Post on 31-Jul-2020
How to get published on scholarly publications :
For Researchers in Biomedical Science
Sarah,(Xiaoqian) Liu
Core Content Consultant
x.liu.2@elsevier.com
Lead the way in advancing science, technology and health
Galileo’s last and greatest work, published in 1638 by
Elzevir, Discorsi e Dimostrazioni Matematiche
Louis Pasteur
(Chemistry)
Alexander Fleming
(Medicine)
Albert Einstein (Physics)
Craig C Mello (Medicine)
John C. Mather
(Physics)
Francoise Barre-Sinoussi
(Medicine)
ShinyaYamanaka(Medicine)
Marie Curie(Physics,
Chemistry)
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Manage the high quality scientific outputs globally
5 Year CAGR: 2012-2016
Articles Submitted 9.50%
Articles Published 5.03%
*Figures for all Elsevier Journals
984,736
1,072,204
1,189,424
1,320,538
1,441,017
329,058 352,356 367,868 392,249 414,884
-
200,000
400,000
600,000
800,000
1,000,000
1,200,000
1,400,000
1,600,000
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Submission & publication of scientific articles
Articles submitted Articles accepted
| 4
Academic publishingThe publishing cycle
Solicit &
manage
submissions
30-60%
rejected from
~ 1.2 million
submissions
Manage
Peer Review830,000+
reviewers
Edit &
prepare
420,000articles
accepted
Production12.6 million
articles
available
Publish &
Disseminate
>700 million
downloads by
>14 million
researchers in
>120 countries!
Generally process for peer review
Submit a
paper
Basic requirements met?
REJECT
Assign
reviewers
Collect reviewers’
recommendations
Make a
decisionRevise the
paper
[Reject]
[Revision required]
[Accept]
[Yes]
[No]Review and give
recommendation
START
ACCEPT
Author Editor Reviewer
Michael Derntl: Basics of Research Paper Writing and
Publishing.
http://www.pri.univie.ac.at/~derntl/papers/meth-se.pdf
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• Preparing your manuscript
• Structuring your article
• Using proper scientific language
• Promoting your research
Outline
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Planning your articleAre you ready to publish?
Not readyWork has no scientific interest
ReadyWork advances the field
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Choosing the right journalBest practices
▪ Aim to reach the intended audience for your work
▪ Choose only one journal, as simultaneous submissions are
prohibited
▪ Supervisor and colleagues can provide good suggestions
▪ Shortlist a handful of candidate journals, and investigate them:
• Aims & Scope
• Accepted types of articles
• Readership
• Current hot topics
Articles in your reference list will usually lead you
directly to the right journals.
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Impact
Factor
Bibliometric indicators
Eigenfactor SJR SNIP CiteScore
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Choosing the right journal
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Choosing the right journal
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Preparing your manuscriptGuide for Authors
▪ Find it on the journal homepage of the publisher, e.g. Elsevier.com
▪ Keep to the Guide for Authors in your manuscript
▪ It will save your time
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Determine if you are ready to publish your work
Decide on the best type of manuscript
Choose the target journal
Check the Guide for Authors
RecapBefore writing your paper
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• Preparing your manuscript
• Structuring your article
• Using proper scientific language
• Promoting your research
Outline
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General structure of a research article
▪ Title
▪ Abstract
▪ Keywords
▪ Introduction
▪ Methods
▪ Results and Discussion
▪ Conclusion
▪ Acknowledgements
▪ References
▪ Supporting materials
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The process of writing –
building the article
Title, Abstract, and Keywords
Figures/Tables (your data)
Conclusion Introduction
Methods Results Discussion
Title
Abstract
Main Text
Title
Abstract
Article
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▪ Attract reader’s attention
▪ Contain fewest possible words
▪ Adequately describe content
▪ Are informative but concise
▪ Identify main issue
▪ Do not use technical jargon and rarely-used abbreviations
Effective manuscript titles
Editors and reviewers do not like titles that make no sense or fail to
represent the subject matter adequately. Additionally, if the title is not
accurate, the appropriate audience may not read your paper.
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▪ Are the labels of the manuscript
▪ Are used by indexing and abstracting services
▪ Should be specific
▪ Should use only established abbreviations (e.g. DNA)
Keywords
Article title Keywords
“An experimental study on
evacuated tube solar collector using
supercritical CO2”
Solar collector; supercritical CO2;
solar energy; solar thermal
utilization
Check the Guide for Authors for specifics on which keywords should be
used.
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▪ Summarize the problem, methods, results, and conclusions in a
single paragraph
▪ Make it interesting and understandable
▪ Make it accurate and specific
▪ A clear abstract will strongly influence whether or not your work
is considered
▪ Keep it as brief as possible
Abstract
Take the time to write the abstract very carefully. Many authors write the
abstract last so that it accurately reflects the content of the paper.
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Include only data of primary importance
Use sub-headings to keep results of the same type together
Be clear and easy to understand
Highlight the main findings
Feature unexpected findings
Provide statistical analysis
Include illustrations and figures
Results
Results section
▪ Subheadings should declare the take home message
▪ Each subsection should focus on one figure
▪ A lead off sentence should declare why an experiment
was performed
▪ The conclusion sentence at the end of a subsection
should declare a result
▪ Be consistent with the method section
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Describe how the problem was
studied
Include detailed information
Do not describe previously
published procedures
Identify the equipment and
materials used
Methods
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Provide a brief context to the readers
Address the problem
Identify the solutions and limitations
Identify what the work is trying to achieve
Provide a perspective consistent with the nature of the journal
Introduction
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Interpretation of results
Make the discussion correspond to the results and complement them
Compare published results with your own
Discussion
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▪ Be clear
▪ Provide justification for the work
▪ Explain how your work advances the present state of knowledge
Conclusion
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▪ Advisors
▪ Financial supporters and funders
▪ Proof readers and typists
▪ Suppliers who may have donated materials
Acknowledgments
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▪ Do not use too many references
▪ Always ensure you have fully absorbed
the material you are referencing
▪ Avoid excessive self citations
▪ Avoid excessive citations of publications
from the same region or institute
▪ Conform strictly to the style given in the
Guide for Authors
References
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• Preparing your manuscript
• Structuring your article
• Using proper scientific language
• Promoting your research
Outline
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▪ Poor language quality can delay or block publication of work
▪ Proper English should be used throughout the manuscript
Why is language important?
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▪ Write direct, short, and factual sentences
▪ Convey one piece of information per sentence
▪ Avoid multiple statements in one sentence
Manuscript language: Sentences
The average length of sentences in scientific writing
is only about 12-17 words.
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Manuscript language: Tenses
Present tense:
Use for known facts and hypotheses
Past tense:
Use for experiments conducted and results
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Do publishers correct language?
No!
It is the author’s
responsibility......but resources
are available
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▪ Proper English is important so
editors and reviewers can
understand the work
▪ Use short, concise sentences,
correct tenses, and correct
grammar
▪ Refer to the journal’s Guide for
Authors for specifications
▪ Have a native English speaker
check your manuscript or use a
language editing service
RecapAre you using proper manuscript language?
Thank you