Archetype

On being an editor for Nature

Nature editor Henry Gee has an honest post about how is it like to hold such an important job (important for us at the other side of things):

Every now and then I get asked to a lab or seminar to give a talk about what I do as an editor at Nature, apart from lie on my back being fed grapes by flying babies.

I see before me a wall of faces, agog and drooling amazed to discover that Nature editors are almost really human.

It is interesting to know that as an editor he has to go through more or less 700 papers a year, yes, that is roughly three papers a day, every weekday of the year, from which only 35 to 40 get accepted.

A good lesson is that, given the journal’s general coverage on all science topics, submitting authors need to keep in mind that the editors as well as the readers will most likely not be particularly so into your specialized area of research as much as you are. So, basically, remember to keep the geek level low, because you need to be able to convey to a general audience why your results are of interest to them, why should they be as excited about the topic as you are.

It is a good read for us mortals sub-mortals hoping to land papers in the highest impact factor journals. Now, I just need to find myself a fossil ant with feathers, hmm…

Hat tip to Evolving Thoughts.