Publishing in international journals: From bench to acceptance Matthew Salter Publishing Manager, Asia-Pacific Monday 29th June 2015 The University of Tokyo Outline of the talk • Brief introduction to IOP Publishing • Writing scientific papers: three common myths • Choosing a journal • Open Access vs Subscription journals • Impact factors • Planning and writing your paper: things to consider • Writing better scientific English • Peer review • Summary The global scientific publishing landscape in numbers Journal Peer- 2,000,000 2,000 publishers 30,000 reviewed articles globally journals per year* *growing by 3-4% p.a. 10m readers worldwide 18.7% 2.5bn Fraction of total papers Full text published OA downloads PRC #1 source of Per year research papers • Leading non-profit scientific society • For-profit publishing arm of IOP • Established in 1874 • Society publisher of 70+ journals in • Worldwide membership of 50,000+ the physical sciences , conference proceedings, ebooks • Mission to advance physics education, research and application • Many partner journals • Engages with policymakers, students and • Physics World educators, and the general public • www.iopscience.iop.org • www.iop.org IOP around the world IOP Publishing in numbers >300 75 30,000 22m staff in 16 Journals & Articles Full-text locations Magazines per year downloads 3 27 Partner journals International 40 publishing partners IOP Japanese partner journals Japanese Journal of Applied Physics Express Fluid Dynamics Research Science and Technology Applied Physics of Advanced Materials JSAP (IF=1.127) JSAP (IF=2.365) JSFM (IF=0.990) NIMS (IF=3.513) Writing scientific papers: three common myths • Your paper will be rejected if the English is poor • Your paper will be rejected if it is incorrectly formatted • There is a secret magical trick to getting published in a scientific journal Getting published: three key factors • Carry out innovative, high-quality, relevant research • Write the paper in a clear, informative manner • Submit to a journal of appropriate scope and level What journals look for in a paper • Novelty and innovation • Significant step forward and/or a breakthrough in performance • High impact in the field • Important advance in scientific understanding • Data persuasively supports conclusions • In some cases, interesting to a broad range of readers Deciding on the right journal for your paper Publishing scientific papers is a very important part of a researchers job and can be a career changing decision. There are many factors to consider when choosing the right journal for your paper. • Consider the journal for your paper before you begin writing • Think about who you want to ready your paper • Don’t choose the journal primarily on its Impact Factor • Be honest about the level of the paper you are writing • Read the journal scope statements and Instructions to Authors Things to consider when selecting a journal • The audience you wish to address • Journal scope • Reputation • Publication frequency • Quality criteria • Speed • Who else publishes in the journal • Open access or subscription based • Technical-peer-review-only journals • Impact factor Impact Factors • The Impact Factor (IF) is a measurement of the importance and influence of a journal. • Calculated based on a two-year period. • Normally published in June-July of the year after the measurement period # citations in 2014 to articles published in 2012 and 2013 IF (2013) = # articles published in 2012 and 2013 e.g. Journal X publishes 175 articles in 2012 and 212 in 2013 In 2014 it receives 943 citations to these articles across the entire literature; 943 / (175 + 212) = 2.437 Impact Factor for 2013 Problems with the Impact Factors • The Impact Factor is a backward-looking metric • Does not assess current performance of a journal • IF is awarded to journals, not individual articles • Articles in high IF journals not necessarily high quality, articles in low IF journals not necessarily low quality • IF can be ‘gamed’ and are sensitive to the size of a journal • Other metrics available e.g. 5-year IF, Altmetric, sharing on social media • IF open to abuse by institutions, funders etc. Open Access journals: how are they different? Subscription journal Open-Access journal • Made available to readers by • Accepted articles available on subscription (normally institutional). payment of an Article Publication Charge (APC) • Publishing costs paid by the subscription fees • Publishing costs paid by the APC • No subscription, no access • Anyone can access the article • Needs library budget • No cost to libraries • Restricted access • Unlimited access • Reproduction rights complex • Creative Commons CC-BY or CC-BY-NC • Open Access publishing becoming increasingly popular • Many high-quality