1Dec 3, 2009 Gitanjali

2Dec 3, 2009Gitanjali

3Dec 3, 2009Gitanjali

1. Hall SA, Wilcox AJ (2007) The fate of epidemiologic manuscripts: a study of papers submitted to Epidemiology. Epidemiology 18:262–265.

62% of published papers have been 62% of published papers have been rejected at least oncerejected at least once11..

Many famous people have had their work rejected* Prof. R. Williams – discovered one of the B vitamins – J

Clinical investigation rejected the paper. Raymond P Ahlquist – paper on adrenoceptors

published in Am J Physiol was rejected by J Pharmacol Exper Ther

Rosalind Yallow - J Clinical investigation rejected the paper.

Nature rejected Hans Krebs letter describing the citric acid cycle

Dec 3, 2009 Gitanjali 4

*Campanario JM. Consolation for the Scientist: Sometimes it is Hard to Publish Papers that are Later Highly- Cited. Soc Studies Sci 1993;23:342-62

We are not alone

Rejection letters serve two purposes:

It proves you have actually written up your workMay provide good constructive criticism – use to write up a better manuscript

Dec 3, 2009 Gitanjali 5

Types of Rejection

Dec 3, 2009 Gitanjali 6

Slush pile rejection – editor has not even read the manuscript

Criticism rejection

Near miss rejection

Dec 3, 2009 Gitanjali 7

“It hasn’t been published yet. Bloody idiots wouldn’t recognize a great book if it jumped up and bit them”

How common is manuscript rejection?

Very common – 69% of papers would have been rejected at least once.

Top journals have high rejection rate

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 8

Wooley CHEST 2009; 135:573-7

What is rejected and what is salvageable?

Lack of new knowledge , major methodological flaws - most common reason for rejection

Some errors in research methodology like data analysis, language flaws - can be salvaged to some extent.

Errors in manuscript organization, including methods, results, figures, tables, graphs, and references, are correctable.

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 9

The Top 10 Reasons Why Manuscripts Are Not Published* 10. Picking the wrong journal9. Submitting a manuscript in a format that

does not match what the journal publishes8. Not following the manuscript preparation

instructions7. Poor writing6. Getting carried away in the discussion

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 10

*Pierson DJ. The top 10 reasons why manuscripts are not accepted for publication. Resp Care 2004;49:1246-52.

The Top 10 Reasons Why Manuscripts Are Not Published…contd…5. Suboptimal reporting of the results4. Inadequate description of the methods3. Poor study design2. Failure to revise and resubmit following

peer review1. Failure to write and submit a full manuscript

after presenting the abstract at meetings

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 11

Top ten reasons for rejection of manuscripts in Indian Pediatrics

Reason for rejection Percentage

1. Absence of a message 54.5

2. Poor originality 43.5

3. Poor methodology 28.2

4. Not relevant to journal 25.4

5. Over-interpretation of results 25.4

6. Inappropriate writing style/grammar 24.2

7. Inaccurate/inconsistent data 17.0

8. Poor statistical analysis 9.8

9. Insufficient data 8.0

10. Unsatisfactory illustrations/tables 5.2

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 13

N=347, Indian Pediatrics, 2006 (rejection 50%)

23%

Is rejection fatal?

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 14

Flow diagram illustrating the choices authors can make after receiving a manuscript rejection letter from the editor of their first-choice journal. (Wooley KL et al. Handling manuscript rejection. Chest 2009;135:573-7).

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 15

Give up

No chance of

publication success

No chance of

publication success

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 16

Flowchart of choices authors can make after receiving a rejection letter from the first journal

Give up

No chance of

publication success

Flow diagram illustrating the choices authors can make after receiving a manuscript rejection letter from the editor of their first-choice journal. (Wooley KL et al. Handling manuscript rejection. Chest 2009;135:573-7).

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 17

Give up

No chance of

publication success

No chance of

publication success

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 18

Give up

Outright rejectionOutright rejection

Identify reason for rejection

Identify reason for rejection

Not suitable for journal

Not suitable for journal Fatal FlawFatal Flaw

Inappropriate to pursue publication

Inappropriate to pursue publication

No chance of publication success

No chance of publication success

Reasonable chance of publication success

Reasonable chance of publication success

Submit to a more appropriate and probably a lower impact journal

Submit to a more appropriate and probably a lower impact journal

Incorporate reviewers & editorial comments. Better than reasonable chance

of publication success.

Incorporate reviewers & editorial comments. Better than reasonable chance

of publication success.

No chance of publication success

No chance of publication success

Coping Be positive Persevere Keep writing

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 19

Dealing with rejection

We all have different ways of dealing with rejection slips, but I find going to bed for five days with eight kilos of choc chip

works for me!

Preventing grant proposals from being rejected Choose the funding agency to suit your

topic Check whether it is the thrust area Get a recent application format Read the instructions carefully and follow

them Keep to limits

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 21

Preventing manuscripts from being rejected – some tips

Choose the journal carefully – scope, visibility, importance of the work done

Get the most recent instructions to authors – read them

Follow the instructions Ask a colleague to critically assess

your paper

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 22

Respond completely Respond politely Respond with evidence Respond promptly

Dec 3, 2009 Gitanjali 23

Three golden rules of replying to referees’ comments*

*Williams HC. How to reply to referees’ comments when submitting manuscripts for publication. J Am Acad Dermatol 2004;51:79-83

Be honest about… Re-analysing data Additional data collection References Conflicts of interest “Foreign” collaborators

Trust, like Trust, like glass, is glass, is fragile…fragile…

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 25

How to predict which papers will be

rejected?

Dec 14, 2009 Gitanjali 26