Hello!
As I have hinted in previous posts, an essential step of doctoral studies is the ability to produce and share novel scientific knowledge with the scientific community, often in the form of journal publications. This demonstrates the ability to think, plan, and carry out experiments that will yield new results and communicate them clearly to others. Over the last few months, I have been preparing figure panels for a scientific manuscript. While it is not the first time I have undergone such an exercise, this is undoubtedly the most challenging one, given all the projects that must be seamlessly presented in all panels. In this post, I would like to share some of what I learned from this demanding activity.
2. Drafts of the drafts of the drafts
Planning a story
At first, it can feel overwhelming to witness the amount of data that needs to be presented cleanly, clearly and comprehensively. To counter that, my approach has been to start small and identify contained parts that should stick together. Given that each panel is always followed by text, a helpful addition is to describe the primary outcome we expect the reader to grasp from each figure in a few sentences. Critically, given that different journals have specific requirements for the number of figures that can be added to a publication, deciding how much information should be displayed must be heavily influenced by such constraints. As a balance, we would like to include as much information as needed to convey our message and as little as possible to keep the panel understandable. Additional information can then be prepared into supplementary figures or materials, a standard part of most publications.
Drafts of the drafts of the drafts
After settling on a plan, we can start to produce initial panels. On this note, given the effort it takes to plot, organise and display figures in a panel, it can be tempting to feel that we have already produced the final version of our panel. Sadly, no. Often, preparing figures is a lengthy process and rarely can be successfully completed in the first round. Therefore, it’s helpful not to get attached to a specific version. Things will change, and new ideas will arise, often based on feedback from co-authors who can have an unbiased view and understanding of the original panel we produced. Hence, as with many established brainstorming approaches, it is more effective to prepare a few options, push through the effort of this endeavour, and generate an abundance of possibilities. Ultimately, we can select and refine the most promising ones towards a final panel.
Flexibility to change
On a similar note, we must remain open to make adjustments to our initial plan. After completing a panel, I often open the remaining ones and see if they flow nicely together. I would go as far as to continue thinking if there is any piece of information or visualisation that can enhance this flow. Furthermore, as I perform additional data analysis, I frequently learn new techniques that require replotting data and reconsider the value of some of the previous plots. Therefore, we should always be open to producing another version if we have reasons to believe it will enhance the clarity and flow of our message. This aspect is paramount when considering the original plan of the story we aim to convey. As we learn more about the data and identify the key results worth sharing, we mature our understanding of the project, developing our ability to communicate it more clearly to others. Crucially, it transcends the figure panels alone but also reaches the motivation and purpose of the work that we must describe in the introduction and reflect on in the discussion.
Collecting feedback
We are not our work; the output of the work exists by itself, and we are simply the ones who did it. It can be difficult to be vulnerable when presenting our work and requesting feedback, as any criticism can feel like it is directed at us, for those more sensitive among us. Yet, developing this “thick skin” and realising the distinction between the creator and the piece of work itself is foundational to unlock a new level of productivity where we can fully leverage ideas from others towards a product that is understandable by a broad audience. This is not to say that we should accept every feedback. We may disagree or have additional requirements to fulfil that impede meeting some of the suggestions. Still, we can collect ideas and eventually integrate them in some way.
Conclusion
Preparing large manuscripts is one of the most gruelling tasks I have encountered during my doctoral research. Still, it is a challenge that I appreciate and makes me genuinely excited to undertake. It is insanely gratfying to progressively advance in the process, and see the complete picture forming about the project I have been working on for the past years. I am looking forward to continuing to develop my work and preparing a piece of research that I am proud of and that I believe can benefit the scientific community.
Please feel free to share your thoughts about your manuscripts!
Have a great day!