Getting to publish a journal or manuscript is very rigorous because it goes through many processes to ensure that the journal or manuscript meets the required standard. Reviewers assess the journal or manuscript to and make recommendations to the editor. Journal editors assess all journal articles or manuscripts that are submitted to their journal portals select those which they regard to be proper for the journal to send for peer review and then consider the peer reviewers’ advice to make a final decision about the journal or manuscript that will be published.
For this reason, it is important to know how the editors and the reviewers make their decisions when it comes to selecting the journal or manuscript that will be published.
Editors (What they do and want in an article)
The editors are active and usually have to make a preliminary decision on whether the paper quickly fits in. The first time journal editors are faced with a journal or manuscript they usually take look at the cover letter, abstract, conclusion, and references.
They normally use these things to judge whether the submission is in scope for the journal and to know if it has a sufficient impact. The cover letter should be very interesting, the editors and reviewers will not like a cover letter that is very boring. Since references are also considered before publishing, you can consider using reference formatting software.
This software can be used to archive relevant references, and also decreasing the time spent on searching for papers that you have read previously. Moreover, when you are working on a journal or manuscript, reference managers can automatically format your citations according to the target journal’s guidelines and update your reference list whenever you add or remove a citation, saving additional time. An example of such software is Zotero. The conclusion should be very clear and concise, do not introduce new ideas in the conclusion because it will only lead to great confusion.
Editors are always trying to consider how unique the journal or manuscript is and its significance alongside with the things the readers expect and the impact of the journal. Journal editors want to publish good quality books that are of interest to their readers. Acceptance of a submitted journal or manuscript depends on the requirements laid down by the editors and reviewers. Your journal or manuscript should relay message that clearly explains the importance of the study. Need help with your journal click here.
After writing your journal or manuscript get a colleague or someone to read it and give you feedback on how the journal or manuscript flows. If the flow is good then you are good to go, but if it is not, then you have to correct the places that need to be corrected, if necessary rewrite your journal or manuscript so it could flow well and grab the attention of the editor.
Before submitting your journal or manuscript to the editor you should look out for some things and ask few questions like;
- Is the journal or manuscript within the scope of the journal?
- Is it unique?
- Does the research adds knowledge or advances the field?
- Does it add to an active research field?
- Is it carefully prepared and formatted with all required sections present, does it use clear and concise language?
- And does it follow an ethical standard?
To increase the probability of paper acceptance, try to select a journal whose scope fits well for your research focus, for instance conferring with your colleagues, reviewing your own reference list, and browsing journals’ websites and recent tables of contents.
Lastly, when your journal is necessary for your promotion or for your graduation, seek the service of professional writers online, there are bulk them like Thesismind Consult. Guide the writer on what you want to achieve and ensure that you review completed version of the journal article to meet your standard and journal site website. In some cases, you need to review the requirement of the journal you intend publishing with before you even start writing.
What Editors want?
The editor is first person who will see your finished paper and the one whose judgment will matter the most. What do they really want in a journal or manuscript?
The first thing editors do is to see whether the research appears original, the abstract stimulating and if the study (when empirical) has sufficient observations or interviews, and good conclusions. Also to check if the title is concise, informative and interesting. Titles that are too long, boring, misguiding or contain repetition of terms or notions are not good so it should be avoided.
They look at the introduction, the methods to make sure that the paper is both theoretically and methodologically original and rich, and that it has a solid argument and appealing narrative. A journal with good problem statement will surely catch the editor’s eye. Read more about writing a good problem statement.
Make sure the journal or manuscript is not out of scope or weak, else it will be rejected even before they send it to reviewers. Or have a very weak empirical foundation, or deals with a too narrow issue that is likely to interest few readers, a well-written text that is not sloppy otherwise it will be rejected. Weak and out of scope journal or manuscript can easily be detected. Proper formatting is important because editors want an article that is formatted to fit their journal style and audience. Editors don’t want to be second choices to people so everything should be according to their standard let it not look like already rejected work from another place.
