academic-paper-writer

What the source does

• FilesystemNone observedNo reads or writes in the source
• NetworkNone observedNo outbound calls in the source
• ShellNone observedNo commands run in the source
• DependenciesPinnedNothing floats
• SecretsNone foundNo keys in source

Five audit layers

Gates applied: no behavioural pass.

Audit 0.4.1 · source sha 369fe15b2a25 · 20 Oct 2026Report an issue or request a re-scan

• Publishermeleantonio GitHub userOwner of the repository this skill is read from
• Source foldermeleantonio/awesome-econ-ai-stuff/_skills/writing/academic-paper-writerThe exact folder we audited
• LicenceNOASSERTIONAs the repository states it
• Commit pinned for this verdict369fe15b2a25A new audit runs when the source changes
• Repository statusNot archivedLast push 24 days ago
• Sandboxed runNot runSkills are read, not executed; layer L4 is skipped

Its description: Draft economics papers with proper structure and academic style

---
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 

Excerpt, first 6,000 characters of SKILL.md, verbatim from the audited commit. It is text from someone else’s repository, quoted so you can judge it before your agent reads it.

1. 2026-10-20
   ✓SAFE B 89 / 100

   first audit · source 369fe15b2a25

Questions about academic-paper-writer

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