1. How to get your paper published A Nature Publishing Group perspective
Cell Death & Disease
Cell Death & Differentiation
Nature Communications
Shanghai
May 2013

2. Pooja Aggarwal
BA in Economics and Politics from SOAS and a MPhil in Development Studies from University of Cambridge
Joined Macmillan in 1999
Publisher at Nature Publishing Group since Oct 2005
Run a team of 7 staff currently
Quality not quantity
Worked on CDD for 8 years now and helped launch CDDis in 2010
Responsible for 23 Academic Journals
– Financial return / business model / strategy / development

3. Ed Gerstner / 印格致 PhD at the University of Sydney
5 years postdoctoral experience at the Universities of Cambridge, Sydney and Surrey, and at Philips Research Labs, Redhill
Started at Nature in 2002 as the editor and chief writer of the Nature Physics Portal, and NPG Materials Update
Associate editor at Nature and Nature Materials
Helped launch Nature Physics as Senior Editor
Now Executive Editor, China, Nature Communications

4. What makes a Nature journal?
Highly selective, high impact
Full-time professional editorial staff
Editorially independent
Each journal is independent from each other journal — rejection from one doesn’t prejudice consideration by another

5. The world’s leading, global, scientific journal
Founded in 1869
The world’s leading, global, scientific journal
Across the full range of scientific disciplines
Nature’s mission:
To communicate the world’s best and most important science to scientists across the world and to the wider community interested in science
Launch Issue
1869

6. Nature's hits… ... and misses!
Discovery of the neutron (Chadwick, 1932)
Structure of DNA (Watson and Crick, 1953)‏
Demonstration of the laser (Maiman, 1960)
Magnetic resonance imaging (Lauterbur, 1973)
Polymer LEDs (Burroughes et al. 1990)
... and misses!
Krebs cycle – rejected without review
Beta decay – rejected without review
Pavlov's obituary – published while he was still alive
Memory of water
Schön
... and surely many more

7. Nature life science journals
1983
1992
1994
1995
1998
1999
2000
2004

8. Nature physical science journals
2002
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009

9. Nature Communications
Editorial criteria: Publishes significant advances that have potential to influence thinking in a field
Run by a team of independent, full-time, professional editors
Online-only means we can publish every paper that meets our editorial criteria
Rapid publication
Open access options
Launched in 2010
Impact Factor:

10. Nature Communications celebrates its 3rd birthday!
First paper published on 12th April 2010
In March 2013 the journal published 96 research papers
The equivalent output of 8 Nature research journals
In 2013 we expect Nature Communications to publish ~1,500 articles
Compared to 2,200 papers published in total by ALL Nature research journals combined in 2012
Around 14% of submissions are from corresponding authors based in China
Around 11% of published papers have at least one China- based author

11. Getting published in a Nature journal
Publishing starts with new experimental or theoretical results that significantly advances our understanding or technological capability.
What are we looking for?
Our goal is that every paper should ideally have potential to provoke our readers to think:
“WOW! I didn't expect THAT!”
“WOW! That's clever (and useful!)‏”
Rule of thumb: if significance can be summarized uniquely in just two sentences, it might be for us!

12. Writing the paper Explain, don't hype. Show, don’t tell.
The results should speak for themselves
CONTEXT — Not every reader will understand the details but every reader should appreciate your work’s significance
Descriptive not superlative
'femtosecond spectroscopy' not 'ultrafast-spectroscopy'
Format isn't critical. RevTeX is fine.
Titles in references are helpful

13. Submission process
We strongly prefer full submissions to pre-submission enquiries
Cover letters useful but not mandatory. Be concise!
Referee suggestions
Can be helpful
Please don't suggest former supervisor, former students, friends, parents‏
We try to honour referee exclusion requests, as long as they are reasonable (3-4 individuals MAX)
Identify all related papers submitted elsewhere

