How to write and publish a scientific paper - Barbara Gastel, Robert A. Day 2022

Publicizing and archiving your paper
The publishing process (How to deal with proofs)—and after publication
Publishing the paper

In the era when paper reprints prevailed, scientists commonly sent them to colleagues worldwide soon after publishing a paper. Today, many scientists alert others to their new articles largely through social media. Depending on their preferences and the scientific cultures where they work, they may, for instance, tweet news of the publication on Twitter or post it on Facebook. They also may add listings (and links) to their ORCID (Open Researcher and Contributor ID) records, LinkedIn profiles, and profiles on science-related networking sites such as ResearchGate. Sometimes they may appear on podcasts produced by their journal, their institution, or others. When you publish an article, such steps—and the follow-up by those who thus notice the article and inform others in their networks—can inform those potentially interested in your paper.

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General media too can aid in publicizing your newly published research, both to the public and to fellow researchers. Many universities and other research institutions have public information officers (PIOs), whose role is largely to publicize the research done there. When you have a paper accepted, alert a PIO at your institution. The PIO can then consider whether to publicize the research to journalists and others (for instance, through news releases, institutional websites and publications, and the use of social media networks). PIOs know that some journals place articles under embargoes; in other words, research reported in them is not to appear in the media until the release date for the issue in which they are published. A PIO can aid in obtaining timely coverage without violating embargoes. Advice on working with PIOs appears in an article by Tracy Vence (2015) in The Scientist.

Publicizing a newly published paper—through social media, mass media, or other means—can benefit a scientist in multiple ways, notes PIO Matt Shipman (2015a). For example, it can lead to citations, please funding agencies, engender collaborations, and more generally expand one’s professional network. It also may attract potential graduate students—or perhaps, earlier in one’s career, attract the attention of employers or postdoctoral-fellowship sites. And if your findings have applications outside the research sector, publicity may bring them to the attention of those who can use them. Indeed, if research is supported with public funds, scientists may be morally obligated to get the word out. In fact, some public and other sources of research funds require that grant recipients make their work openly available.

Whether required or not, making your journal articles (and reports based on them) widely available can benefit science, society, and your career. Follow, of course, the policies of relevant funding agencies regarding public access to papers resulting from your research. (An example is the U.S. National Institutes of Health public access policy, publicaccess.nih.gov/policy.htm.) If your university or other institution has an institutional archive, explore depositing electronic copies of your publication there. Also, consider linking publications to your own website or your curriculum vitae. The Sherpa Romeo website (v2.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo) includes information on journal publishers’ policies on self-archiving.

In short, publishing a journal article, though a major accomplishment, is not the last step in getting word out about your research. In a way, it is just the beginning. You have invested great effort in doing a study, writing a paper about it, and publishing the paper. Now take the additional steps to help ensure that, in the broadest sense, your paper has maximum impact.