How to create a publication schedule and why

The time taken from submission of a manuscript to acceptance for publication in a journal can
vary considerably, ranging from a few months to 3-4 years. Why so long? Because manuscripts
typically get rejected rather than accepted by the first journal they are submitted to. Indeed, it is
not uncommon for a paper to be rejected up to 3 or 4 times before it is finally accepted by a
journal.
Publication

is

often

matter

of

when,

3
million:
number
of
manuscripts
submitted
to
journals
1.5 million: number of manuscripts that are then rejected by
95%: rejection rate of journals like Cell, Lancet, and Nature

not

if

each
year1
the journals 1

62%: percentage of published papers in epidemiology that had been rejected at least once2
79%: percentage of manuscripts initially rejected by the journal Radiology but subsequently
published
within
3-4
years3
4
20%: percentage of papers published by top ecologists that were rejected at least once

3-6 times: estimated number of times that manuscripts are submitted to journals before getting
accepted
for
publication5
2 years: period within which at least 50% of manuscripts across disciplines were published after
getting rejected by the first journal they were submitted to6

Any author wanting to get his/her paper published in a journal must factor in the possibility of
rejection
and
accordingly
prepare
a
publication
schedule.
Given below are some of the major decisions/actions that authors should take while creating a
publication
schedule.
Decide

the

format

of

your

paper

Should your paper be written up as a full-length original research article or a brief technical
report? If you are in a hurry to have part of your findings published, even before you have

completed the full study, then a rapid communication is the best option for publishing quickly.
You should not try to write up your research in an unsuitable format just because you want to
publish in a particular journal (e.g., dont turn a case report into an original article just because
the journal of your choice does not accept case reports).
Determine

your

journal

strategy

You should create a list of at least 5 journals to submit your manuscript to. As explained above,
there is a high chance that the paper will not get accepted by the first journal you submit to. You
might need to consider various strategies while determining this list of journals. For example, is
publishing in a prestigious journal your most important consideration? Then you might wish to
try your luck with 3 prestigious journals before lowering the target for the last 2 journals. Or
would you like to publish in a prestigious journal but cannot afford to risk waiting a year or two
to publish? Then you might want to submit to a prestigious journal initially, but lower the target
gradually; as you go down the list, pick journals where you have an increasingly higher likelihood
of being accepted.
Ensure that you meet all the submission requirements of the target journal

Submission requirements vary across journals. For example, some journals may require only a
single cover letter stating that all authors agree to publication, while others may require that all
authors read and sign the journals authorship agreement form. Thus, it can take anywhere from
a week to a month before you are ready to complete the submission of your paper to a journal.
You should also factor in time to reformat the manuscript in accordance with the journals
instructions for authors. When compiling your list of journals, try to ensure that the journals
dont have radically different formats for manuscripts. For example, if your paper is 5000 words
in length, it is best to avoid journals that have a word count restriction of 3000 words.
Take

advantage

of

pre-submission

inquiries

Many journals let you submit an abstract or short summary to ask their opinion on whether the
topic or research will be of interest to the journal. If your selected journal allows this option, take
advantage of it. If the journal is not interested, it will save you loads of time in avoiding the
entire
submission
process
with
that
journal.

Determine next steps to be taken once you receive a decision from the journal
Scenario

2: The

manuscript

is

rejected

by

the

journal

without

peer

review

In this scenario, the decision of the journal editor is likely to be communicated to you very
quickly, sometimes as quickly as a day and typically in less than a month. If this happens, you
have no option but to consider another journal. This is why it is important to keep a list of
backup journals ready. Select the next journal on your list and immediately begin the submission
process,
without
wasting
time
in
between
to
look
for
another
journal.

Scenario

2: Manuscript

Type

is

rejected

1:

after

peer

Conditional

review
rejection

A conditional rejection is not bad news. It means that the journal is willing to reconsider the paper
for publication if you follow the reviewers and editors suggestions. You have two options
available: reject/ignore the changes suggested, or revise the manuscript on the basis of the
reviewers comments. It is highly advisable to go with the second option (unless you
fundamentally disagree with the reviewer), since the journal has already indicated its interest in
the paper by asking you to resubmit. It will also be quicker because the journal is already
familiar with your paper and may even decide to go ahead and publish it without another round
of
review.
Type

2:

Outright

rejection

After receiving an outright rejection, authors should ideally consider the reasons for rejection.
Incorporating the reviewers and editors comments can increase the chances of publication in
another journal. Indeed, one study did a case study of a journal and found that in the case of
manuscripts rejected by the journals, those that were revised by the authors following reviewers
suggestions were subsequently published in journals with higher impact factors than those that
were not revised (they also found that some of the manuscripts took over 28 months to get
published).7 If, however, reviewers identified a major flaw in the research, then the author would
be well advised to devote some more time to improving the research before considering another
journal, rather than waste time submitting the manuscript to one journal after another.
Scenario

3:

Manuscript

is

accepted

for

publication

Congratulations! Most of your work is done. Be sure to provide thoughtful and well-reasoned
responses to the reviewers comments, especially in the case of a conditional acceptance. And
make sure you complete all the revisions, proofing, and figure production work that the journal
requests on time, to avoid publication delays.
Planning
A recommended approach to creating a publication schedule is to work backwards from the
target
date
of
publication.
Figure: A mock schedule for publication planning. Target: Publish by end of 2012; Start date:
September 1, 2011.

Of course, the times given above can vary widely. Peer review periods can be difficult to
estimate. Further, a single author may well be able to revise the paper and prepare all
submission requirements within a few days of receiving a journal decision. However, if you have
10 co-authors, it may take you a few months just to revise the paper.
Conclusion
Rejection rather than acceptance is the norm in academic publishing. But most papers end up
getting published if the authors stay persistent. Authors should factor in time to submit their
paper to more than one journal prior to publication. Plan well ahead! If you need a paper to be
published in 2013, you should begin the journal submission process no later than January 2012.