Publish or Perish: Moving from Abstracts to Papers

!

!Theodore!J!Brown!&!Kellie!E!Murphy!

Nothing(in(science(has(any(value(to(society(if(it(is(not(communicated…(

Anne!Roe!

Every(study(has(a(‘best(before(date’(

Goals&and&Objec.ves&&

!!

Goal:!To!provide!prac;cal!informa;on!on!publishing!research.!

A)  To!discuss!barriers!to!publishing!and!strategies!to!overcome!these!

B)  To!describe!approaches!to!selec;ng!the!appropriate!journal!for!your!paper!and!how!to!write!for!that!journal.!!

C)  To!discuss!considera;ons!in!determining!authorship.!

D)  To!explain!the!manuscript!review!process!and!how!to!approach!the!rebuHal.!

Objectives:

Do I have enough data to publish?

Ge0ng&Ready&

•  Set!aside!sufficient!;me!

•  Iden;fy!appropriate!journal!

•  Outline!the!manuscript!

•  Iden;fy!coMauthors!

•  Gather!data!&!references!

There is no elevator to success. You have to take the stairs

- Author unknown

How do I select the right Journal?

1.  Scope of the journal

2.  Readership of the journal

3.  Prestige of the journal (e.g. Impact Factor)

4.  Costs

5.  Likelihood of having the submission accepted

Impact!Factor!

Citations in a given year

# of articles published in previous 2 years IF =

Biol Reprod 3.3 Fertil Steril 3.97 Hum Reprod 3.86 Hum Reprod Update 7.04 NEJM 47.05 JBC 5.328

H5index&•  Developed!by!Jorge!Hirsch!in!2005!as!a!metric!for!quan;fying!the!output!of!

an!individual!researcher!•  H!=!number!of!papers!with!at!least!H!cita;ons!!•  Example!

!

Publica;on!!!!!!!!!!number!of!;mes!cited!1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!450!2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!41!3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!23!4!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!15!5!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!9!6!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!7!7!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!5!8!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!3!9!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1!

H&index&=&6&Author!has!published!at!least!6!papers!that!have!each!received!at!least!6!cita;ons!

Scopus,(Web(of(Science,(Google(scholar(–!HMindex!will!vary!as!it!is!based!upon!ar;cles!tracked!in!the!par;cular!database!

Ar@cles(in(higher(impact(factor(journals(are(cited(more(frequently(but(only(on(average!

Four!“Whats”!1.  What!is!the!ques;on!or!purpose?!(Introduc.on)!2.  What!did!you!do?!!(Methods)!3.  What!did!you!find?!!(Results)!4.  What!does!it!mean?!(Discussion)!!As(you(draC(your(manuscript,(constantly(keep(in(mind(

the(need(for(accuracy,(clarity,(and(brevity(

Outlining&the&manuscript&

Title&•  Titles!can!affect!journal!reviewers’!and!editors’!impressions!of!

the!quality!of!your!work,!whether!readers!can!find!your!work!once!published,!and!whether!readers!will!be!interested!in!reading!your!work.!

•  Strong!;tles!have!three!elements:!keywords,!emphasis,!and!impact.!

•  Always!check!the!author!instruc;ons!for!your!target!journal!for!;tle!requirements!before!submission.!

•  Avoid!using!abbrevia;ons,!filler!phrases,!and!humor.!

•  Keep!your!;tle!brief!and!focused!on!the!most!important!point!in!your!manuscript.(

hHp://www.biosciencewriters.com/Wri;ngMStrongMTitlesMforMResearchMManuscripts.aspx!

Abstract&

The(most(important(sec@on(as(it(will(be(read(by(the(most(people.((In(addi@on,(will(be(the(first(thing(that(editors(and(reviewers(read.((Should(be(wriJen(in(past(tense,(does(not(contain(references(or(commercial(names(and(has(FEW(defined(abbrevia@ons.((XMcheck(consistency.(

Introduc.on&•  A!succinct,!to&the&point&narra;ve!that!includes!vital!background!info!and!explains!the!ra;onale!clearly!and!conveys!why!the!study!is!necessary/important.!

•  !Introduc;on!should!always!conclude!w/!a!direct!statement!about!the!purpose!(hypothesis/objec;ves)!of!the!study.!

!•  The!purpose/objec;ves!is!the!focal!point!by!which!the!paper!will!be!assessed!

