From submission to publication with IOP journals – a guide for authors Tim Smith, Senior Publisher DPG Spring Meeting 25 March 2012, Berlin, Germany tim.smith@iop.org, www.iop.org Notes for first body slide

Outline IOP Publishing Choosing a journal Writing and formatting your article The peer-review process Promoting your published work New Journal of Physics (NJP) Specific article criteria Video abstracts What are they and why bother?

IOP Publishing The publishing arm of UK Institute of Physics A not-for-profit organisation A leading publisher in physical sciences Oldest content dates from 1874 Over 60 journals including partner titles Journal of Physics range New Journal of Physics (on behalf of IOP and DPG) Physics World Editorial offices in UK, USA, Russia, China, Japan, Germany

The physics market ~140,000 articles in 2011 Peaked in 2008 IOP has ~ 11% market share of physics research Fall in 2011 due to tightening of quality standards

IOP journals - readership More than 22 million downloads in 2011 Order of magnitude increase in last 10 years Dominant usage is to the online version

Choosing where to submit – broad or niche? Broad titles offer Large readership High Impact Factors Greater opportunity to reach researchers from other fields “General Interest” element

Choosing where to submit – broad or niche? Niche titles offer Smaller but more specialised readership More technical articles Represent different communities of physicists Same quality standards

Choosing where to submit – OA or subscription? IOP Publishing is one of the largest OA publishers in physics Gold OA and now ‘Hybrid OA’ titles Free to read, but somebody has to pay! Are funds available? Increased visibility (measured through downloads) Author-friendly copyright

Writing and formatting your article - planning Consider the best way to structure your article to maximise visibility and impact Title – an opportunity to catch the reader’s eye Abstract – usually less than 200 words. Should succinctly capture the main result and conclusions Introduction – state clearly the object of the work, its scope and the main advances you are reporting Methods – give sufficient information to allow someone else to duplicate your method Results and discussion – clearly presented with potential implications. State the impact of your results compared with other recent work Conclusions – summarise key results and plans for future directions of study References - acknowledge the work of others and cite publications that have influenced the direction of your study

Writing and formatting your article – writing and editing Clarity Your paper must be easy to understand Bear in mind the expected audience Introduce ideas that may be unfamiliar early in the paper so that later results can be understood All content should be relevant to main result Figures and multimedia Carefully chosen, can greatly enhance the accessibility of your article Editing process Re-read first draft – if necessary reconsider original plan to improve clarity and conciseness Send your paper to colleagues and co-authors for feedback If necessary seek native English speaker for assistance Cover letter state the significance and originality of your work how does your study advance on previously published work? conflicts of interest?

Peer review – why? As a service to authors - peer review should improve the paper! To ensure that the paper is suitable for our journals based on: Quality Originality Importance Gain a seal of approval from independent experts Quality rather than quantity (rejection rate for J. Phys. journals >70%)

The peer-review process

How long will peer-review take? We are aware of the importance of service to our authors As a leading physics publisher, we aim to (on average): Process your paper within 1 working day Reach a first decision within 4 weeks of submission Publish your paper within 100 days of submission (if accepted) However, quality is paramount and we must ensure: Peer review is rigorous and fair That speed should not compromise this commitment

Is publication the end? No Publication should be the start of the next phase – the communication of your work Increase the visibility and citations to your work What does IOP do to promote your work? Press releases through a dedicated press team Coverage in Physics World and our other community websites LabTalk and Video Abstract options ‘Recommended reader’ campaigns What can you do? Highlight your work on personal/group website Use your network of colleagues/peers Use your own institute press office/media opportunities

Recent coverage for IOP content

Recent coverage for IOP content

New Journal of Physics Launched in 1998 by IOP and the German Physical Society The first peer-reviewed, open-access journal to cover the whole of physics In 1998 the term “open access” did not even exist Launched as a “novel experiment” Now considered to be pioneering Growing number of OA titles

New Journal of Physics – citation performance Current Impact Factor is 3.85 The highest OA journal in physics 3rd highest IF out of all general physics, original research journals Articles are increasingly being cited Immediacy Index high in 2009 and 2010

New Journal of Physics – unique criteria “……..research results should make substantial advances within a particular subfield of physics. The impact of an NJP article should be such that it will appeal to the journal's broad readership…….” Authors will be redirected to an archival journal for incremental or highly specialised work Every submission is personally handled by a member of the Editorial Board Preliminarily assess for suitability – breadth of appeal and likely significance on field Oversee referee selection (at least two independent) > 75% of submissions are rejected

New Journal of Physics – article style “…….. article abstracts, introductions and conclusions should be accessible to the non-specialist, stressing any wider implications of the work within physics.…….” “…..authors are encouraged to take full advantage of the electronic medium to include colour, video, audio or other innovative presentation formats and links to more extensive tutorial information or data……” Article length flexibility authors are encouraged to include full background information General Scientific Summaries and Video Abstracts

New Journal of Physics – General Scientific Summary The GSS should be structured into the following three distinct sub-sections Introduction and background – a short and accessible introduction to the topic aimed at providing a brief outline of the current state of scientific knowledge in the field. The main result(s) – a synopsis of the main result(s) reported in the paper and a statement of how scientific knowledge on the topic has been extended as a result of the study. Wider implications – a summarizing statement that puts the work into a broader context and highlights any wider implications and directions for future study.

New Journal of Physics – General Scientific Summary

Video abstracts Launched on NJP in February 2011 Will be launched on other IOP journals in 2012 Unique new content stream aimed at: increasing the visibility of articles and authors conveying complex themes to a broad audience enable authors to go beyond the constraints of their written article enhancing the overall user experience Aligned with NJP’s strategy to disseminate research as widely as possible and embrace online medium Integrated as part of the archival full-text article Free-to-view No additional charge for authors Usage terms recognise prevalence for online sharing and reuse

Video abstracts – an integral part of the article

Why make a video abstract? A great way to explain your research to a broad audience Demonstrate your experiments running in real time Illustrate complex theoretical phenomena through practical demonstrations Showcase simulations and visualisations with verbal narration Convey your enthusiasm for the work in a way that your written article cannot Raise your visibility

Top tips Video abstracts should last no longer than 4 minutes Structure your video to tell a story Retain the attention of viewers all the way through Include a mix of content/styles Practical demonstrations, animations, interviews, lab tours Include multiple presenters and film group discussions Choose the location carefully and remove all background noise Include a transcript to maximise accessibility Be creative - let your enthusiasm and personality come across!

Video abstracts – early results >70 published since February 2011 Monthly growth since November 2011 >27,000 views > 400 views per video abstract Articles with a video abstract so far receive (on average) five times more downloads Videos drive readership

Video abstracts – author quotes “Video abstracts are a great way to communicate some of our enthusiasm and excitement, which tends to get lost in a scholarly publication.” Carlo W J Beenakker, Leiden University, The Netherlands ‘”Video abstracts allow the presenter to get across the key message of their article in an open and accessible way. A visually striking abstract, as well as being fun to make, can really make an article stand out from the crowd.” Alex Chin, Universität Ulm, Germany “By featuring the people behind the science, video abstracts have the potential to convey inspiration and enthusiasm, and thereby the significance of scientific results, beyond the concise text of articles.” Achim Kempf, Waterloo University, Canada

Video Abstracts – more information and guidelines www.njp.org/videoabstracts

Thank you! Pick up our ‘Introductory guide for authors’ this week at booth FOG7 in the exhibition area!