ Imply and Infer: Use "imply" when something is being suggested without being explicitly stated and "infer" when someone is trying to arrive at a conclusion based on evidence. "Imply" is more assertive, active.
△ i.e. and e.g.: The abbreviation "i.e.," means "that is," and the abbreviation "e.g.," means "for example" (these abbreviations are not italicized).