KESUKARAN MENULIS MANUSKRIP PENYELIDIKAN DALAM BAHASA INGGERIS: LANGKAH-LANGKAH UNTUK MENINGKATKAN PENULISAN

Throughout the world, there is an urgent need to publish the findings in renowned high impact factor journals published in the English language. One of the major criteria for the global university rankings is publications and citations in premier databases. Often manuscripts addressing the topic of how to write a proper research manuscript are published but there are fewer publications teaching the best way to improve one’s English. Many workshops are conducted to help researchers write their manuscripts, but adequate addressing of the English language is often lacking. Many beginners do not know how to combat this situation of mastering the art of writing. The present review article discusses in detail the common pitfalls while writing a research paper in English language and suggests possible remedies. These remedies will include techniques on how to write the results properly, choosing the correct keywords, writing a proper introduction and discussing the results in the discussion section in such a way that will make the manuscript appear to be interesting and impactful. We suggest that authors should continuously practice writing in English. Authors are encouraged to write in a simple manner, using short sentences and proper punctuation marks, arranging the subjects and verbs in the proper manner, using the past tense, especially when reporting results of the research and using the active voice when highlighting important study outcomes. Issue related to “ghost writer” and paying others to write on our behalf as an author is also discussed. We hope that these basic suggestions can be practiced regularly and help motivate young authors to write properly and facilitate the acceptance of their manuscript.