Dissertation to Article Sharing Your Research

Why do a journal article? Leave a record of research that can be built on by others Make your research more accessible to a wider audience Build your reputation Make contacts with others in your field Improve your prospects for employment Journal articles are more readily available than books Journal articles take less time than books.

Researching Journals - General Consider journals you used for your research. Ask departmental faculty where to publish. Find high-impact journals in your field: ns/change ns/change Consider a pre-submission query Need to do your research because it can take 3 months to hear back after submission and you can only send to one journal at a time.

Researching Journals - Specific Reputation Peer-reviewed Online Indexed Longevity Number of articles/Rejection rate Turnaround time Well-indexed Page Limits Charges Author’s rights

Consider Open Access Journals Open access journals are available to everyone worldwide in the scholarly community. Some studies show a higher impact factor for OA journals. You can retain your copyrights and make unimpeded use of your work. ns/changehttp:// ns/change

What are Journals looking For Is the argument new? Is it significant? Is it suitable for the journal Is it well-organized? Are the methods well thought out? Are the conclusions based on data? Is the length ok? Are references up-to-date?

Writing- in general Look at target journal(s) for length, style, audience considerations Write for a more general audience Make writing social. Find a model article. Be argument-driven not data-driven. If you plan to use a dissertation chapter, read it, then try to write it from memory.

Writing – the Title Along with the abstract, a good title will improve discoverability Make as descriptive as possible Name your subject Use unique words if possible and avoid vague terms Suggest your argument Title should be written last

Writing – the Abstract State why you did the study/project State what it was about State your methodology State your findings State your conclusions

Writing – Structure for Science and Social Science Articles Section One ▫Introduction, Literature Review, Statement of Hypothesis Section Two ▫Methods, Procedures, Materials and Instruments, Experiment, Context and Setting, Population Section Three ▫Results, Discussion, Conclusions

Writing – Structure for Humanities Articles Introduction ▫Context, Review of the Debate, Author’s Argument, Significance, Summary Body ▫Background, Analysis Summary Conclusion

Tables, Figures, Graphs These interrupt the reading of the text so make sure they are necessary If only a few data points are displayed consider describing them in text Be consistent throughout the article Reduce visual clutter Third party works will require permission

Using Copyrighted Material Publishers have different standards for use of copyrighted material but most will want permissions for 3 rd party content such as images, diagrams, maps, extensive quotes, etc. Allow a long lead time for permissions. Look a the Chicago Manual of Style for permission letters Permissions may be denied or cost a lot. Consider alternatives

Submitting Carefully select your journal Check requirements at journal web site Cover letter ▫ sell the article: importance, appeal to readers ▫tell why you selected the journal ▫offer warrants on authorship and ownership ▫include the abstract ▫omit your status

Waiting for the Water to Boil Give the journal 3 months to respond then start sending queries Responses ▫Full acceptance ▫Minor problems, resubmit ▫Major problems, resubmit ▫Reject, but will entertain a resubmit ▫Rejected and dismissed ▫Rejected by the editor

Resubmit or Send Elsewhere If in the first 3 or 4 categories of acceptance read the reviewers notes carefully and resubmit If not in the first 3 or 4 categories consider another journal ▫do your research to make sure the journal is a good match ▫take any reviewers notes to heart ▫have others read the work to improve structure and readability

The Publication Agreement Make sure you retain the rights that you need. Do you need to convey your copyright to the journal. Can you use your article as the basis for additional works, provide copies to colleagues/ students, put a copy in an institutional repository? Sparc addenda tml

After Publication Send copies to faculty you know. Send copies to authors that you cite with a nice cover letter. Consider sending copies to any foreign colleagues who may not have access. Celebrate!

Resources Belcher, Wendy Laura Writing your journal article in 12 weeks: a guide to academic publishing success. Thousand Oaks, Calif: SAGE Publications. Cargill, Margaret, and Patrick O'Connor Writing scientific research articles: strategy and steps. Chichester, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.