Developing New Journals Alison Mercer Kathryn Wilson.

Developing New Journals

Alison MercerKathryn Wilson

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• What makes a successful journal?

• Important milestones

• Your experience as Editors-in-Chief

• Journal development strategies

What this session will cover

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What makes a journal successful?

• Well defined scope

• Good quality (and fast!) peer review

• Highly-accessed and highly-cited articles

• Active editorial board comprised of key opinion leaders (KOLs) and “rising stars” in the journal’s specialty

• Publishes at least 3 articles a month and at least 40 articles per year

• Indexed in key services such as PubMed, Medline and Thomson Reuters JCR

• Long-term potential growth

• Establishing the journal within its intended community

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What are the different stages in a lifecycle of a journal?

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Journal lifecycle

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Key milestones

What are the major milestones in the first five years of a journal’s life?

• Journal launch (acquiring a healthy pipeline of content)

• Continuous publication of at least 2/3 articles per month

• Indexed in PubMed Central/PubMed

• Indexed in Scopus

• Tracked/indexed in Thomson Reuters ISI

• Tracked/indexed in MEDLINE

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Your experience as an Editor-in-Chief

What do you feel is the greatest challenge for a new journal?

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Journal Development

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Content commissioning

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Why commission articles and publish series?• Increase submissions

- the more you publish, the more visible the journal is, and the more submissions the journal is likely to get.

- commissioning content on specific topics or from geographical areas where the journal is not currently receiving submissions indicates to

potential authors that the journal is willing to consider their articles and they should submit.

• Increase citations

- articles, especially reviews, in new and interesting topic areas can be highly cited.

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Commissioning Content • Demonstrate that the journal knows what is going on in the field

- An article series on a hot topic area can show readers that the journal is at the cutting edge of research and are more likely to return to read and submit their work.

-Monitor trends in talks and posters when attending conferences

-Be aware of what’s being published in the high impact general journals, as well as the specialist literature

-Consider publishing article collections in these emerging and/or hot areas

-Look for opportunities to publish conference proceedings as supplements

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Commissioning – where to start?

• Be prepared to call in favours from colleagues/collaborators

• Regularly ask the Editorial Board for commissioning suggestions (topic areas and authors)

• Where possible send personal invites. The more targeted and individual an approach the more likely it is to succeed

• Have a clearly defined scope and always bear in mind your journal’s unique selling points (how does it differ from the competition)

• Where an APC is required keep in mind funding availability and BioMed Central Member Institutions

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Indexing

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• PubMed Central - 15 non-editorial articles in final form.

• MEDLINE - Journal must have published at least 40 articles (on average 3 articles a month), have no month in last 5 months with 0 publications and preferably no more than 1 month in that time with just 1 publication. Journals are assessed on journal scope, quality of content, quality of the editorial work, and the importance of the journal in the community.

• Thomson/ISI - Journals should be averaging at least 2-3 publications a month before we submit, editorial board and authors should be international, publications should be of good quality and should already be being cited.

• Scopus – Journal needs to be over 2 years old, have published over 40 articles and be publishing good quality content.

Different criteria for different indexing services

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We might not agree that the Impact Factor is the most meaningful measure of impact, but the selection process is a reminder of how to build and maintain a successful journal:

• Consistent publication• Quality articles• Thorough peer review• Citations (even before the journal is tracked for IF)

What’s the key message about indexing..

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Offering good peer review

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• A fast time to first to first decision

• Constructive peer review (offer feedback where possible)

• Guidance from the Editors as to what they need to respond to in the reviewers report

What authors expect with regards to peer review?

What are your responsibilities as Editors?• Choosing the right reviewers

• Prompt response to authors and reviewers

• Making sure peer review is ethically sound (following COPE guidelines)

• Where an Editor may have a conflict of interest they should remove themselves from the review process

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Editorial Board

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• Creating a successful board

- balance of senior researchers and people starting out in their careers

- all geographical and scope areas should be represented

• Communicating with your Editorial Board

- regular communication keeps a board active and engaged e.g. newsletters, conference calls

• Restructuring your Editorial Board

- to cope with changes in the needs of the journal e.g. increased number of submissions, commissioning

• Editorial Board members are journal advocates with a wide network of contacts, so make sure they’re active and engaged!

Secrets of a successful Editorial Board