论文种类方面最重要的区别在于原始文献和二手文献。原始文献是指原创性研究首次公开发表之处，这包括大多数期刊论文、会议文集和学位论文。原始文献中的信息经浓缩和整理形成的文献称为二次文献，包括课本、书籍章节、综述、索引和文摘服务以及其他各种形式的信息汇编。原始文献的作用是与更广泛的群体交流最新研究成果。二次文献的作用则在于把原始文献中的信息编辑整理成方便和易懂的格式。有些期刊两类论文都发表，此外还刊登特写、新闻和其他栏目；有些期刊可看作专门的一次期刊(只发表一次文献，即原创性研究成果)；另外一些期刊则可看作二次期刊(专门发表综述)。在选择期刊和与期刊编辑建立关系的时候，应留意这些区别。当你在研究领域内已有一定建树后考虑发表综述的时候，这些区别也值得注意。

原创研究的期刊上的论文又分成多个类型；在开始构思论文的时候应了解他们之间的区别，因为某一类论文类型要比其他类型更适合你的工作。多数学术期刊在自己的网页公布其论文类型。可能的稿件类型包括以下几种：
•    全长论文
•    快讯
•    短讯
•    读者来信
•    病例报告
•    技术或实验室短文
•    方法学

每种论文的格式都略有不同，这些都载于期刊的《稿约》。撰写稿件时请阅读《稿约》并严格遵守。如果你觉得自己的研究成果已达到发表标准，就要决定目标期刊 (见“期刊选择”部分的注意事项)和论文类型。此时，你的“方法”和“结果”部分应该已经写好，因为这些部分在做试验时即可同步完成。除了标号、字体和图表数量还有待调整外，这两部分应该已可随时导入任何类别的论文。为确定哪种论文类型最合适，你需要自我评价一下自己的工作，请同事做个独立评价可能也有帮助。你是否有足够素材来写一篇全长论文？如果是，很好！如果否，短讯或读者来信可能会更合适。你的研究结果是否非常及时和让人兴奋？是否担心你的竞争者提前发表类似结果？如果是，您可能该考虑写一个快讯。不少期刊（如Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications专门发表这样的文章，并努力缩短见刊周期。

如果你拿不准哪一种论文格式或哪个期刊最适合你的工作，你投稿前随时可以向编辑咨询一下发表的可能性。很多期刊都提供这种服务；即使某期刊不提供此服务，只要你问得有礼貌，编辑照样可能会回复你。你的咨询应该简要介绍你希望发表的工作，并解释为何它很及时并与该刊的读者相关。此外，你应该提及你的论文可能有多少图表，以及每个图表说明什么信息。投稿前咨询与正式投稿 (见“论文发表道德” 部分的注意事项)不同，它可以同时发给多个期刊。如果你收到正面的回应，你就可以开始撰写“引言”、“讨论”和“摘要”，如有必要还要着手调整“方法”和 “结果”部分。这种方法使您可以引用正确数量的参考文献(许多期刊/论文类型都对参考文献的数量做了限制)，并且符合每一部分的字数限制，以避免重写已有文稿。

总之，重要的是要知道文献有不同的种类，每一种类之内又有哪些论文类型。此外，要诚实地评价你的工作并决定哪类论文是最适合的。要事先确定适当的目标期刊和论文类型；目标期刊的《稿约》涉及拟发表论文的类型，因此也要遵守其规定；这才能增加论文被接受的机会，缩短见刊周期。

英文原文
Publication types
Scientists and clinicians, as producers of scientific and medical research findings for dissemination to the general population, need to be aware of the different publication types that exist and how and when to use them. Many of the different publication types will already be familiar to this audience, but some might not appreciate the extent of the variety.

The most important distinction among publication types is that between the primary and secondary literature. The primary literature refers to the places in which original scientific research is first published in a publicly accessible document. This includes most journal papers, conference proceedings, theses and dissertations. The information published in the primary literature is later condensed and reorganized into the secondary literature, which includes textbooks, book chapters, review articles, indexing and abstracting services and various other forms of information compilation. The role of the primary literature is to share new findings with the broader community; the role of the secondary literature is to compile and organize the information in the primary literature into an easily accessible and understandable format. Some journals publish papers of both type, in addition to features, news and other sections, while some journals can be considered exclusively primary journals (that is, publishing solely primary literature, the results of original research) and others can be considered secondary journals (specializing in review articles). It is worthwhile being aware of this when choosing journals and establishing relationships with journal editors; it is also worthwhile thinking about possible review article themes when you have established some authority in your area of research.

Among journals publishing primary research there is a great variety of publication types and it is helpful to be aware of these when starting to think about writing up your work, because one type of primary publication format might be more appropriate for your work than another. Most academic journals list the publication types they publish on their web pages. Some of the possible types of manuscript include the following:
•    Full-length papers
•    Rapid communications
•    Short communications
•    Letters to the editor
•    Case reports
•    Technical or Laboratory notes
•    Methods

Each of these publication types will have a slightly different format that will be set out in the journal’s Guide for Authors. When preparing any manuscript, read the instructions in the Guide for Authors closely and follow them precisely. Once you are satisfied that you have sufficient findings to warrant publication, you need to decide on your target journal (see tip on journal selection) and the publication type. By this stage you may already have written up your methods and results sections, because this can be done while you are still performing your research and, with perhaps the exception of section numbering, font size and the allowable number of display items, these sections will be readily introducible into any publication type. To determine the best publication type for your work, you need to self-evaluate it. It may also be helpful to ask a colleague to evaluate it and provide an independent assessment. Is there sufficient material for you to write a full article? If so, great! If not, perhaps a short communication or letter would be more appropriate. Are the results particularly exciting and timely, or are you worried about a competitor publishing similar findings before you can? If so, you might want to consider writing a rapid communication article. A number of journals, for example Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, specialize in this type of article and strive to achieve a very short lag between acceptance of a manuscript and publication.

If you are not sure what format or journal is best for your work, you can always send a journal editor a pre-submission enquiry. Many journals offer this facility, and even for those that don’t, the editors will likely reply to a polite enquiry about possible publication. Such an enquiry should contain a brief outline of the research you wish to publish and why it is particularly timely and of relevance to the readers of that journal. You should mention how many potential display items your paper will contain and what each of them shows. Unlike manuscript submissions (see tip on ethics), pre-submission enquiries can be sent to multiple journals simultaneously. When you receive a favorable response, you can proceed with writing the introduction, discussion and abstract, and reformatting the methods and results sections as appropriate. This approach enables you to use the correct amount of references (many journals/publication types have a limit on the number of references that can be included) and comply with section word limits, preventing the need for rewriting an existing manuscript.

In summary, it is important to be aware of the different types of literature that exist and the variety of publication types within each class. It is also important to honestly evaluate your work to determine what publication type is most appropriate for your study. Determining the appropriate target journal and publication type in advance, and complying with the instructions set out in the Guide for Authors of the target journal, as they relate to the relevant publication type, will increase your chances of acceptance for publication and shorten the time from initial submission to acceptance.

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