With this issue, we retire our familiar Literature of Medicine section and inaugurate a new one entitled "Medical Writings." In place of the few familiar book reviews and occasional longer essays, we anticipate a more colorful palette. More reviews-of books and software-will appear in each issue, presented in a new "structured" form. This format should allow busy readers rapid access to the content, highlights, and context of a given work.

Reviews in some issues will be devoted to a single subject or theme; in other issues, a mixture of topics will be juxtaposed. Look for fewer reviews of new editions of standard textbooks and more reviews of books that illuminate the interface between medicine and other disciplines. And look for variety, including reviews of works that explore the history of medicine, elucidate the methodology of medical research, critique the latest developments in education or medical informatics, and attempt to make sense of the changing world of managed care.

Every month, the new Medical Writings section will open with a feature essay submitted by readers. Just as we are casting a wider net in reviewing a more varied body of literature, we are looking for imaginative pieces that range over a broad landscape of subject matter. Some essays may be extensive narrative reviews of books with significant medical and societal importance. Others may consider unusual works of fiction that have special messages for all of us who care for patients. Still others may explore the ways in which writings, medical or otherwise, have helped to shape who we are and what we do in medicine. Although physicians' personal experiences will remain in the realm of our On Being a Doctor section and short creative prose pieces or poetry will continue to appear as Ad Libitum pieces, the possibilities for essays in Medical Writings are many.

We are indebted to Dr. Thomas Finucane and Dr. Jesse Roth of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine for their suggestion of the title "Lingua Medica" for a subset of planned essays in Medical Writings on medical language. When they are considered carefully, it is clear that the words physicians use daily with the intention of communicating with one another succinctly and efficiently are sometimes fraught with inaccuracy and inconsistency. Moreover, it requires skill and sensitivity to translate "lingua medica"-the language of medicine-into effective communication with our patients. The Lingua Medica essays will plunge into the conundrum of language in an effort to unravel the confusion and force us to think harder about what we say and how we say it.

And so, this New Year, and with much enthusiasm, we launch Medical Writings. Help us to welcome and develop it. We look forward to your comments and contributions.