10 Pieces of Advice for First Time Authors

Academic articles are never easy to write, and each journal tends to have particular styles and conventions. The aim of this Note is to inform first time authors about what the Editors look for when assessing papers for Planning Theory and Practice.

The note is organised as a series of points. Do, please, consider all these before submitting your paper.

1. Look at Missions Statement, and at the Instructions for Authors. Consider especially what these indicate about the focus and readership of the Journal.

2. Look at back copies of the Journal, to see what is discussed. Check the Contents Lists, the Editorials and the Interface section, as well as the Articles, to get a sense of our broad areas of interest.

3. Note that our Journal accepts articles which report empirical research, but we also accept papers which report on practice experiences, as well as review essays.

4. Consider carefully:

a. the contribution you want your article to make to existing knowledge

b. how what you have to say relates to the existing literature (especially recent work)

c. the implications of what you have to say for planning theory and/or planning practice

d. the structure of your paper: it must flow well, and all parts should connect to each other.

5. Note that it is helpful to say at the start what your paper is about and how it is organised. If your summary (abstract) is not clear, the chances are your ideas aren't clear either.

6. Note that although it is important to ‘ground’ your arguments and claims in the literature on a subject, you do not need a long literature review. It should be brief and focused towards what you will go on to discuss/research.

7. If your paper draws on empirical research or practice material, you should always explain why, when, and how you did the research or practice. It may be relevant to include details in the main text of your paper, but you could also make use of an endnote or a brief appendix for this purpose.