DOES MANUSCRIPT REVISION GUARANTEE JOURNAL PUBLICATION?

KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE PRIZE
After you’ve read the comments and recovered emotionally from their impact (maybe put the manuscript aside for a couple of days, but not years), try to examine each comment objectively and assess what changes are required. I can say almost unequivocally that all of my revised manuscripts were better than the originals. After all, that’s really what counts. The process usually works successfully to yield an improved final article.

Someone once said a long time ago: “Forget what is behind and strain toward what is ahead. Press on toward the goal in winning the prize.” Keep your eye on the prize—that “new & improved” end product in mind. The wounds will heal and there will be understated elation when the article finally “hits the streets” or cyberspace for e-journals. It’s definitely worth the experience, plus you have another pub notch in your CV list.

DOES REVISION IMPROVE YOUR CHANCES OF PUBLICATION?
For the journal editor who requested minor revisions or rejected your manuscript, but is willing to reconsider after a major revision, your chances are very high it will be published. That decision is contingent on the quality of your revision and the extent to which you have successfully addressed all of the reviewers’ comments.

There is built-in accountability in the review process. Typically, the revised manuscript will be sent to those same reviewers. They must approve your changes based on their original comments. However, keep in mind that they may not be totally satisfied with all changes. They could request another revision. Hold on to your keyboard. The peer-review plot thickens.

CAN YOU BE REQUESTED TO REVISE YOUR REVISION?
You bet! Those reviewers may require another round of revisions. Two or three rounds are not uncommon for the most prestigious journals. Their editorial boards and reviewers are very demanding. That’s why publishing in those journals matters when you come up for promotion. Just stay with it, hunker down, and address all of their concerns on each iteration. Hopefully, your manuscript will be getting better and better. At least, theoretically, that should be the by-product of this process.

Hopefully, your revised revision will finally yield an acceptance verdict by the editor.

In your revision decision process, what should you do if you disagree with the editor’s and/or reviewers’ comments? What are your options? How should those comments be addressed? Stay tuned. The answers are coming up next.

COPYRIGHT © 2010 Ronald A. Berk, LLC