The Health Professional's Guide to Writing for Publication.The Health Professional's Guide to Writing for Publication By Weiss-Lambrou R. Springfield, IL 62794, Charles C Thomas, Publisher, 1989, hardback, 146 pp, $29.75 This small text offers beginning writers in the health professions a perfunctory per·func·to·ry adj. 1. Done routinely and with little interest or care: The operator answered the phone with a perfunctory greeting. 2. Acting with indifference; showing little interest or care. introduction to the task of preparing material for publication. The focus on inexperienced in·ex·pe·ri·ence n. 1. Lack of experience. 2. Lack of the knowledge gained from experience. in writers is clearly stated in the preface pref·ace n. 1. a. A preliminary statement or essay introducing a book that explains its scope, intention, or background and is usually written by the author. b. An introductory section, as of a speech. 2. . Although seasoned writers interested in refining refining, any of various processes for separating impurities from crude or semifinished materials. It includes the finer processes of metallurgy, the fractional distillation of petroleum into its commercial products, and the purifying of cane, beet, and maple sugar their writing and publishing skills would find the book of little value, writers who are attempting to publish a paper for the first time and writers who have had minimal publishing success may find this text helpful. Included are chapters on writing for publication, component parts of a journal, types of journals, book writing, and the publishing process from start to finish. Chapter 1 covers such topics as the five Ws of writing for journal publication (what, who, why, where, and when), do's and don't's of writing for publication, and qualities of a writer in the health professions. The last chapter provides suggestions for getting started on a project and getting the completed project published. Questions and answers are included at the end of each chapter. Also included are two appendixes: One is a list of 117 journals in the health field (9 of these journals have "physical therapy" in the title), and one contains manuscript review forms from 5 of the journals. One of the more disappointing sections of the text is the superficial superficial /su·per·fi·cial/ (-fish´al) pertaining to or situated near the surface. su·per·fi·cial adj. 1. Of, affecting, or being on or near the surface. 2. presentation of suggestions on how to utilize an outline in preparing for the writing task. The typical new writer usually performs poorly for a number of reasons; one significant reason is not having the ability to devise a well-organized and complete outline before writing. The author could have greatly enhanced the usefulness of this book by including a more detailed discussion of outline development. The series of paperback books devoted to writing for the health professions literature (published by ISI ISI International Sensitivity Index, see there Press) may be more useful to the experienced writer than this text. This series includes Write for Success, How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper, and An Insider's Guide for Medical Authors and Editors. These books tackle in detailed fashion many of the problems faced by the aspiring as·pire intr.v. as·pired, as·pir·ing, as·pires 1. To have a great ambition or ultimate goal; desire strongly: aspired to stardom. 2. writer. I would recommend these books to any author who has already published a paper in a refereed journal refereed journal, n a professional or literary journal or publication in which articles or papers are selected for publication by a panel of readers or referees who are experts in the field. related to the health professions. Matthew C Monissey, PT |
|
||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion