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来自：http://www.nuim.ie/nirsa/geo-pub/geo-editors.html
For those unfamiliar with publishing journal articles the process can often seem a little unclear. To help you understand this process, below are the answers to twenty eight questions that editors are often asked.
What does an editor do?
An editor's job is to manage the day-to-day tasks in producing a journal - liaising with contributing authors, putting papers through the refereeing process, dealing with the publisher. In relation to liaising with authors an editor's job is to balance trying to help an author publish an article at the same time as fulfilling the aims and objectives of the journal and maintaining the quality of the material published. To help in this task an editor relies on the guidance of an editorial board and referees. Most journals have more than one editor to help cope with workload.
What is an editorial board and what does it do?
An editorial board is a panel of 'experts' chosen to help and guide the editor. Board members referee manuscripts and also advise the editor about the direction and quality of the journal and the identity of potential referees. How extensively the editor uses the editorial board varies across journals. It is the policy of some journals that every paper is refereed by at least one board member. Other journals use the board more selectively. Board members are chosen to provide expertise across the breath of the journal's specialism. If the journal is international in scope, the board will seek to reflect this. Some journals have specific policies about selecting board members. For example, some seek to balance the gender of board members and/or blend seasoned academics with those at the start of their careers.
What is the role of a referee?
In general an editor will send a manuscript to two or more referees. The referee's job is two-fold. First, to guide the editor's decision as to whether the paper is worthy of publication. Second, to provide constructive advice to the author(s) so that they might improve the quality of their paper. See Good practice in refereeing
How are referees chosen?
Most papers address two or three themes. An editor - using her/his own knowledge and networks or drawing on the advice of board members - will choose referees that have extensive knowledge of these themes. In general, editors will try to choose referees that do not have extensive links with the author(s). Some journals have specific policies concerning referee choice. For example, Social and Cultural Geography requires that all three referees cannot be from the same continent. This is to ensure that the papers speak to an international audience.
Is the refereeing system anonymous?
Most journals operate a double blind system of refereeing. That is, the author's identity is kept secret from the referees, and the referee's identity is kept anonymous to the author. Some journals are now encouraging referees to be more open in their refereeing by declaring their identity (e.g., ACME).
Can I have a say in the reviewers of my paper?
In general, it is the editor who chooses the referees. If, however, you have a particular reason for wanting to exclude a referee then write an explanatory note in the cover letter.
How long should I have to wait for referee comments?
Journals vary in how long they give referees to provide a report, but the majority are between 1 and 3 months. The waiting period can last longer than this though for various reasons. For example, a referee might not do the review, meaning that the editor has to find a replacement. Editors will try to keep you informed of the progress of your paper, if however you have not heard anything after four months send the editor an email or letter asking for an update.
Are manuscripts screened?
There are very few journals which adopt a policy of sending every article they receive out for review. Editors will screen the manuscripts and return papers that either do not fit the brief of the journal or are obviously below the standard expected (and will clearly not receive positive referees reports in their present form).
Are articles by graduate students treated differently by editors?
No. Editors will treat every paper equally as long as they fit the brief of the journal and they meet the required standard.
Will an editor accept an article that does not conform to the author guidelines?
Generally, an editor will ignore basic formatting until the final version, unless the paper is so badly formatted that it is unreadable. They are much more likely to balk at the length of an article. Editors have very strict rules given to them by the publishers concerning the number of pages in each issue. They therefore make strategic decisions about the length of articles they wish to publish, stating the desired length in the 'notes for authors' (e.g. 'articles should be no more than 7000 words including references'). If an article far exceeds the desired word length, it is likely that it will be returned for revisions. See Good practice in writing
Is it possible to submit non-English language articles to English language journals?
Most English language journals will only accept articles in English. There are a couple of exceptions. ACME will accept and publish papers in a number of different languages. Social and Cultural Geography will accept a non-English paper as long as it can find referees to review the paper. If the paper is accepted, however, it requires that the paper is translated into English for publication (it will though publish the abstract in the author's first language, plus French and Spanish).
Does the journal publish colour plates?
Printing colour is very expensive and most journals will not publish colour plates. Those journals that will print in colour often require a justification as to why the plate should be in colour and not be in black and white.
Do I need permission to reproduce tables/figures/plates?
Yes. Before a paper is published the editor will need proof that you have permission to reproduce tables, figures or plates. It is up to you, not the editor, to obtain the appropriate permission. To gain permission you will need to write to the permissions or copyright editor of the publisher (or newspaper, art gallery, archive, etc) of the original table, figure, plate or map. The journal will often have a standard form for you to include. If not, include the item you want permission to reproduce and details of where it will be published. They will send the permit to yourself, plus a bill if required. You send the permit to the journal editor.
