Writing Articles
by Adrian Lawler, Ph.D.
(retired) Aquarium Supervisor (l984-l998) J. L. Scott Aquarium Biloxi, Ms 39530
Original to Aquarticles
We can probably all write articles to share our experiences with fish, plants, tanks,
ponds, diseases, etc. with people around the world. Such article writing should be
encouraged because different people look at things differently and think differently and
may have an observation or knowledge that we do not have. It has been by word of mouth,
and then by word of pen, and now by computer that human knowledge has been passed on to
others in our human history.
We cannot know everything about a subject and convey that in a short article to our
readers. We may leave something important out, but we should try the best we can and maybe
the next person will pick up on something we might have missed. He should not be overly
critical of the previous author, because we cannot list everything, we think differently,
and he opens himself up for criticism for things he forgot.
No matter how many times (one article I revised 224 times) I go over an article, I
usually find something that should be changed to make the article clearer or more correct.
Do the best you can in your writing. A true seeker of knowledge will read your article,
think about it, apply what he learned new to his needs, and go on. A nasty person will
find fault anywhere and everywhere he can, citing errors of commission and omission, and
even twisting around what you said to make untrue statements. You usually find this type
of person in various fish or aquarium forums, seeking attention, and maybe even jealous
you are getting attention. In essence he is a troll, attacking others and their works, but
unwilling to put his ideas on the line (for inspection and possible criticism) and
publishing them. None of us is perfect; we all make mistakes. In fact, making a mistake
can prompt others to thoroughly think about something to arrive at good answers. Mistakes,
then updates, are constantly being made in scientific work, in computer programming, in
space shuttles, etc., etc., ….. and our base of knowledge becomes larger and larger,
and better and better.
So, exercise your brain. Tell (or show) us what you observed, or found out, or think
about the natural or artificial aquatic habitats around you. Send in your article to Theo.
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