The submission process- Editor Responses

The Editor will make a desk rejection or acceptance and inform you of this decision generally within 30 days from the submission date.

Accepted?

Congratulations - if you are successful at this stage you will receive a letter informing you that your manuscript will next be sent out for review. The Editor will next assign a number of field specialists for the purpose of Peer Review.

The number of reviewers varies depending on level of Peer Review of that Journal, but is nominally one to three external persons. The reviewers will decide if they are appropriate to review your paper based on your abstract. The amount of time they get to review the paper is set out in Guidelines by the journal, but this step of the review process can be unpredictable and a lengthy progress.

You can generally check on the status of your manuscript through the process using your reference number, which can specify how many reviewer responses have been received. Speak with your supervisor if this is taking too long (usually 30-60 days are appropriate for first review). It can be appropriate to send a polite email to the editor with regard to the length of time reviewers are taking.

Warning: It is rare and highly unprofessional, but be particularly aware that in some cases, reviewers may wish to stall your publication to ensure their (similar) publication beats yours to the mark. A carefully worded and diplomatic email can be sent to the editor if you suspect foul play.

Rejected?

If your manuscript is rejected by the Editor, it has generally been decided by the editor or editorial board that the article is unfrotunately deemed not appropriate for further review. This can be related to the scope of the paper not matching the scope of the journal, poor writing or research quality, and general first impressions. The editor will explain the reason for the rejection in a rejection letter.

Dealing with rejection can be difficult and disappointing, with emotions running high from personal emotional investment in the manuscript. Try not to react too emotionally to the rejection, take on board the comments and/or advice, take some time and think logically:

Time to let the co-authors know the news and move down the list of potentially suitable journals you wrote in your 'Top 3-5 list of Journals'. Get ready to re-write and reformat your journal, taking on board any constructive criticisms, and try, try, try again. See 'Dealing with Rejection' for more information.