Layered scientific manuscript, reference, and metadata interfaces

Case study

Joy Editor

Re-architecting scientific writing as a structured workspace

SciSpace (formerly Typeset) ↗

Choose your depth

The problem, my contribution, outcomes, and strongest screens.

My role

Product design · Product architecture · Scientific workflows

Product focus

A structured manuscript workspace connecting writing, metadata, references, formatting, and review.

Overview

I explored and specified a broader editor system for scientific manuscripts. Joy kept the paper as the primary workspace while bringing structure, contributor metadata, references, journal formatting, rich content, and review into a consistent side-sheet model.

The problem

Writing a paper is only one part of submission. Researchers also manage journal-specific sections, authors and affiliations, references, citations, cover details, formatting rules, structured content blocks, and collaborative review. These tasks needed depth without overwhelming the writing surface.

What I drove

  1. Reorganised the editor around a stable writing canvas and contextual sheets for manuscript operations.
  2. Unified outline, authors, affiliations, cover details, references, and citation management into a coherent information architecture.
  3. Designed asynchronous reference importing with progress, partial success, and actionable failure states.

What changed

  1. Established a consistent side-sheet model for deep manuscript operations without displacing the paper.
  2. Connected journal structure, metadata, references, formatting, content, and review in one editor architecture.

Impact

What the work was designed to move

Business impact

Established a scalable editor architecture for manuscript structure, metadata, references, formatting, and review.

Customer impact

Researchers can complete more of the submission workflow without leaving the writing surface or losing context.

Revenue impact

Expands platform depth and institutional value by consolidating more of the research publishing journey in one product.

Highlights evidence

4 essential screens from the final experience.

Evidence 01
Joy Editor: Kept a guided manuscript outline beside the writing canvas
Kept a guided manuscript outline beside the writing canvas
Evidence 02
Joy Editor: Structured complex author, affiliation, and corresponding-author metadata
Structured complex author, affiliation, and corresponding-author metadata
Evidence 03
Joy Editor: Connected the reference library to citation context in the paper
Connected the reference library to citation context in the paper
Evidence 04
Joy Editor: Preserved completed work when reference import only partially succeeded
Preserved completed work when reference import only partially succeeded

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