--- name: academic-paper-writer description: Draft economics papers with proper structure and academic style workflow_stage: writing compatibility: - claude-code - cursor - codex - gemini-cli author: Awesome Econ AI Community version: 1.0.0 tags: - LaTeX - academic-writing - papers - economics --- # Academic Paper Writer ## Purpose This skill helps economists draft, structure, and polish academic papers with proper conventions for economics journals. It provides templates for different paper types and guidance on academic writing style. ## When to Use - Starting a new research paper from scratch - Restructuring an existing draft - Writing specific sections (introduction, literature review, conclusion) - Preparing papers for journal submission ## Instructions ### Step 1: Identify Paper Type Ask the user: 1. Is this empirical or theoretical? 2. What is the target journal/audience? 3. What stage is the paper at? (outline, first draft, revision) 4. What sections need help? ### Step 2: Follow the IMRAD Structure For empirical papers, use: 1. **Introduction** - Motivation, research question, contribution 2. **Literature Review** - Related work and positioning 3. **Data & Methods** - Sources, sample, empirical strategy 4. **Results** - Main findings with tables/figures 5. **Discussion** - Interpretation, mechanisms, limitations 6. **Conclusion** - Summary and implications ### Step 3: Apply Economics Writing Conventions - **First paragraph** should state the research question and main finding - **Use present tense** for established facts, past tense for your findings - **Be precise** with causal language (effect vs. association) - **Cite heavily** in the literature review - **Lead with results** in the results section ## Example Output: Introduction Template ```latex \section{Introduction} % Hook - Why does this matter? [TOPIC] is a fundamental question in economics, with implications for [POLICY AREA] and [BROADER RELEVANCE]. Despite extensive research, we still lack clear evidence on [SPECIFIC GAP]. % Research question This paper asks: [RESEARCH QUESTION IN PLAIN LANGUAGE]? Specifically, we examine whether [PRECISE FORMULATION OF THE QUESTION]. % Preview of answer We find that [MAIN RESULT IN ONE SENTENCE]. This effect is [economically significant / modest / heterogeneous], with [QUANTITATIVE SUMMARY: e.g., "a one standard deviation increase in X associated with a Y percent increase in Z"]. % Methodology (brief) To identify this effect, we exploit [IDENTIFICATION STRATEGY: natural experiment / RCT / instrumental variable / RDD]. Our data come from [DATA SOURCE], covering [TIME PERIOD] and [SAMPLE SIZE] observations. % Contribution / Related literature Our paper contributes to several strands of literature. First, we extend the work of \citet{Author2020} by [EXTENSION]. Second, we provide new evidence on [MECHANISM/CHANNEL] that complements \citet{OtherAuthor2019}. Finally, our findings have implications for [POLICY/FUTURE RESEARCH]. % Roadmap The remainder of the paper is organized as follows. Section~\ref{sec:background} provides background and reviews related literature. Section~\ref{sec:data} describes our data and empirical strategy. Section~\ref{sec:results} presents our main findings. Section~\ref{sec:robustness} discusses robustness checks. Section~\ref{sec:conclusion} concludes. ``` ## Example Output: Results Section Template ```latex \section{Results} \label{sec:results} % Lead with the main finding Table~\ref{tab:main} presents our main results. Column (1) shows the baseline OLS specification without controls. The coefficient on [TREATMENT VARIABLE] is [POINT ESTIMATE] (s.e. = [SE]), statistically significant at the [1/5/10] percent level. % Add controls incrementally In column (2), we add [CONTROL SET 1]. The point estimate [increases/decreases slightly/remains stable] to [ESTIMATE]. Column (3) includes [CONTROL SET 2] and adds [FIXED EFFECTS]. Our preferred specification in column (4) includes [FULL CONTROLS] and yields [FINAL ESTIMATE]. % Interpret magnitude To gauge economic significance, note that [INTERPRETATION]. A one standard deviation increase in [X] is associated with a [Y] percent [increase/decrease] in [OUTCOME], or roughly [COMPARISON TO MEAN/OTHER BENCHMARK]. % Brief mention of mechanisms/heterogeneity if relevant Table~\ref{tab:hetero} explores heterogeneity by [DIMENSION]. We find that the effect is [larger/concentrated among] [SUBGROUP], suggesting that [INTERPRETATION]. \begin{table}[htbp] \centering \caption{Main Results: Effect of X on Y} \label{tab:main} \begin{tabular}{lcccc} \hline\hline & (1) & (2) & (3) & (4) \\ & OLS & + Controls & + FE & Preferred \\ \hline Treatment & 0.052*** & 0.048*** & 0.041** & 0.039** \\ & (0.012) & (0.011) & (0.015) & (0.016) \\ \\ Controls & No & Yes & Yes & Yes \\ Fixed Effects & No & No & Yes & Yes \\ Cluster SE & No & No & No & Yes \\ \\ Observations & 10,000 & 9,850 & 9,850 & 9,850 \\ R-squared & 0.05 & 0.12 & 0.35 & 0.35 \\ \hline\hline \multicolumn{5}{l}{\footnotesize Notes: * p<0.10, ** p<0.05, *** p<0.01.} \\ \multicolumn{5}{l}{\footnotesize Standard errors in parentheses.} \\ \end{tabular} \end{table} ``` ## Example Output: Conclusion Template ```latex \section{Conclusion} \label{sec:conclusion} % Restate question and answer This paper examined [RESEARCH QUESTION]. Using [METHOD/DATA], we found that [MAIN FINDING]. This result is robust to [ROBUSTNESS CHECKS]. % Implications Our findings have several implications. For policy, they suggest that [POLICY IMPLICATION]. For theory, they provide support for [THEORETICAL MECHANISM] and challenge [ALTERNATIVE VIEW]. % Limitations (brief, honest) Several limitations warrant mention. First, [LIMITATION 1: e.g., external validity]. Second, [LIMITATION 2: e.g., data constraints]. Future research could address these by [SUGGESTION]. % Future directions This paper opens several avenues for future work. [DIRECTION 1]. [DIRECTION 2]. We hope our findings stimulate further research on [BROADER TOPIC]. ``` ## Writing Tips ### For Introductions - **First sentence should grab attention** - not "This paper examines..." - **State your contribution clearly** - what's new about this paper? - **Be specific about magnitudes** - don't just say "large effect" - **Acknowledge limitations** preemptively in the last paragraph ### For Results - **Lead with numbers** - put the coefficient in the first sentence - **Interpret economically** - what does a 0.05 coefficient mean? - **Guide the reader** through tables column by column - **Don't oversell** - distinguish statistical from economic significance ### For Conclusions - **Don't introduce new results** - synthesize what you've shown - **Be honest about limitations** - reviewers will find them anyway - **End on the contribution** - remind readers why this matters ## Common Pitfalls - ❌ Burying the main result in the middle of the paper - ❌ Using "significant" without specifying statistical or economic - ❌ Over-claiming causality without proper identification - ❌ Literature review that's just a list of papers - ❌ Conclusion that's just a summary ## References - [Cochrane (2005) Writing Tips for PhD Students](https://www.johnhcochrane.com/research-all/writing-tips-for-phd-studentsnbsp) - [Shapiro (2019) How to Give an Applied Micro Talk](https://www.brown.edu/Research/Shapiro/pdfs/applied_micro_slides.pdf) - [Thomson (2011) A Guide for the Young Economist](https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/guide-young-economist) ## Changelog ### v1.0.0 - Initial release with introduction, results, and conclusion templates