Finding a good reviewer can be a little difficult for editors sometimes, so it advisable to recommend good reviewers or reviewers. The reviewers should be clear and straightforward in their advice (minor revision, major revision, reject or accept) for easier decision making on the side of editors.
Editors want appropriate answer or correction, if any correction is given be it minor or major revision, proper and clear answer is very important because they read the full revised paper and also focus only on the response letter for easy decision making, do not try to play pranks with the correction to avoid being blacklisted. For instance; you are given a correction to do and you go and change the title instead of doing what the editor asked to do, and each time you change the title without effecting the correction it gets rejected when the editor finds out you are likely to be blacklisted.
Being an editor is time- consuming contribution to the academic community. They spend a lot of time reading the submissions, writing emails, corresponding with other fellow editors, with authors, and evaluating special issue proposals, attending meetings with the publisher, organizing journal events and activities. Authors should try to do the necessary things to avoid adding more stress to the stress they already go through. They would be more understanding with journal editors, with reviewers, and be more sympathetic to the peer-review process if every doctor in academia worked as an editor for some time which would also help them learn more about the publishing industry and understand its major flaws, challenges, and advantages.
Reviewer (What they do and want)
Reviewers evaluate article submissions to journals based on the requirements of that journal, predefined criteria, and the quality, completeness, and accuracy of the research presented. They provide feedback on the paper, suggest improvements and make a recommendation to the editor about whether to accept, reject or request changes to the article. The ultimate decision always rests with the editor but reviewers play a significant role in determining the outcome.
Reviewing requires the investment of time and a certain skill set. Before a reviewer decides to accept a request to review, he might want to know more about the peer review process and how to conduct a review. Reviewing is a time-intensive process – the work involved in writing a review report can be almost as much as writing a journal or manuscript, but it is very useful for the reviewer as well as for the community. Reviewers ensure the rigorous standards of the scientific process by taking part in the peer-review system.
Reviewers uphold the integrity of the journal by identifying invalid research, and helping to maintain the quality of the journal. They fulfill a sense of obligation to the community and their own area of research. They establish relationships with reputable colleagues and their affiliated journals, and increase their opportunities to join an Editorial Board. They can help prevent ethical breaches by identifying plagiarism, research fraud and other problems by dint of their familiarity with the subject area. They reciprocate professional courtesy, as authors and reviewers are often interchangeable roles– as reviewer, researchers “repay” the same consideration they receive as authors.
What reviewers want
Reviewers want a good abstract that provides an accessible summary of the paper which will also helps them understand the aims, key data, and conclusions of the journal or manuscript. Their first read-through is a skim-read which will help them form an initial impression of the paper and get a sense of whether their final recommendation will be to accept or reject the paper.
Reviewers want to know what is the main question addressed by the research? Is it relevant and interesting? How original is the topic? What does it add to the subject area compared with other published material? Is the paper well written? Is the text clear and easy to read? Are the conclusions consistent with the evidence and arguments presented? Do they address the main question posed? If the author is disagreeing significantly with the current academic consensus, do they have a substantial case? If not, what would be required to make their case credible? If the paper includes tables or figures, what do they add to the paper? Do they aid understanding or are they not required?
Reviewers also want to know places where the meaning is unclear or ambiguous, any factual errors any invalid arguments. They also want to know if the title properly reflects the subject of the paper. They also look out for the keywords to know if they accurately reflect the content. They also want to know if the papers have appropriate length, if the key messages short, accurate and clear, they check the Language and the originality of the work.
Reviewers also check the list of References to know its accuracy, format, adequacy, and balance. List of references should be helpful to the reader, fair to competing authors, not over-reliant on self-citation, gives due recognition to the initial discoveries and related work that led to the work under assessment. Read how to write a good literature review.
Reviewers also look out for plagiarism in a journal or manuscript, they prefer it when the author emphasizes on their own study instead of copying everything from people. Do not forget to contact us if you need help with your academic work. Read