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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
curated-by: John Barrios collection: barrios-skills
Barrios Skills — John Barrios's curated workflow for economists and accountants. Prioritize reproducible empirical work, clear identification language, and journal-ready output.
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:
- Is this empirical or theoretical?
- What is the target journal/audience?
- What stage is the paper at? (outline, first draft, revision)
- What sections need help?
Step 2: Follow the IMRAD Structure
For empirical papers, use:
- Introduction - Motivation, research question, contribution
- Literature Review - Related work and positioning
- Data & Methods - Sources, sample, empirical strategy
- Results - Main findings with tables/figures
- Discussion - Interpretation, mechanisms, limitations
- 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 questionThis paper asks: [RESEARCH QUESTION IN PLAIN LANGUAGE]?Specifically, we examine whether [PRECISE FORMULATION OF THE QUESTION].% Preview of answerWe find that [MAIN RESULT IN ONE SENTENCE]. This effect is[economically significant / modest / heterogeneous], with[QUANTITATIVE SUMMARY: e.g., "a one standard deviation increasein 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 literatureOur 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] thatcomplements \citet{OtherAuthor2019}. Finally, our findingshave implications for [POLICY/FUTURE RESEARCH].% RoadmapThe remainder of the paper is organized as follows.Section~\ref{sec:background} provides background and reviewsrelated literature. Section~\ref{sec:data} describes our dataand empirical strategy. Section~\ref{sec:results} presents ourmain findings. Section~\ref{sec:robustness} discusses robustnesschecks. Section~\ref{sec:conclusion} concludes.
Example Output: Results Section Template
latex
\section{Results}\label{sec:results}% Lead with the main findingTable~\ref{tab:main} presents our main results. Column (1) showsthe baseline OLS specification without controls. The coefficienton [TREATMENT VARIABLE] is [POINT ESTIMATE] (s.e. = [SE]),statistically significant at the [1/5/10] percent level.% Add controls incrementallyIn 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 magnitudeTo gauge economic significance, note that [INTERPRETATION].A one standard deviation increase in [X] is associated witha [Y] percent [increase/decrease] in [OUTCOME], or roughly[COMPARISON TO MEAN/OTHER BENCHMARK].% Brief mention of mechanisms/heterogeneity if relevantTable~\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 \\\hlineTreatment & 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 answerThis paper examined [RESEARCH QUESTION]. Using [METHOD/DATA],we found that [MAIN FINDING]. This result is robust to[ROBUSTNESS CHECKS].% ImplicationsOur findings have several implications. For policy, they suggestthat [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 directionsThis paper opens several avenues for future work.[DIRECTION 1]. [DIRECTION 2]. We hope our findingsstimulate 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
- Shapiro (2019) How to Give an Applied Micro Talk
- Thomson (2011) A Guide for the Young Economist
Changelog
v1.0.0
- Initial release with introduction, results, and conclusion templates