14. Editorial policies
We don’t mind conference presentations or preprint servers — uploading your paper to arXiv is fine!
We do mind publication of peer-reviewed conference proceedings in journals
You may not talk to the media about your work until it is published
You may upload the final refereed version of your manuscript to your website, arXiv, PubMed Central, or any other repository 6 months after publication
You may not upload the published version that we produce at any time, unless it is Open Access

15. Editorial process
Initial assessment within a week (as far as possible)‏
We look for impact not Impact Factors
At least one editor will read the paper thoroughly, and often several editors
MOST papers are declined without review
The decision on whether a paper deserves to be published in the journal in is the editors’ alone
2-4 referees per paper and aim for total turnover time of 4-6 weeks for a first decision after review

16. How our decisions are made
Editors make decision based on the substance of our referees' comments
ADVICE not VOTES
Most papers require two rounds of review before publication
In my 11 years as an editor, I accepted the first draft of a paper without revision only THREE times
Almost good enough isn't good enough
Revisions must make substantial progress towards justifying publication

17. Decision letters and what they mean
Accept in Principle: Minor revisions
Pending + Questions:
No decision until reviewers concerns are addressed
Encouraging but no commitment, yet
Will probably go back to reviewers
Open Door:
Major revisions needed
Not clear whether paper meets our editorial criteria
Closed door:
Rejection — the paper is not for us

18. Responding to referees (P+Q/ OD)
If invited to resubmit, only do so after you have comprehensively addressed all comments
If further experiments are requested, revisions to text alone are not enough
Stay professional — our referees are experts, and they are your peers and colleagues
If an expert in the field has failed to appreciate the significance of your work that may not be their fault, but yours
Diplomacy and persuasion are key… backed by hard data

19. Appeals Paper is seen again by handling editor and Managing Editor
We take appeals seriously but original submissions take priority
Only a minority of appeals are successful
What does not help?
“Referees don’t like my work, therefore they are biased!”
“I know who the referee is. He’s a moron!”
“Do you know who I AM!?!”
Celebrity endorsements
Cosmetic revisions
What helps?
New data that addresses the major criticisms
Referee (or editor) made factual errors.

20. NPG also publishes Academic Journals
Over 50 in total now
Over half are published on behalf of learned societies and partners
Specialised niche subject areas with Impact Factors ranging from 2-14
All offer open access option
External editorial offices and editors
Relationship with society partner

21. Academic Journals

23. Key Facts Official journal of ADMC 12 issues per year
Open access option
560 published papers in
206 papers published in 2012
Impact Factor = 8.849
(Ranked in ISI: 22/180 in Cell Biology, 23/289 in Biochemistry + Molecular Biology category)
Papers published online within 25 days of acceptance
Well known and international Editors and Editorial Board
Key Facts

24. Aims and Scope
Publishes papers within the field of cell death and differentiation, both in normal tissue regulation and disease
Topics spanning cell biology, molecular biology and biochemistry
Aim of CDD and CDDis – to provide a unified forum for scientists and clinicians

25. Key Facts Sister journal to CDD Fully open access and online only
Receives transfers and direct submissions
Fully open access and online only
439 published papers since launch in 2010
198 papers published in 2012
Impact Factor = 5.333
(Ranked 45/180 in ISI’s Cell Biology category)
Papers published online within 25 days of acceptance
Well known and international Editors and Editorial Board
Key Facts

26. Aims and Scope
Aims to publish novel observations in the biology of cell death, and translational implications in the pathogenesis of human diseases or relevant animal models
Covers clinical, translational and applied research within the following topic areas:
Experimental Medicine / Internal Medicine
Cancer / Cancer Metabolism
Immunity
Neuroscience

27. To which journal should you send your manuscript?
Questions to ask
Is your paper within the scope of the journal?
Does the journal reach an appropriate audience?
What is the quality of other papers published?
How easy is electronic submission?
How quickly will you receive a decision?
How quickly will your paper be published?

