# scientific-writing

> Core skill for writing scientific manuscripts in full paragraphs using IMRAD structure, citations (APA/AMA/Vancouver), figures/tables, and reporting guidelines (CONSORT/STROBE/PRISMA) for research papers and journal submissions.

**Use case**: Write publication-ready scientific manuscripts end-to-end

**Canonical URL**: https://agentcookbooks.com/skills/scientific-writing/

**Topics**: claude-code, skills, science, scientific-writing

**Trigger phrases**: "write a scientific paper", "draft a manuscript", "write the methods section", "format this for journal submission", "write an abstract"

**Source**: [K-Dense AI](https://github.com/K-Dense-AI/scientific-agent-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/scientific-writing)

**License**: MIT

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## What it does

`scientific-writing` is a Claude Code skill from K-Dense AI's [scientific-agent-skills repo](https://github.com/K-Dense-AI/scientific-agent-skills). It turns Claude into a manuscript author that writes in full flowing prose — never bullet points — following a two-stage process: first drafting section outlines with key points pulled from literature search, then converting those outlines into complete paragraphs.

A session produces a submission-ready manuscript section or full paper with proper IMRAD structure (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion), citations formatted in the target style, and a graphical abstract generated via the `scientific-schematics` skill. The skill enforces reporting standards automatically — CONSORT for trials, STROBE for observational studies, PRISMA for systematic reviews.

## When to use it

Reach for it when:

- You need to draft or revise any section of a scientific manuscript and want structured prose rather than a bullet dump
- You're preparing for journal submission and need venue-specific formatting, citation style, and compliance with reporting guidelines
- You want a first-draft abstract that meets structured or unstructured journal requirements

When *not* to reach for it:

- Quick exploratory notes or informal lab documentation — reach for `open-notebook` instead
- Slide decks or poster presentations — `scientific-slides` and `latex-posters` are better fits

## Install

Copy the `SKILL.md` from K-Dense AI's [scientific-writing folder](https://github.com/K-Dense-AI/scientific-agent-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/scientific-writing) into `.claude/skills/scientific-writing/` in your project. No additional config required beyond standard Claude Code setup.

Trigger phrases: "write a scientific paper", "draft a manuscript", "write the methods section", "format this for journal submission".

## What a session looks like

A typical session has three phases:

1. **Outline with citations.** Claude runs a literature search via `research-lookup` and produces a section-by-section outline with key points and provisional citations. You review and flag gaps before prose begins.
2. **Prose conversion.** Each outline section is converted to full paragraphs with in-text citations, data references, and compliance markers for the applicable reporting guideline.
3. **Visual elements.** The skill calls `scientific-schematics` to generate a graphical abstract and at least one additional figure; the manuscript is not considered complete without them.

## Receipts

Honest reporting on what `scientific-writing` is good for and where it falls short:

**Where it works well:**
- Methods sections and structured abstracts, where the format constraints are unambiguous and Claude can follow them mechanically
- Reformatting an existing draft from one citation style to another without losing references

**Where it backfires:**
- Results sections that require interpreting novel data Claude hasn't seen — the prose is fluent but the scientific judgment is yours
- Highly specialized sub-fields where the literature search step surfaces marginal or off-topic papers

**Pattern that works:** front-load the session with your own bullet-point summary of key findings; the skill's prose conversion is strongest when the substance is already scoped by you.

## Source and attribution

Originally authored by [K-Dense Inc.](https://github.com/K-Dense-AI). The canonical SKILL.md lives in the [`scientific-writing` folder](https://github.com/K-Dense-AI/scientific-agent-skills/tree/main/scientific-skills/scientific-writing) of their public scientific-agent-skills repository.

License: MIT. Install, adapt, and redistribute with attribution preserved.

This page documents the skill from a practitioner's perspective. For the formal spec and any updates, defer to the source repo.