Stories shape our lives. They are part of who we are. The power of stories lies in their ability to make connections, share ideas, entertain, and inform.
What many people don’t realize is that storytelling is just as important in academic writing. Any research paper is meant to transfer knowledge efficiently and coherently, so storytelling in academic writing is far more essential than we think.
An article is a story, and effective storytelling techniques enable scholars to better convey their insights and ideas, resulting in a positive impact on their work.
In building a plot, you envision your writing as a series of events that builds anticipation (tension) toward a final climax. Finally, a resolution. Having a coherent and linear story like this would make it easier for readers to follow the story.
A manuscript submitted for publication, a dissertation, or any other document describing a scientific investigation tells the story of the investigation. Five major components make up a story: Exposition, Rising action, Climax, and Resolution.
The following elements are included in a story outline:
- Exposition: “This is the background you need to know to understand what’s coming next.”
- Rising action: “First, this happened. Then this happened. Then this happened.”
- Climax: “All of that led to this big event.”
- Resolution: “Here’s how everything came together at the end.”
Abstracts offer the best method of observing storytelling in academic writing since they encompass all the fundamental elements of a research report: background, method, results, and conclusions.
As an example, here is an abstract from a scientific article:
The study of interfacial properties of thin films such as polymers is an important area of surface science. The application of visible–infrared sum-frequency generation spectroscopy to such systems requires a careful interpretation of the results, as the electric field magnitude and phase at each interface must be determined in a manner that takes thin-film interference effects into account. Several schemes have been proposed for handling the local field corrections, and these methods all have their origins in linear optics. We first provide an extensive discussion of the cases in which the film is sufficiently thick that multiple beam interference can be ignored or sufficiently thin in which the relevant expressions collapse to simple forms. Then, we illustrate a straightforward method that has a concise analytic solution in the case of a single thin film that exhibits interference effects. We demonstrate a visualization technique that allows the experimental geometry to be tuned to select the interface of interest and rapidly switch between the interfaces when the film thickness is chosen to accommodate this.
Selective Probing of Thin-Film Interfaces Using Internal Reflection Sum-Frequency Spectroscopy
Exposition
Typically, an introductory sentence is a sentence that provides background, previous research, or underlying theories to the research under discussion.
The study of interfacial properties of thin films such as polymers is an important area of surface science
To pique the audience’s interest, you need to make a strong case in the first sentence of your work. In addition, this is a great opportunity to set the foundation for coherent storytelling in academic writing.
The sample abstract begins by setting up the background of why it is essential to study what was studied. In the next two sentences, the purpose and scope of the study are discussed.
The application of visible−infrared sum-frequency generation spectroscopy to such systems requires a careful interpretation of the results, as the electric field magnitude and phase at each interface must be determined in a manner that takes thin-film interference effects into account. Several schemes have been proposed for handling the local field corrections, and these methods all have their origins in linear optics.
Notice that these sentences give context to the study’s motivation. To conduct a study, there must be a problem to solve. And most importantly, people must be able to benefit from it if you solve that problem.
Transforming the first sentence into this one is coherent and carries your mind smoothly to the subject at hand.
The first step is now complete since the audience has received the message, “This is what you need to know about the background to follow along.”
Rising action
Arguments should be arranged so as to build tension. It should be clear how each point builds upon the previous one. In a literature review, for example, you would show how and why you came to your research question.
Essentially, this is the format of a detective story. Previous research problems, successes, and omissions provide the “clues” that led to this project. This is undoubtedly one of the essential parts of storytelling in academic writing.
If you want to resolve a problem that nobody has ever solved before, then you need to come up with something new. In order to proceed with the study, you need to design an experiment that provides sufficient data. Those two sentences below fulfill this requirement.
We first provide an extensive discussion of the cases in which the film is sufficiently thick that multiple-beam interference can be ignored or sufficiently thin in which the relevant expressions collapse to simple forms.
Also notice how the authors employ the first perspective, which is one of the most basic strategies in storytelling in academic writing. Using first-person enhances clarity and creates a sense of human connection. It highlights who did what. When a writer uses the active voice, they focus their sentences on an actor and the action – the two most essential elements of a story.
Climax
The climax is when all the previous tension and conflict culminate in an explosive moment. You should make your climax the most dramatic part of your story, and it should be the moment leading directly to its resolution.
Show your strongest reasoning and evidence at the climax.
Then, we illustrate a straightforward method that has a concise analytic solution in the case of a single thin film that exhibits interference effects.
This method allows the authors to reveal what they have discovered, thus setting up their final action.
This two-paragraph story uses the “first, do this, then do that” storytelling strategy.
Resolution
In a story, the resolution is what binds the narrative arc together.
Resolutions are essential components of storytelling in academic writing. Although not all resolutions are inspiring, they tend to add closure to the reader. The plot at this point offers a solution to the conflict outlined at the beginning of the story.
In the resolution, the final phase, summarize your arguments, emphasizing the importance of the issue.
We demonstrate a visualization technique that allows the experimental geometry to be tuned to select the interface of interest and rapidly switch between the interfaces when the film thickness is chosen to accommodate this.
Asking these questions first will help you write a good resolution statement and determine if you have conducted successful research.
- Are the main conflicts resolved?
- Is the question answered?
Final words
The most interesting ideas and diligent designs fall flat if we can t showcase them to the reader. A mastery of storytelling in academic writing is therefore crucial.
Images courtesy: Photo by Melanie Deziel on Unsplash , Distance learning vector created by vectorjuice – www.freepik.com
