Publications are an important element of the academic environment, since without them it is impossible to defend a dissertation, and the chances of success in obtaining a grant or a prestigious position are also reduced. This is precisely why it is extremely important for a researcher to plan their publication activity competently and to form a structured plan. Where should you start, and how can you do it well? We will discuss this in more detail below.
Preparing a publication plan: where to start?
In order to clearly meet the established deadlines and prepare high-quality articles, it is not enough merely to "keep in mind" the required number of publications. Even if you remember that, over the course of the year, you need to write, for example, three scientific papers, there is a risk that, due to workload and other activities, you will postpone their preparation until the last day. This is precisely why, at the beginning of the year, a publication plan should be drawn up with clearly defined tasks and deadlines for their completion.
Below, we will consider a step-by-step algorithm that will help you identify priority tasks and structure them competently.
Step 1. Audit of the current state of publications
Before planning new articles, it is worth assessing what has already been done. You should analyse your existing publications, in particular their number and the quartiles of the journals in which they were placed. Also, if achieving your set academic goal requires increasing your h-index, you should assess its current level. This provides a baseline from which the entire subsequent plan is built.
Step 2. Setting the goal for the year
The goal regarding the number of publications must be formulated on the basis of the main objective for the year. For example, if you are planning to obtain a scientific degree, you need to determine how many articles must be submitted to be admitted to the dissertation defence.
Alternatively, if you need to prepare an annual report for your university, you should find out from the management what the minimum number of publications required for this is. In this way, you can determine the specific number of articles you need to prepare during the year, and use this as the starting point for further planning.
Step 3. Analysis of existing groundwork
Once you have determined your goal, you need to understand whether you have material that could serve as the basis for future publications. To do this, a list is compiled of the groundwork that could potentially be turned into articles: the results of completed or interim research, chapters of a dissertation, abstracts or presentations delivered at conferences, as well as data from ongoing projects that already contain sufficient material for publication.
This analysis makes it possible to understand what proportion of the annual plan can be covered by existing groundwork, and which topics will need to be worked on from scratch.
Step 4. Prioritising topics
Since not all articles are equally ready for publication, they should be ranked according to the readiness of the data, their relevance to journals, and their connection to current grants or the dissertation topic. It should also be determined which publications need to be submitted earlier and which later. This helps determine where to start work first.
Step 5. Selecting journals for each topic
Once priorities have been determined, 2–3 candidate journals are selected for each article, taking into account the quartile, thematic relevance, the size of the publication fee, and the average review period. Having several journal options reduces the risk of losing time in the event of a rejection.
Step 6. Forming a calendar with deadlines
Having compiled a list of journals, you can move on to calendar planning. For each article, outline the stages of work: writing a draft version, internal review, submission, the expected review period, and a possible revision cycle. For more details on how to start working on a draft article, read this link.
The completion dates for each of the stages are then mapped onto the calendar for the year, taking into account your overall workload.
Step 7. Planning co-authorship
If you are planning to prepare not only individual studies but also articles in co-authorship, it is worth determining whether you have candidates for joint work, and at what stage it would be appropriate to involve them. This will help you avoid losing time on coordination during the preparation for submission itself.
This is particularly relevant in the case of international or interdisciplinary co-authorship, since finding a partner, agreeing on roles and each author's contribution, and preparing joint data can take several months.
Step 8. Reserving a budget for publications
Since publishing in scientific journals mostly involves certain costs, you should estimate the approximate budget in advance, including the publication fee and the cost of translation or language editing services. These costs should be allocated across quarters in accordance with the defined plan. This approach will help you avoid a situation in which an article is already ready for submission, but you have to postpone it due to a lack of funds.
The algorithm discussed in this article will help you choose the right direction for your work and distribute the workload evenly. At the same time, it is important to remember that the publication plan should be adjusted as needed, and separate time should be allocated for possible delays and force majeure circumstances.
If you need professional assistance with planning your publications, contact the Scientific Publications company. We will help you organise the publication process competently, select a relevant journal, check your article for compliance with its requirements, and support you at every stage of the work. To receive a free publication, fill in the form below, and our manager will contact you shortly. Together towards new scientific achievements!
