Video 4 - The Submission Process
Components of the submission package
- Online submissions: you may need to create a login to submit your manuscript.
- Letter to the editor: should address how manuscript matches the mission of the outlet and is of interest to the audience.
- 1-6 months for response.
Note: Only submit your manuscript to 1 outlet.
Possible decisions:
- Accept: if accepted, you may still have some edits to make.
- Revise and Resubmit:
- Minor revisions: some editing, adding of literature or chart.
- Major revisions: reanalyzing or collecting additional data, adding a conceptual framework or literature.
- Not publishable/Reject
- Possible reasons for a rejection:
- Outside the purvey of the outlet’s mission.
- Makes a limited contribution to the field or not of interest to the audience.
- Conclusions are not supported by empirical evidence or findings and conclusions are inconsistent.
- Data are not described appropriately.
- Other common reasons for rejection: flaws in design, methodology, analysis, or interpretations (make sure your research design is appropriate and rigorous.)
Response to decisions:
- Keep in mind that accept/revise and resubmit decisions are rare. If you receive a rejection, rather than be discouraged:
- Take some time away: rest and reflect, and then return to manuscript with a more objective view.
- Revise using feedback: pay attention to each point raised by the reviewers, diagnose and address each point that is raised, and be open to the feedback and reasons for the feedback.
- Consult with a co-author and your writing mentor to get advice on how to address the reviews.
- Write a memo back to the editor that may also go to the reviewers:
- Take each piece of feedback and create a bulleted list with responses to each bullet.
- Create a table with the reviewers’ comments and respond to comments in a second column.
- For minor revisions: your response may go back to just the Editor for a decision.
- For Major revisions: your response may go back to the initial reviewers.
- If you don’t agree with reviewers’ feedback, you can state this but you need to support your claim.
- If asked to add additional material that will put you over the page limit, ask the editor for permission for the additional length if this will strengthen your publication.
- Consider a different outlet.
Additional advice on how to handle “Revise and Resubmit” and alternative vehicles for publication can be found here: http://www.apa.org/pi/disability/resources/writing.aspx