Methods&

Describe(how(the(research(was(done,(materials((including(sources)(used,(study(popula@on/demographics,(ethics(approval,(and(procedures.((Do(not(make(the(reader(guess(what(type(of(study(design(you(used((e.g.(retrospec@ve/prospec@ve).((Should(be(wriJen(in(the(past(tense,(avoiding(jargon(and(undefined(acronyms.((In(sufficient(detail(that(a(knowledgeable(reader(could(reproduce(the(study/experiment(M(but(do(not(repeat(details(of(established(methods.(

Results&(from&JK)&&Take!longer!to!write,!an!incremental!approach!is!best!using!the!following!rules!!1.  Maximize!data!presented!as!Tables,!or!as!Figures.!2.  Text!directs!reader!to!per;nent!significant!observa;ons!

in!Tables!and/or!Figures!3.  Use!text!where!a!table!can!be!replaced!by!2M3!

sentences.!!4.  Use!term!“significant”!where!sta;s;cally!so!(insert!

data,!test!type,!significance!and!p!value.!5.  Otherwise!do!not!comment!on!data!not!achieving!

significance!(avoid!“trends”)!6.  1M2!pages!max,!less!is!beHer,!implying!great!Tables!and!

Figures.!!

Figures&&&

1.  Be!mindful!as!project!evolves!of!relevant!Figures/Tables!–!make!sure!the!format!and!resolu;on!are!adequate!for!Journal!publica;on.!

2.  Where!needed,!seek!help!to!use!Photoshop!or!Illustrator!in!order!to!organize!Figures!as!panels.!

3.  Create!Figure!legends,!grouped!as!word!text.!4.  Table!legends!are!beneath!each!Table.!5.  References,!Figure!legends,!Tables,!then!

Figures.!

6.  Tables!and!Figures!must!stand!alone.!!

Focus&on&strong&tables&&

Discussion&

•  Places!the!study!in!context!for!the!reader!•  Why!are!your!findings!new!and!important!•  Provides!an!interpreta;on!of!your!results!and!indicates!the!implica;ons!•  Acknowledges!sources!of!poten;al!bias,!imprecision,!or!limita;ons!•  Relates!the!findings!to!the!objec;ve!listed!in!the!Introduc;on!•  Is!not!a!complete!review!of!the!literature!

Discussion&Framework&1.  Corresponds!to!results!but!does!not!repeat!them.!

2.  Avoid!statements!beyond!what!the!data!support!

3.  Specula;ons!on!possible!interpreta;ons,!rooted!in!fact,!are!allowed!

4.  Indicate!how!your!results!relate!to!exis;ng!literature–!aHempt!to!resolve!contradic;ons!

5.  Hypothesis!genera;on!if!results!differ!from!exis;ng!literature!

6.  !Indicate!Strengths!and!weaknesses!M!be!honest!and!upMfront!

7.  Be!clear!!about!what!is!new!without!exagera;on!–!avoid!‘novel’,!‘firstM;me’!

8.  Indicate!clinical!implica;ons!and!conclusions!

9.  The!conclusion!or!last!paragraph!shows!how!the!work!advances!the!field!from!the!present!state!of!knowledge!

10.  Revise!extensively!–!whether!you!may!need!more!experiments/data!will!become!apparent!

Discussion&Framework&&

Referencing&

Discipline!yourself!to!!•  “Cite!while!you!write”!•  Only!cite!what!you!have!read!in!depth!•  Only!cite!original!peerMreview!papers!•  Cite!the!earlier!original!observa;on!

1.!!Prepare!and!order!the!figures!and!tables.!

2.!!Write!the!Methods!based!upon!the!data!to!be!included.!

3.!!Write!up!the!Results!based!upon!the!figures!and!tables.!

4.  Write!the!Discussion.!!

5.!!Write!a!clear!concluding!sentence!or!paragraph.!

6.!!Write!a!compelling!introduc;on.!

7.!!Write!the!Abstract.!

8.!!Compose!a!concise!and!descrip;ve!Title.!

9.!!Select!Keywords!for!indexing.!

10.!!Write!the!Acknowledgements.!

11.!!Finalize!and!format!the!References.!

Order&of&Ac.vi.es&

•  There!is!no!universally!agreed!defini;on!of!authorship.!!

•  As!a!minimum,!authors!should!take!responsibility!for!a!par;cular!sec;on!of!the!study.!!

