Getting Published
Brigham Young University Faculty Women's Association Retreat, February 6, 1998
Lynn C. Callister, Associate Dean
School of Nursing
WRITE a MANUSCRIPT, PUT it in an ENVELOPE, and MAIL IT!!! Remember that writing for publication is like giving birth: It is HARD WORK and VERY REWARDING!
Maximizing time to write
1. Establish priorities: BLOCK OUT TIME. Treat writing to publish as an important and significant appointment or commitment. Put a "do not disturb" sign on your door, don't answer your phone, work at home if your home environment fosters quiet contemplative thought. If you do, resist the temptation to do household chores. Some of us will do anything to avoid the HARD WORK of writing!
2. If possible, avoid scheduling classes at times in the day when you're a productive writer and thinker
3. Use a teaching or research assistant to do routine tasks
Other Tips
1. Create a file of "writing" ideas
2. While attending professional meetings, invest time at the book exhibits and search out publishers interested in the same topics and approaches that you are.
3. Network with others in your discipline at professional meetings to determine the potential for collaborative work
4. Watch for "special topic" issues of journals --nothing like a good deadline to force you to finish a project
5. Read widely in your discipline and related disciplines
6. Include in your vita titles of some unpublished papers (separately from published ones). Provide copies to anyone who asks. Dialogue with colleagues and graduate students.
Manuscript Preparation
1.Use an outline! Pay CAREFUL ATTENTION to detail: It pays off!
2. Be professional but be yourself in the manuscript
3. Access information for authors published in journals or available from the publication's editorial office
4. Letter of inquiry may or may not be helpful. For a book, rather than send an unsolicited manuscript, send a title page and table of contents accompanied by a letter explaining why you have chosen the publisher and describing the status of the manuscript.
5. Adhere to journal/publisher guidelines: Be rigorous in doing so.
6. Submit for review to peers in your department or college with journal guidelines attached.
7. Make revisions as suggested, then submit for review to only one journal at a time.
8. Manuscripts that are original and timely or manuscripts that address controversial topics often get a high rating on peer review.
Rejection and Revision
No one appreciates rejections, but know the referee process of professional journals can seem capricious and subjective. A rejection should not lead to the premature conclusion that a manuscript is unworthy.
1. Pay attention to any specific suggestions or criticisms offered with a rejection. Commonly cited weaknesses in journal articles include:
• Overly formal or pedantic writing
• Poor organization
• Absence of introduction and summary
• Poor sentence structure
• Poor or fabricated documentation
• Use of jargon
2.Share the rejection letter with close colleagues; subtle messages between the lines sometimes escape sensitive author egos!
3.Read the manuscript afresh as though you were a reviewer rather than the author.
4. Make suggested revisions made by reviewers and try again with another journal. Writing is more re-writing. Sometimes it is just a matter of finding a "home" for your manuscript, or a place that has a "fit" with your manuscript.
References
Brigham Young University Faculty Center. (1998). Teacher-Scholar Report: Findings Based on 1997 Brigham Young University Faculty Focus-Group Discussions. Provo, UT: Author.
Clanin, N. & Kennedy, C.W. (1991). Publishing. In M.A. Mateo & K.T. Kirchhof (Eds). Conducting and using nursing research in the clinical setting, pp. 233-239. Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins.
Wolcott, H.F. (1990). Writing up qualitative research. Newbury Park CA: Sage Publications.
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