28. How much should you worry about journal Impact Factors?
IFs are important and currently is the only way to rank journals in terms of quality that is accepted by all
(CDDis 2011 = / CDD 2011 = 8.849)
Obviously there are journals with higher IF than CDD and CDDis – e.g. Journal of Cell Biology (10.264), Molecular Cell (14.178) or Nature Cell Biology (19.488)
Butwell as impact, it is equally important to think about the reach, promotion and service delivered to you as an author by the Publisher

29. Journal scope and content
Both CDDis and CDD publish the following article types:
Original Article
Review
Correspondence
News + Commentary
Mini Review (CDD only)
Plus commissioned Meeting Reports, Book Reviews and Editorials

30. Commissioned Editorials and Reviews
Reviews are commissioned by the Editor and Senior Editors but can be submitted by authors directly too
They provide scope for expression of personal views and are a good way to address sometimes controversial studies and ideas
Should serve as an authoritative reference and thus should cover all recent advances
References should be complete and include all important papers in the area
Submitted reviews are still peer-reviewed
Reviews tend to be more highly cited

31. What are the Editors looking for?
Novel or original findings
Credibility
Clarity of data and conclusions
Interesting to the international community
Brevity
Good standard of English (seek help if necessary)
Compliance with ethical standards and approval by Institutional Review Board if appropriate
Disclosure of possible conflicts of interests by all authors
References complete and up-to-date

32. When you submit you should…
Read the Instructions to Authors
Check that you have included all persons who expect to be co-authors in the ‘correct’ sequence. You must also ensure at this stage that all authors agree to the submission and have declared any conflicts of interest
Confirm that your paper is not under consideration by another journal
Draw the Editor’s attention to the existence of any similar version of the data that might be in press or already published which should not come as a surprise
The Editor will probably agree to consider for publication papers containing data that have already appeared in an unreviewed format, e.g. meeting abstracts

33. How to Prepare & Submit your Paper
Regular manuscripts submitted to the journal usually follow a
standard format, summarised as follows:
Cover letter including a COI statement
Title page followed by keywords
Abstract
Introduction
Materials and Methods
Results
Discussion
Acknowledgements
References (Vancouver format)
Tables
Figures

34. How to Prepare & Submit your Paper
As you prepare to up-load your paper to the CDD and / or CDDis
online submission system at ensure that you have
available:
All authors’ names, postal and addresses
The complete manuscript with all Images, Tables and Figures in appropriate format and resolution
A cover letter mentioning any additional information that may be helpful for the Editor
Name of corresponding author with full address, address and telephone number
At this point you can also opt-in to request NPG to deposit the
authors accepted version into PMC on behalf of all authors upon
publication.

35. Peer Review Process
On submission of your manuscript you will receive an acknowledgment
and the manuscript is then assigned to the Editor-in-chief or a Co-editor
who:
Determines if the manuscript is within the scope of the Journal
Assesses if the paper should be sent out for review or not, and if the answer is yes then
Select three experts to review the manuscript for scientific quality and novelty
Based in part on the reviewers’ reports he/she makes an initial decision to accept, to reject or to ask for revision

36. Editorial response to corresponding author
The initial editorial decision is sent to the corresponding author by
The letter usually says either:
(a) Your paper may be acceptable if you revise it, or
(b) Your paper is unacceptable as is but may be accepted if you re-submit after revision or re-submit as a Letter to the Editor
(c) Your paper is not acceptable
(d) Your paper does not meet the aims and scope of CDD and recommendation is made to transfer to CDDis
If asked to revise, there might be a time limit on re-submission
If you resubmit, the paper will probably be sent for review again.
You could be asked to carry out further revision

37. When You Re-Submit
You must include a covering letter indicating how you have responded to each point raised by the editor and reviewers.
The best way to do this is simply to repeat in your letter each of the reviewers’ comments in italics and follow each with your own response. Any changes you have incorporated into the revised manuscript should be highlighted by using a typeface other than black
Even if you judge the reviewer to be incompetent or not to have understood your paper, still use tactful language!
Don’t hesitate to contact the editorial office if you have heard nothing after say 4 weeks

