So what is the problem? – Paul Haddad, Editor, Journal of Chromatography A “ A great deal of excellent research is submitted from China b ut… ….“I have.

So what is the problem?

– Paul Haddad, Editor, Journal of Chromatography A

“A great deal of excellent research is submitted from China but…

….“I have encountered the following serious issues…”

Multiple submissions

Submission of a paper already published in Chinese

Plagiarism, especially of small parts of a paper

Not selecting the correct reviewer when submitting

“The following problems appear much too frequently”

• Inadequate standard of English

• Papers submitted outside scope of journal

• Failure to format the article to journal guidelines

• Inadequate response to reviewers

• Resubmission of rejected manuscripts without revision

Where to start?

Who here today struggles with their workload, family life, personal life?

Journal Editors and Reviewers

• Practicing scientists, even leaders in their fields

• Busy people doing their own research, writing and teaching, and working for journals in their spare time, to contribute to science

• Editors may receive a small payment, but reviewers are UNPAID

Journal Editors and Reviewers

These are scientists…just like you!

Make their life easier and help yourself by preparing well!

You only get one chance to make a first impression

Journal Editors and Reviewers

• Work based on datasets which are too small/insignificant

• Work out of date• Duplication of previously

published research• Incorrect/Unacceptable

conclusions

Articles are increasingly checked for originality

and relevance There is NO POINT trying to publish:

Journal Selection

Where to begin?

Journal selection is crucial!

• Check the aims and scope of your target journal

• Read papers from the journal to see what type of work is accepted

• Choose the correct article type (e.g. Research article, Review, Short com

• Ask your supervisor or colleagues for their opinions, a fresh set of eyes can be invaluable

• Articles you cite in your reference list will lead to the right choice of journal

Journal selection is crucial!

DO NOT gamble by scattering your manuscript to many journals. Only submit to one journal at a time! International ethics standards prohibit multiple / simultaneous submissions, and editors DO find out!

All EDITORS HATE WASTING TIME on poorly prepared manuscripts. (It’s also a sign of disrespect.)

Zero Tolerance

No matter how world-shattering the science, a non-conforming submission won’t even reach the eyes of the Reviewers/Editors

Zero Tolerance

Until formally correct, a manuscript is only seen by technical editors and NOT peer reviewers

YOU WILL NOT BE SAVED BY “GOOD SCIENCE”

Zero Tolerance

FACT: 65% of new manuscripts submitted to the European Journal of CardioThoracic Surgery are sent back to authors for reformatting

ZERO TOLERANCE!

• THINK OF THE PSYCHOLOGY!

• An attractive and well presented manuscript is immediately attractive to the reviewer

• FIRST IMPRESSIONS LAST!• 5% of submissions to the

European Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery have the wrong editors or journal name in the cover letter!

Use a good dictionaryThe first five use British English (but give US variants) and the last is an American English dictionary:

Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

Collins Cobuild Advanced Dictionary

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners

Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary

Title Page

• Choose an appropriate titleEffective titles:• Identify the main issue of

the paper• Attract readers• Begin with the subject of the

paper

Title Page

• Choose an appropriate titleEffective titles:• Are accurate, unambiguous,

specific and complete • Do not contain infrequently

used abbreviations• Put your main findings in the

title

Main Text

• Use numbered headings if required

• Organize sections into subsections if required or if this makes the paper easier to read

• Use US or UK English spellings consistently

• Define abbreviations on first use

• Check the text does not exceed any word count limit

Manuscript Format

• Format your manuscript according to any journal requirements– Margins– Font size– Line spacing– Page numbering– Order of sections

Title Page

• List all authors in the correct format for the journal

• List the affiliations for all authors

• Identify the corresponding author

• Check if an Abstract is required– How many words are allowed?– Should the Abstract be structured or

a single paragraph?

• Are keywords required?

Keep your name consistent!

Keep your affiliation/address consistent!

