"I am currently working on a narrative review article for my publication as an under grad about oncogenes and their expression. I have written up to 7,000 words so far, but I am not even halfway through my review. I am feeling overwhelmed and unsure about how to proceed. I am considering either cutting down on some of the information or removing some of the headings that I have written. I would appreciate your guidance on how to approach this. Thank you."
Double-check on whether or not there are guidelines as to the length. In the case of a journal, the maximum length for a review is normally stipulated in the instructions to authors, especially if the journal is not an online journal (i.e. if there is a print version). If there is indeed a length requirement, that will obviously determine how much information you provide under the headings.
I recommend that you select the journals you are interested in submitting your article to and read their guidelines carefully. As mentioned in the comment above, they most commonly require between 7,000 and 9,000 words (including references). As you already have the minimum and still need to explore the literature review, I recommend that you reduce what you have already written to a maximum of 3,000 words. In general, a structure with an abstract, introduction, theoretical framework and methodology is fine at 3,000 words. Although it's sometimes complicated, it's a good exercise in synthesis and it's important to remember that the main part of the study has to be the review and not the theoretical-conceptual aspects. I wish you every success in your research.
"Thank you for your detailed reply. I will start implementing these changes."
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