1. Publishing without tears.
A rough guide to getting published in whatever journal you want, whenever you want.
Chris Surridge,
Chief Editor,
Nature Plants

2. Chris Surridge c.surridge@nature.com

3. To communicate the world’s best and most important science to scientists across the world and to the wider community interested in science.
Launch Issue
1869
Chris Surridge

4. Chris Surridge c.surridge@nature.com

5. What makes a Nature journal?
Highly selective — only a fraction of submissions are published.
High impact.
Each journal is run by team of full-time, professional editors.
Each journal is independent from each other journal — rejection from one doesn’t prejudice consideration by another.
Chris Surridge

6. A quick overview of Altmetrics
Altmetric score = automated algorithm.
Represents weighted count of the attention given to an article.
Weighted to reflect the relative reach of each type of source.
I.e. the average newspaper story is more likely to bring attention to the research output than the average tweet. 
*Adapted from
1272
Chris Surridge

7. The Publication Cycle Submit Revise Reject Decide Accept Referee
Chris Surridge

8. Think of your reader They are your partner Three wishes
Chris Surridge

9. Writing the paper
Explain, don‘t hype. Show, don’t tell. Demonstrate, don’t assert.
CONTEXT — What is the problem you are trying to solve? And WHY?
FOCUS — What is the ONE most important thing a reader should take away from your work?
SIGNIFICANCE — “So what?” If someone were to ask you this about your work, what is the answer?
CLARITY — The figures should speak for themselves. Clarity in the figures and tables is more important than beauty.
Chris Surridge

10. Think of your reader They are your partner Listen to the Editor
Three wishes
Think of your reader
They are your partner
Listen to the Editor
They are not your enemy
Chris Surridge

11. Submission
The cover letter is your 10 minutes alone in a room with the editor.
SHORT cover letters are best — try to distill the significance of your results into one short paragraph.
Referee suggestions
Who might have useful insights into your work?
Please don't suggest former supervisors, recent (or current) collaborators, friends, or relatives.‏
Referee exclusions — Who would you rather didn’t referee your paper and why (3-4 individuals MAX).‏
Identify all related papers submitted elsewhere.
Chris Surridge

12. Editorial process We aim to reach an initial decision within a week.
We look for impact not impact factors.
MOST papers are declined without review.
At least one editor will read your paper thoroughly. Often several editors.
Papers sent out to review will be seen by 2-4 referees.
We make our decision based on content of the referees comments, not whether they think a paper belongs in the journal.
We aim for 4-6 weeks for a decision after review.
Chris Surridge

13. They are your first reader
Three wishes
Think of your reader
They are your partner
Listen to the Editor
They are not your enemy
Believe the Referees
They are your first reader
Chris Surridge

14. Responding to referees
Thank the referees!
Make it EASY for the referees to see that ALL their concerns have been addressed.
Persuasion and diplomacy are essential.
Criticism is not an insult, it’s an OPPORTUNITY!
If an expert hasn’t understood the merits of your work, that’s a serious problem, wherever paper is published!
Answer ALL the concerns of ALL referees.
If further experiments are requested, revisions to text alone are UNLIKELY to be enough.
Chris Surridge

15. Appeals What helps? What doesn’t help?
We take appeals seriously but original submissions take priority
Only a minority of appeals are successful
What helps?
Specific errors of fact or understanding by the editors or referees
New data that addresses the major criticisms
What doesn’t help?
“Do you know who I AM!?!”
“Referees don’t like my work, therefore they are biased!”
“I know who the referee is. He’s a moron!”
“We worked really hard on this paper!”
Cosmetic revisions
Chris Surridge

16. They are your first reader
Three wishes
Think of your reader
They are your partner
Listen to the Editor
They are not your enemy
Believe the Referees
They are your first reader
Chris Surridge

17. Thank you and questions
Chris Surridge