Main Text

• Sentences of approximately 20 words are easy to read

• Paragraphs of approximately 150 words provide a good flow

• Do not be afriad to use lists or tables instead of descriptive paragraphs

N

Main TextThe costs involved in biostabilization (Ia) and landfill (Ib) include the cost of land, construction, and operation and maintenance (O&M). Where Ia is made up of land costs plus construction costs and O&M costs, while Ib relates to land costs plus construction costs and O&M costs

Better:

The costs involved in biostabilization (Ia) and landfill

(Ib) include the cost of land, construction, and

operation and maintenance (O&M). Ia= Land costs + Construction costs + O&M costs

Ib= Land costs+ Construction costs + O&M costs

Main TextThe single biggest grammatical error by Chinese authors is the omission or incorrect use of the articles “a, an and the” “A, An and The” are known in English as articles.

They are problematic for Chinese authors because they do not exist in most languages including Mandarin.

Main Text

But how do I know when to use “a” and when to use “an”?

Main Text

• If the word starts with a vowel or vowel sound, A,E, I, O or U, then use “An” i.e. “An example of.....”

• One Exception, if the noun starts with a silent “H” such as hour, i.e. “We waited for an hour”

Main Text

• If the word starts with a consonant or a consonant sound, then use “A” i.e. “A sample was taken.....”

• There are exceptions but the following rule will help you to be correct nearly every time.

Main Text

If the noun begins with a vowel sound use “an” if the word starts with a consonant sound use “a”.

This is a general sound rule, NOT a spelling rule and NOT a definitive rule!

Main TextNumbers: Chinese writing is based on symbols so there is a tendency to over use Arabic numerals.

Arabic numerals = 1, 2, 3 etc

Main TextNumbers:

Most journals prefer the numbers one to ten to be spelt out:

Bad: ....the 3 examples show......

Good: ....the three examples show...

Main TextNumbers:

Never start a sentence with Arabic numerals:

Bad: 40 samples were taken.....

Good: Forty samples were taken.....

Main TextUse of Respectively and Respective: Common mistake. They are used to signify a direct link between items, a sequential significance

“Batches four, two and five contained the highest trace elements respectively”Implies 4>2>5

Scientific Notation

• Use the correct format for units of measurement (SI units are usually preferred)

• Check if italics should be used for variables

• Use consistent notation and avoid ambiguity (e.g. V for volume, v for velocity)

References in text

• Check whether numbered or name and date references should be used

• Use the correct format for citation of numbered references (e.g. (1), [1] or1)

• Should numbered references be cited in sequential order?

• How many author names should be listed for name and date references?

Reference list

• Use the correct format for the reference list– Author surname and initials– Year of publication– Article title– Journal name– Volume number– Page numbers

• Should all author names be listed or can “et al.” be used in the reference list?

Figures and tables

• Present figures & tables within the text or at the end of the paper, depending on the journal

• Cite figures & tables in sequential order in the text

• Provide suitable figure/table captions

• Check journal requirements for suitable figure formats (jpg, tiff, etc.)

• Journals usually charge for color figures in the print version

Ethics

• If your study involved human research– Declaration of Helsinki– Informed consent– Ethics Committee approval

• Guidelines for animal care• Institutional approval• Conflict of interest

Other Issues

• Acknowledgments• Cover letter• Cross-checking

– All references, figures and tables cited in the text

– All reference citations included in the reference list

• Spell-check the entire document• Check for correct grammar, syntax

and punctuation

International Science Editing

• Native English speakers• Over 100 editors, minimum Phd

level• Content of paper matched to

background of editor• Checking of all submission issues

– Grammar, syntax, punctuation and readability

– Correct formats for target journal– Reference/figure/table cross-checking– Cover letter

• Comments or queries for specific points

• Address reviewer and editor feedback

International Science Editing

http://www.internationalscienceediting.cn/

Main office in EuropeChina office in Suzhou