Should I/Can I approach the editor prior to submission?
There is no need to contact the editor prior to submission. However, if you are unsure whether your article fits the journal's brief or you have any other questions, the editor will generally be happy to deal with your queries or to take a quick look at your paper to check suitability.
What should be in a cover letter?
The cover letter simply needs to state that you wish your article to be considered for publication in the journal and that it is has not been published elsewhere. There is no need for any long description of the paper's content or argument.
How do I go about proposing special sections/issues or to write a commentary/editorial?
Editors are always on the lookout for quality submissions. If you have organised a conference and feel that the papers would make a coherent collection, or if you have an idea for a commentary or editorial, then simply contact the editor with your proposal. The editor will assess your proposal and if they are interested will accept it as is or work with you to develop it. Papers submitted as part of a special section/issue will go through the same refereeing process as other papers.
How do I go about proposing to write a book review?
As a general rule, book review editors are always looking for potential reviewers. If you have read a book and want to review it for a particular journal contact the book review editor. They will let you know whether the book is already under review. If it isn't they will decide whether to commission you and provide a set of guidelines.
What is the journal's acceptance rate?
All journals reject some articles. The acceptance rate is the percentage of articles that are accepted for publication. The acceptance rate varies across journals depending on the standard they are seeking. The most respected and high-profile journals tend to have lower acceptance rates than other journals. In many ways the acceptance rate is immaterial. If your article is of a high quality it will be accepted and published. If you still want to know the rate, some journals such as Environment and Planning A publish them, otherwise contact the editor.
What is the journal's citation index?
A citation index reveals the extent to which articles within a journal are cited in other articles. The higher the citation index the more often articles in that journal are cited. Some caution needs to be used when considering the index. For example, new journals do not get a rating for a number of years, but it does not mean that they are not well read. Also the index does not necessarily mean that your intended readership will read the paper. Most human geography journals are listed in the Social Science Citation Index which should be available in your library.
What is the circulation/size of readership of the journal?
Journal subscriptions consist of three types: individual, institutional (library) and online through package deals (e.g., Science Direct provides online access to hundreds of journals). It is therefore increasingly difficult to track the circulation of a journal, and next to impossible to know the size of readership. This is especially the case given the widespread use of electronic databases such as FirstSearch that allow potential articles of interest to be identified without having to browse through each issue. That said, some journals are clearly more read than others - this is probably best reflected by reputation and the citation index rating.
Is this a good journal for tenure/RAE?
It is up to you to make this decision in consultation with your own institution. Some editors will also give you their personal opinions if asked.
Can I challenge the editor's decision?
Yes. If you feel that you have been hard-done-by then you do have the right to ask an editor to reconsider his/her decision. You will need to detail the reasons as to why you think a decision should be changed.
Do I need to address all the recommendations of the editor/referees?
No. It is quite common not to agree with the advice or opinions of the editor/referees. If this is the case, then you can ignore addressing particular points. However, in the resubmission letter you need to state why you have chosen not to address them. If your argument is compelling, and the article is now of a publishable quality, the editor will accept the paper.
What should be a in re-submission letter?
Every article resubmitted to a journal must be accompanied by a cover letter. This letter should detail how you have addressed the suggestions made by the editors/referees. If you have decided not to address certain recommendations you should also detail why in this letter.
Do I get paid for my contribution?
In general, authors do not get paid for contributing articles to academic journals. If you are looking to earn money from publishing geographical work some of the popular press magazines (e.g. Geographical Magazine in the UK) pay for contributions, as will newspapers.
How long will it take for my article to be published?
Once the article has been accepted for publication it will go into the queue for publication. How long it takes to actual publication depends on how long the queue is. For some journals this will mean you will go straight into the next issue and for others you may wait for up to two years. Generally, new journals will have shorter queues than the more established and top-ranking journals, but this is highly variable.
Who holds the copyright, the author or the publisher?
It is almost standard that the publisher of a journal will hold the copyright for the article once it is published. However, authors can reproduce their own article elsewhere provided that full acknowledgement is given to the journal as the original source of publication and that the Publisher is informed so they know there has not been a breach of copyright. ACME allows authors to retain copyright. 10 Big Myths about copyright explained
How many offprints will I receive?
An offprint is a reproduction of an article. The number an author receives depends on the policy of the journal. Most academic journals will provide 25+ offprints free of charge.
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发表于 2010-11-12 08:47
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发表于 2010-12-26 22:57
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