An Author’s Guide to Understanding Journal Instructions

What is the first step you need to take after choosing the right journal for your research? Going over the journal’s instructions for manuscript submission. This is an important step because your manuscript’s alignment with the journal’s submission instructions could determine whether it will be rejected at the desk or queued up for peer review. As an author you need to understand the journal’s submission requirements including formatting, ethical declarations, and language, while ensuring your research itself is clear and aligned with the publication’s scope. Journal instructions are not just a set of rules; they are a roadmap that can help your work reach the right audience efficiently. Understanding them thoroughly can help you reduce stress, save time, and improve the chances of your manuscript from submission to peer review smoothly.

Why journal instructions matter

Following journal instructions closely could help your manuscript move forward instead of being returned without review. By adhering to submission guideline, you show your attention to detail, professionalism, and respect for the journal’s processes. A manuscript that follows the journal’s guidelines also makes the peer reviewers’ job easier, which can lead to more constructive feedback and faster decisions.

Here’s a quick primer to help you prepare a submission-ready manuscript that is perfectly aligned with the journal’s submission guidelines. To begin with, look for instructions about the following:

• Manuscript structure and formatting: This includes title and heading styles, section order, and word counts for the manuscript and/or specific sections.

• Citation and referencing style: Each journal follows its own referencing and in-text citation style, to ensure accurate information about sources. Following this style will save the editorial desk’s and reviewer’s time and demonstrate your academic rigor.
• Ethical considerations: Clear statements about conflicts of interest, funding, and research ethics build trust in your work and prevent delays. Journals will be unable to reach a decision about your submission even if it has merit because without these essential disclosures, they will be unable to verify your work.
• Figures, tables, and supplementary materials: High-quality, properly formatted visuals make your research easier to interpret and reduce the likelihood of back-and-forth edits. When looking at instructions for preparing visual elements, focus on the required resolution, file size, colors, etc.
• Follow a submission checklist: Most journals provide submission checklists in their instructions for authors sections to help authors ensure everything important has been addressed. If your journal has not included such a checklist, you could also create one that lists all key elements of submission. You could also maintain your own guide for recurring requirements such as word counts, file formats, and ethics statements. This will make your future submissions smoother.

• Review recent publications: Access some recent publications to get a sense of how a well-formatted manuscript looks when it has been published. Focus on each section and compare that with the submission instructions provided. This will help you see author guidelines applied in practice.
• Focus on formatting: Allocate dedicated time for formatting and compliance to all guidelines. Rushed submissions often trigger rejections or extensive revisions that could have been avoided.

Following journal instructions to prepare a clearly organized, well-structured, well-presented manuscript will help both the editors and peer reviewers focus on the value of your research and how it contributes to the existing knowledge in your field.

Have you ever struggled with journal instructions? Share your experiences or tips with the community.