OA journals now available • Three patterns for OA journals: Green, Gold and Hybrid • Gold OA – APC charged – Immediate free access and re-use of ‘Version of Record’ – Creative Commons’ licence, e.g. CC-BY or CC-BY-NC • Green OA – No APC but embargo period (normally 12 months) on free access/re-use – Normally ‘Accepted Manuscript’ form (not ‘Version of Record’ made available – Archiving on repositories, publisher websites. Preprint and Accepted Manuscripts possible (e.g. through arXiv • Hybrid OA – Subscription journals with option to publish some individual articles as Gold OA IOP Open Access policy • Four dedicated open access journals in portfolio of over 75. • Three open access Conference Proceedings • 40 ‘hybrid’ journals, publishing individual papers on an open access basis within subscription-based journals, since 2011 ‒ CC BY licence our standard licence for gold open access publication ‒ Dedicated OA journals – no subscription ‒ ‘Hybrid’ model combining subscription with OA option – Care to ensure no-one pays twice • Self-archiving of accepted version (green OA) after 12 month embargo period Writing the paper: General points • The ABC of writing style – Be Accurate – Be Brief – Be Clear • Clarity – Write for your reader – Do not over-explain and avoid overstatement • Language and grammar – Use simple words and avoid jargon – Avoid long sentences. Use more, shorter sentences. – Think carefully about verb tenses. – Write in the active voice. Planning your paper: The basic requirements A scientific paper must contain enough information to enable readers to: • Assess observations • Repeat experiments • Evaluate conclusions and data interpretations Planning your paper: General considerations Before beginning to write, plan your paper carefully bearing the following points in mind: • The journal in which you intend to publish the paper • The significance of your work • The broader context of your work • The major unsolved problems in your field • What your work has added to the current knowledge of the field • The methods and techniques use in your work • The wider impact of your work • Include enough data to make a coherent point. • Avoid so called ‘salami-slicing’ • Top-tier journals will normally want a more complete story. • BUT…also consider other factors (students/postdocs, competition) in assessing cost/benefit • Be honest — do not ignore data that do not fit your hypothesis • Be selective — include the necessary data to support the main claims, but do not overcrowd the paper Writing the paper: Getting started • Gather all material for the paper. • List the ideas to include. • Consider the best format for your data (graphs, tables, figures). • Develop an outline for the paper. • Select the data for figures and tables. • Design the figures and tables and place in order. • Write rough subject headings to add structure. Writing the paper: Overall structure Concepts • Work from large to small • Use graphs, figures and tables to Subsections ‘storyboard’ the develop coherent flow • Introduces ideas and data in a logical order • Increases readability Paragraphs Sentences Writing the paper: Essential elements • Title • Abstract • Introduction • Methods • Results • Discussion • Conclusion • Acknowledgments • References • Figures • Title Most visible part of the paper. Concise, informative, draws attention of the reader. • Abstract Summarizes paper into a single paragraph. • Introduction Describes the main goals and give an overview of methods. Sets the work in the context of previous research. • Discussion Introduction of data, comparison to previous work, theoretical or practical implications, description of the significance of the work. Show the significance and impact of your results. Compare with other published work, discuss the implications and applications • Conclusion Summarize major points, highlight novelty and significance of your work, answer questions put in the Introduction, plans for future work • Methods Present data in an organized manner with enough information to allow duplication of your results. Ethical statements showing compliance with laws governing animal and human subjects (if applicable). • Acknowledgements Recognize the contribution of funders or other people or agencies who have given assistance • References Cite appropriate references to original works both historical and recent. Follow the reference style of the journal Writing the paper: Write for your readers • Remember: you know your work but your readers do not • Focus on a single main question • Plan the content and organization with an outline especially the flow of reasoning • Use simple, direct and concise wording • Check that all parts are connected with persuasive reasoning, appropriate structure, linkage and context.