How to Write and Publish a Scientific Article
Assess publishers' reliability
A large number of new publishers and new journals have emerged in recent years, thanks in part to the prospect of publishing only in electronic format and to the rise of the open access movement. The quality of these new journals varies and it is best to ensure that you publish in a journal issued by a leading publisher in the scientific community. Here are some questions to guide you:
- Is the journal published by a recognized scholarly society (e.g., ASME, ASCE, IEEE, etc.)?
Generally, the credibility of scientific journals published by learned societies is well established.
- Is the journal published by a large commercial publisher with an established reputation?
The list below includes some major commercial publishers that have been involved in scholarly publishing for many years. The fact that the journal is published by one of these major publishers is generally a sign of the reliability of the journal.
- Does the journal meet all the criteria on the Think. Check. Submit. list?
This simple list of criteria was developed by a coalition of scientific publishing groups to help researchers identify reliable journals.
Beware of predatory publishers!
Predatory publishers try to get rich by taking advantage of the publishing model where the author pays a publishing fee. These publishers have only one goal: to make money, so they will publish anything as long as the author pays.
Have you or your colleagues ever been invited, by e-mail or otherwise, to publish in a journal?
If so, be careful. Publishers of questionable credibility send unsolicited emails to people whose contact information is associated with an academic institution, regardless of their specialty. Thus, even people who are not specialists in the field covered by the journal may receive such requests.
Look out! Predatory journals sometimes try to imitate quality journals. Their titles and websites may be similar to those of journals you are familiar with. Pay attention to the details!
In any case, if you have no knowledge of the publisher of the chosen journal, be vigilant and make the necessary checks by consulting the following sources:
