As nurses, we have a duty to disseminate our knowledge to help improve patient care. The publication of articles, such as those that appear in OR Nurse2015, is one of the most effective strategies for this. However, writing can be scary if you have not done it before. Keep in mind that writing is like any other skill, from positioning patients to reduce the risk of injury to juggling multiple demands to get several tasks completed simultaneously: You learn to do these things by reading about them and by doing them. The same holds true with writing. You can learn how to write, and the more you write, the better you will become. Here are nine simple steps to get you started:1
* Know you have a contribution to make-Each nurse has learned lessons that can benefit his or her peers. To build your confidence, understand that you will have input from peer reviewers and editors that will help fine tune your article.
* Choose a topic-Ideas are all around you. You will likely need to narrow your topic. A common mistake beginning writers make is to tackle too big a topic. For example, instead of writing about how to position patients in surgery, you should focus on how to position patients for brain surgery.
* Read the author guidelines-Author guidelines explain the types of articles the journal wants and specify logistics, such as what reference style to use and the length of the manuscript. The link to the author guidelines for OR Nurse2015 is: http://edmgr.ovid.com/orn/accounts/ifauth.htm. In addition, read past issues to gain an idea of the writing style.
* Ask the editor before writing-Send the editor a query e-mail. Briefly state what your article will be about, why it is important for the readers to know, what it will include, and why you should be the person to write the article. A query gives the editor the opportunity to guide you on what to emphasize in your article.
* Make a plan-You will need to organize writing the article in the same way you organize any other project. Set meetings with yourself so you have time to write. Build the plan so you meet your deadline. Check with your organization for any policies and procedures related to submitting an article for publication that may affect your plan.
* Write-At some point, you have to put your fingers to the keyboard. But instead of facing a blank page, first think about what you want to accomplish with the article, and then write down one sentence that summarizes your goal. Next, jot down the key points you want to cover so you can organize them in a way that is meaningful to you. Be sure to review what is in the literature, and use evidence-based articles from peer-reviewed sources as opposed to nonscholarly sources, such as Wikipedia. Know if you want to incorporate tables or figures, but be sure to obtain permission to use them first. Once you complete the first draft of your article, ask others to review what you have written so you receive objective input and revise as needed.
* Stay calm-Read the comments, consider them, and then revise as needed. Keep in mind that you, reviewers, and editors have the same goal: an informative article.
* Be patient-It can take (on average) up to 12 to 18 months from the time your article is accepted to publication, but it will be worth the wait to see your name in print.
* Repeat-Write again so you keep building your skill and your confidence.2
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