When it gets easier to write papers

A colleague recently remarked that it gets easier to write papers when you can collaborate in a large project, and that discussion had me think about various instances in which I have found that it gets easier to push research forward and publish novel results.

Here are the ways I have found in which writing papers becomes easier

• in large projects: in larger collaborative projects, for example with staff exchanges, writing papers based on your research stays and by putting skills and insights together becomes almost second nature. The fixed-time period of a research stay also helps with defining a topic and working towards a publication.
• in collaboration with colleagues: when various research groups are working together on a topic, it can be beneficial to exchange ideas and solve a larger problem by combining efforts. The broader source of insights, combined with the larger number of authors, can make the writing more manageable.
• in technical committees: technical committees may produce technical documents, but can also focus on working on an article together. In the past, I have worked with colleagues to write a state-of-the-practice article, and with good planning and leveraging the insights of all of us involved, we could write an impactful and well-cited paper.
• with students: it gets easier when you can delegate some of the writing to graduate students. On the other hand, don’t assume that students know how to write – so teaching them to write can take some time as well.
• with experience: I have noticed that there are some journals in my field for which, by now, I know quite well how to structure and write a paper in such a way that it will get good chances of publication.

Have you found ways in which writing papers becomes easier?