Article revision
After assessment and review, you will be advised of the editorial decision that your article will be accepted, accepted after revision, considered again after revision or rejected. Sometimes the authors of a rejected article will be encouraged to revise the material and submit it as a new or different type of article.
The revision decision, with reviewer comments and any other editorial feedback, is provided to the corresponding author. What the journal now asks of authors is to:
- Make a careful and thoughtful revision according to the reviewer and editor comments;
- Use MS Word's track changes function when making changes to the article;
- Provide point-by-point responses to each reviewer and editor comment (detailing how you did, or why you did not, make changes to your article). This will assist you in your revision and also support the editor's assessment of your changes;
- Provide a revised article that complies with the journal's requirements (see following checklist).
- Submit the revised article within 6 weeks – or advise the Senior Editor if unable to do so.
Please ensure you have completed all the items in this checklist before submitting your revised article. If you have any questions or concerns at this stage, please contact us and we will be pleased to assist you.
Revision checklist
- Word's track changes feature has been used to highlight changes in your article.
- A separate document that provides point-by-point responses to all editor and reviewer comments has been produced.
- Heading grades correctly reflect the structure of the revised article.
- Any author details that might have changed since submission (including email addresses) have been updated. Addresses should still indicate where the research was conducted, but it is possible to also provide a present address if someone has moved. Note that adding or removing an author or changing the author order at this stage is not permitted.
- Any changes to in-text citations are reflected in the reference list and vice versa.
- Updated versions of tables and figures have been supplied where required and any changes in the order of these has been reflected in citations and table and figure numbering.
- No text changes or adjustments to numeric data have introduced inconsistencies.
- All authors agree with any changes made and with resubmission to the journal.
Resubmission
To upload your revised article, please log in to the journal and click ‘My articles', then choose your article title. Upload your files by clicking the ‘+' under ‘Files'. Only a corresponding author will be able to do this. If you are unsure about uploading your revised files, or feel they might not have not been uploaded correctly, they can also be emailed to the Senior Editor
Acceptance, proofing and publication
Once the article has been resubmitted, the editor handling your article will make a decision about whether it is ready for publication. Many articles require more than one revision if the required changes are numerous or complex, or if the text needed development.
The editor assesses subsequent revisions, but occasionally the revised article will also be referred back to the original reviewers, or a second round of review will follow resubmission. The corresponding author will be notified if there is need for further revision. The corresponding author will be advised by the journal if the article is accepted for publication.
Sometimes an article is accepted for publication on the proviso that outstanding issues are resolved during copyediting. Regardless of the need for content changes, articles accepted for publication will all be copyedited.
Copyediting
Copyediting is a complex, skilled editorial procedure that assists readers to gain maximum benefit from the publication, and presents authors' work in the clearest and best form possible. Copyediting adds value to the article for publication by ensuring it is complete, clearly expressed and presented in a form consistent with the other material on the site (in journal style).
Elements of the article that will be checked and may be corrected during copyediting include:
- Completion and order of references in the list, and the order of their citations in the text;
- Heading grades;
- Spelling and grammar;
- Logical flow of the argument;
- That information is placed in the correct section (eg results in the Results section);
- That acronyms have been spelled out at first use; and
- Table and figure presentation, comprehensibility and completion; and their legends.
The corresponding author can expect to receive an emailed list of editorial queries from the copyeditor prior to publication.
Proofing process
Within weeks of answering the editorial queries generated during copyediting, the corresponding author will receive notification to check and approve a proof of the article exactly as it will appear online. This is your opportunity to make a final, thorough proof check of the abstract, text and tables. This journal is not proofread externally. While every care is taken to present the author's text and supplementary material accurately, the complexity of the production process means that errors may be introduced. The author is most familiar with the article and therefore in the best position to identify whether and where proof correction is required.
If correction is required at this stage, please forward clear instructions BEFORE agreeing to the conditions of publication. There will be an opportunity to check any corrections and send final approval before publication. Once satisfied with the final text, please select 'agree'.
Checklist for proofing
The following checklist provides some guidance about checking your online article proof. This can be done on the screen, or by printing the online version and checking the hardcopy, which may provide a better result. Your online proof shows exactly what your published article will look like. If something is missing or looks awry (including in the author and affiliations list), please let us know.
As you read the proof copy, please check closely that:
- Special symbols and equations are displaying correctly;
- All quoted material is correctly attributed and permission obtained and forwarded;
- All references have been included, and in-text citations match the correct references in the reference list (note that references are sometimes required to be renumbered during copyediting);
- Numeric data are correct as provided, and no errors have been introduced during preparation for publication;
- Spelling and capitalisation are consistently applied;
- All heading grades are correct;
- Tables, figures, boxes, appendices and supplementary material are present (or attached in a hyperlink);
- Tables and figures are placed appropriately (usually at the end of the section/subsection in which they are cited) and data in tables are formatted and aligned correctly;
- The correct legends are with the correct table or figure;
- No errors have been introduced to data in tables reformatted to journal style during copyediting;
- All editorial changes during copyediting have been made correctly and any additional text supplied has been inserted in the appropriate place;
- Author names are correct. For Letters to the Editor and book reviews, the end signature information is correct;
- Author affiliations are correct and ORCID numbers are provided for all authors that have them; and
- Required acknowledgements have been included.
Finally, it is recommended that you also make a final quick visual check of your article. This may identify gross errors otherwise overlooked.
Promoting your published article
Promoting your article will make sure it is noticed and help to maximise its impact. Here are some suggestions for promoting your article.
- Talk about your article (remember to provide a link to your article at every online mention)
- Make a 5-minute video summary about your findings to post alongside your published article and to promote your article on social media. Your video should answer the questions:
- Who are the research team?
- How did your study come about?
- What are your key findings and their implications?
- Where to next?
- Use your short (2–3 sentences) plain-language summary about your article to post on social media (tweets can be 280 characters; LinkedIn and Facebook have much greater character limits). Focus any comments on key findings and implications.
- Submit a story about your study for your organisation or department newsletter.
- Be interviewed on a podcast.
- Post a longer-form piece on a platform like Medium or LinkedIn. Use images to increase interest.
- Write a blog post or participate in a Q&A about your study on a reputable blog about your research field.
- Start a discussion on Reddit.
- Use your personal and scholarly networks
- Email your article PDF to colleagues.
- Link to your article in your email signature.
- Did you know that 37% of researchers use social media daily? Posting about your article on social media is a useful way to connect with colleagues and encourage discussion! Linking to your article in your post adds to your article's attention score. You can also retweet/share Children Australia's social media mentions of your article.
Twitter (X)
Facebook
LinkedIn - Posting your article PDF on your organisation's or institution's repository, as well as ResearchGate and other relevant and reputable repositories.
- Create a Google Scholar profile and register for an ORCID number. Keep these and your organisation or institution website publication list up to date.
- Pitch a story to your organisation's or institution's communication or media team
In your pitch email, 'sell' your story using a catchy title and short paragraph using plain language. Lead with what is unique or valuable about your ideas, findings or method. This paragraph is like a lay version of the impact statement in a grant application.
Identify the right person in your communication or media team and email your pitch to them. Note that this needs to happen when your article is accepted (i.e. before publication), so there is time for the media team to prepare press materials before publication.
The media team will decide whether journalists are likely to pick up your story. If they think it's possible, they'll work with you to make a media release to send it to their journalist contacts close to publication date. Let the Children Australia editorial team know if you are preparing a media release so that we can work together towards the publication date.