Structuring Your Paper

While it’s okay to come to your insights in a roundabout way, readers have a limited tolerance for roundabout structure. You don’t want a situation where it’s hard for the reader to spot where your best evidence lines up to support your most important claims. Yet, in our discipline, there is no handy standardized template of sections and section headings. You’re the ringmaster of this particular circus, so you have some decisions to make about which acts you’ll trot out, in which order. This chapter is here to demystify the process for you.