[Image above] Credit: PxHere
Publish or perish. In the highest quality journals, which carry more weight. Make sure you are cited.
Sounds easy, right? Of course not. There are many steps involved in going from the research bench to highly cited articles. And each step is wrought with potential pitfalls.
Two interesting items for improving your publishing experience were published recently. The first is the webinar on “How To Get your Ceramics Science Published” presented by Mario Affatigato, editor-in-chief of International Journal of Applied Glass Science, and Dachamir Hotza, associate editor for International Journal of Ceramic Engineering and Science.
This hour-long webinar provides great advice on developing “good stories” written for three audiences: the editors, the readers, and the indexing services (for discovery). Advice is offered on titles, abstracts, keyword placement, and more to get the attention of the three audiences. One key element to attracting an audience is matching your work to the aims and scopes of specific journals in order to find the best fit. Not doing so is a sure-fire way to get your article rejected!
Click on this link to go to the webinar. If you did not previously register for this webinar, you will need to do so in order to view it.
The second interesting item is a blog post by Milka Kostic, program director of chemical biology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, intriguingly entitled “High-quality peer review and where to find it.” Your first reaction to that title was probably similar to my own: high-quality peer review is found at high quality journals. But the author, whose experience includes research, editing, and publishing, argues that peer review occurs every time scientists “engage with other scientists over scientific issues.” From this foundation she offers advice on steps scientists can take to improve not only their publishing experiences but also the quality of their scientific endeavors.
In this well-written post, the author discusses actions researchers can take at many stages of research and publishing. Perhaps the most important advice is for researchers to have a broad network of colleagues in their field, especially beyond their core focus area. Dialog with these colleagues at all stages of research prior to submission in order to improve your chances of acceptance. Once accepted, share your article.
On the flip side, accept requests for assistance from others and pay it forward by helping younger colleagues around the globe. As a contributor of high-quality peer review, be vigilant about the science, but be aware of your own biases. And be kind with your feedback because someone not so different from yourself will be receiving it.
I highly recommend researchers take time to view the webinar recording (available here) and read the blog post.