38. Editorial response to corresponding author
If you resubmit, the paper will probably be sent for review again. You may be asked to carry out further revision
Acceptance!! (Not guaranteed)
You could be asked for further revision
Rejection is still possible at this stage

39. Open Access across NPG We have 8 fully open access Academic Journals
All other academic journals offer authors the option of publishing open access
Nature Communications – launched in 2010
Scientific Reports – launched in 2011
Open access means your paper will be freely accessible to anyone (and forever)
Increases exposure
Increases impact
Ensures your colleagues will see you work!

40. Open Access and CDD / CDDis
CDDis is fully open access and so accepted authors agree to pay an
article processing charge (APC) to have their final published version
available open access
Fee is £2,000 for original research articles
APC is dependent on article type and licence chosen
[Correspondence articles are £670, CC-BY prices are £2,100/ £700]
Compliant with major funding agencies
Final version automatically deposited into PubMedCentral
Choose one of three creative commons licences
CDD offers authors the option to publish open access
[CDD prices are £2,500/ £670 for ND/ SA and £2,700/ £700 for CC-BY]

41. The Production Process
Accepted manuscripts are passed to the production department
A production editor will ensure paper meets the journal’s house style:
Check punctuation, grammar, and consistency of terminology
Check pharmaceutical names and abbreviations
Check references
Figures and tables are formatted and the manuscript is typeset
Reasons for delays to starting work on a paper:
Artwork in wrong format
Licence To Publish form not complete
Page proofs are ed to the corresponding author within 8 weeks of acceptance – corrections to a pdf version
Once paper is returned a Document Object Identifier (DOI) number is assigned and paper is ‘queued’ for on line publication

42. Online Publication
Your final published version should appear online within 25 days of acceptance.
It now has a ‘Digital Object Identifier’ (DOI) number and date online and can now be cited.
Your paper is recorded in PubMed as soon as it is published online, ensuring more people see your article over a longer amount of time

43. Once Published : Promotion & Visibility
Selected articles are press-released
Electronic table of contents (e-ToC alerts) with direct links to all newly published articles are sent to registered users each month
Selected articles appear on homepage and NPG’s community and subject based platforms, both of which highlight the best articles across NPG
All articles are included in key abstracting, indexing and linking services including ISI, PubMed, Medline, Embase and Crossref.
We also look to cross-promote with other relevant NPG titles and across
Adverts / flyers / reprint collections / conference promotion / online promotions / banners / campaigns / direct mail

45. Some Web Stats
CDDis
More than 505,000 page ‘views’ from 206,000 visitors to the website in 2012
- Average of 600 visitors each day
Over 23,400 abstract views in 2012
Over 309,000 full-text article views in 2012
Over 9,000 e-alert registrants
CDD
More than 2.1 million page ‘views’ from 912,000 visitors to the website in 2012
- Average of 2,500 visitors each day
Over 104,000 abstract views in 2012
Over 1.38 million full-text article views in 2012
Over 78,000 e-alert registrants
Readers can search for CDDis and CDD articles from homepage of which has over 1.15 million users per month
Wide audience is targeted and reached through a variety of marketing methods in print and online

46. Why do we care about China?

47. Why do we care about China?

48. Why launch an office in China?
To bring the best Chinese research to the world
To help Chinese scientists better understand what we’re looking for
To identify any hurdles that Chinese researchers may face, and to help them overcome them

49. Summary
Look carefully at the scope of your paper – does it add something new to the field?
Choose a journal to submit to
Read the instructions for authors carefully
Get help with your presentation or language if appropriate
Submit your paper
Take all feedback positively
NPG publishes a whole range of journals for you to choose from
Our reach is global - we will make your paper visible and publish it quickly
Contact us with any questions

50. Thank you! 谢谢！
us at: /