•  The!award!of!authorship!should!balance!intellectual!contribu;ons!to!the!concep;on,!design,!analysis!and!wri;ng!of!the!study!against!the!collec;on!of!data!and!other!rou;ne!work.!!

•  If!there!is!no!task!that!can!reasonably!be!aHributed!to!a!par;cular!individual,!then!that!individual!should!not!be!credited!with!authorship.!!

•  All!authors!must!take!public!responsibility!for!the!content!of!their!paper.!This!means!they!have!read!and!approve!of!the!finals!version.!

•  The!mul;disciplinary!nature!of!much!research!can!make!this!difficult,!but!this!may!be!resolved!by!the!disclosure!of!individual!contribu;ons.!

•  Medical!writers!can!be!legi;mate!contributors,!and!their!roles,!affilia;ons,!and!poten;al!conflicts!of!interest!must!be!disclosed.!

Who&Should&Be&Included&as&an&Author?&

!!Examples)of)contribu3ons)that)do)not)qualify)for)authorship)

but)that)should)be)acknowledged)in)the)paper&!!

•  Providing!funding,!technical!advice,!reagents,!samples,!or!pa;ent!data.!

•  Providing!students!or!technical!personnel!who!perform!studies.!

•  Rou;ne!collec;on!of!data.!

•  General!supervision!of!the!research!group. !!

Authorship Responsibilities

•  To gather and interpret data in an honest way. •  To present a concise and accurate report of the research and an

objective discussion of its significance. •  To give due recognition to published work relating to the submitted

manuscript by way of correct reference and citation.

•  To inform the editor of related manuscripts under consideration for publication by the same author in any journal, on submission of their current manuscript.

•  To ensure that a manuscript is submitted for publication in only one journal at a time.

•  To give due acknowledgement to all workers contributing to the work. •  To declare all sources of funding for the work in the manuscript, and

also to declare any conflict of interest. •  In cases where a study involves the use of live animals or human

subjects, the study must adhere to animal or human REB standards.

RCS publications, www.rsc.org

Authorship&Order&

•  1st!author:!Person!who!did!the!majority!of!the!work!and!who!usually!writes!the!first!dran!of!the!manuscript!!

•  Last!author:!Senior!author!who!provides!support!

•  CoMauthorship:!those!in!between!–!posi;oning!is!important!

!

Falsifying data, plagiarism, reference omissions, false priority statements, 'hidden' multiple publication of the same data and incorrect authorship are serious ethical

offences.

Peer&Review&&

•  Acceptance!with!minor!correc;ons!is!rare,!so!expect!cri;cism!that!makes!you!uncomfortable!!

•  Respond!to!each!and!every!comment!•  Likely!more!than!50%!are!easy!fixes!–!so!you!are!half!way!there….!

Reviewers are asked to consider the originality of the scientific work and to evaluate the scope of the manuscript with respect to the broad readership of the journal. They are asked to:

•  Comment/Rank importance of findings •  Consider/Rank the quality of experiments and

data analysis •  Consider the clarity of presentation •  Provide an overall rating •  Provide points in favor/ points detracting •  Provide confidential remarks to the Editor •  Provide remarks to the author for explanation,

improvement, or rebuttal

What does the review process entail?

Responding&to&Peer&Review&&•  Copy!and!paste!the!document!of!the!Reviewer’s!comments!into!a!

new!word!document,!then!BOLD!the!en;re!text.!

•  Next,!separate!each!reviewer!cri;cism,!and!then!begin!to!type!the!responses!in!normal!text,!referring!to!the!page!and!line!#!of!the!submission.!

•  Write!in!a!style!!“to!the!editor”!–!not!the!reviewer!–!because!the!editor!has!the!final!decision!

•  Some!peer!review!comments!have!no!right!answer,!or!you!disagree!

•  Indicate!where!you!disagree,!but!would!concede!if!the!editor!wished!(e.g.!keep!in!table!or!figure!in!vs!out..)!

•  Make!changes!to!the!manuscript!using!“track!changes”!!

Excellent!free!online!guide!

Dr.!Edith!PoHer!!(1901M1993)!Founder!of!Perinatal!Pathology!1st!woman!American!Gynecologic!Society!Inducted!in!Ob/Gyn!Hall!of!Fame!!

Her!secret!power:!!PERSISTENCE!!

“By!applying!the!seat!of!my!pants!to!the!seat!of!my!chair!was!the!secret!to!my!

success”!!

Thanks!&!Happy!Wri;ng!!