Chemistry Central Blog
View from the inside: the submission process
I am back, as promised, this time to give an insider’s view of the early stages of the submission process at Chemistry Central Journal.
Scientists and researchers from all over the world submit their manuscripts to us, starting the whole publication process. Once a manuscript has been submitted via the Chemistry Central Journal submission system, our in-house editors read the article and perform initial checks.
Has this manuscript been published before?
We always search journal databases, like PubMed, to see if another author has already published the same article; it is vital to rule out the possibility of plagiarism. We also want to ensure that the author has not previously published a similar study.
Does this article present new chemistry and is it appropriate for Chemistry Central Journal?
One of our key concerns is whether a manuscript is sufficiently novel. We want our articles to add to the overall knowledge of chemistry, and not repeat what has already been published. Our editors also think critically about whether an article belongs in Chemistry Central Journal, especially given that authors sometimes submit manuscripts that would be more appropriate for consideration by one of our parent company’s (BioMed Central) other journals.
Has the manuscript been correctly categorized?
We ask our authors to list their article under three categories, one primary and two secondary. We then contact the members of our editorial board in these sections and ask for their suggestions for appropriate reviewers for the article. It is imperative for an article to be correctly categorized; otherwise our editorial board members will not be able to suggest appropriate experts. Once an article has been published, these categories are essential in helping your article find its target audience.
We also publish many different types of articles (e.g. research, commentary, methodology, etc.) and it is essential that a manuscript be submitted as the right kind of article. For example, if an author had incorrectly labelled his commentary as a research article, then a peer reviewer might unduly reject his manuscript, having reviewed it in the wrong light.
Will reviewers be able to read the manuscript?
We check the overall readability of the manuscript. We also assess the standard of the manuscript’s English, a necessity considering that many of our submitting authors are not native speakers of English. This check is important, because an ineffectual use of language can confuse the reader, even if the ideas behind the words are groundbreaking.
Who should or should not review a manuscript?
Potential reviewers are always asked if they have any conflicts of interest that could affect their ability to remain impartial, such as a personal relationship with the author, etc. We also ask if their fields of study correspond with that of the manuscript. We need reviewers that will be able to critically evaluate the content of the article.
I have mentioned the peer-review process several times, but what precisely is peer-review?
Peer-review is exactly what it sounds like, an evaluation by a peer, another expert in the field. When a manuscript is submitted to us, we ask the relevant editorial board members to recommend appropriate people to read and review the article. Reviewers are very familiar with the subject of inquiry and are able to spot any illogical data or unsubstantiated conclusions. They will also hopefully be up-to-date with the current and previously published research, allowing them to determine if the work is sufficiently novel. Reviewers also give us valuable feedback about whether an article should be published at all or if major revisions are needed.
Peer review is the most important part of the publication process, because otherwise it would be impossible to trust the validity of published research articles. We rely on the peer review system of checks and balances as a rigorous evaluation process to guarantee that published research is trustworthy.
We start the peer review process by sending the manuscript to the editorial advisory board members whose research or area of expertise overlaps with the subject of the article. Our editorial board members come from all over the world and do research in almost every area of chemistry (see Sections). Board members respond with comments about the article’s subject headings and either accept or decline to review the manuscript personally. Most importantly, they give recommendations of other appropriate reviewers, who are then invited to review the manuscript. Two or more experts review every article published in Chemistry Central Journal, ensuring that we publish only the highest quality of research.
Posted by Andrea Albright at 16:43 Comments (0)
