Manuscript publication is an essential component of scientific research but the process can be complex and prolonged. The critical peer review stage is not perfect and there has been much debate surrounding the issues, but authors’ views are often underrepresented in discussions. In December 2016, to help bridge this gap, Editage Insights (an educational resource for researchers, authors and publishers) began a survey entitled“Author perspectives on the academic publication process”. The aim of the survey is to get authors’ opinions on all stages of the current publication process and to use this information to help shape and improve the system, with the ultimate goal of making it “more author friendly”.

Recently the editor-in-chief of Editage Insights, Clarinda Cerejo, gave an interview to Scholasticahq.com and shared some insights into the survey responses received so far. The survey was published in five different languages (English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Portuguese) and all have been represented in the 800 responses received from over 70 countries to date. Authors have been “quite free in sharing their views” and are “hopeful for changes in the system”. Ms Cerejo hopes the survey will aid the flow of communication between publication professionals and authors from around the world. The results of the survey will be published and shared at industry conferences throughout the year.

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Summary by Jo Chapman, PhD from Aspire Scientific