breaking into top journals in my field

[adel9216]

Yes, in some ways.

My master's thesis supervisor and I have submitted this article that stems from my master's thesis in a low-ranking journal, in my mothertongue. Not too bad for a first year Ph.D. student, I don't really mind. But she also wants to pay a translator so we can submit it to a top journal in English after getting the comments of the first journal. But I don't think I'll get published in any of those two. I don't know why she has so much trust in my work. I'm expecting a rejection, especially for the second journal in English.

[fleabite]

Maybe it's better than you think? Could you ask one or two other people in your field for their opinions of the manuscript?

[fleabite]

Thank you for the responses.
"Not buying it". I don't know what to say. I have been truthful. I was told by an editor at a top journal in my field that having an institution as low ranking as my own would not look good for his journal. He had nothing but praise for my article and suggested a lower ranking, but still somewhat prestigious journal where it did get published.

I believe you. I think you ran into a dud editor—especially since your article was accepted for publication elsewhere. If I were you, I would keep submitting articles to journals, but avoiding dud editor's top journal for the moment. Once you have a string of publications, you may find it easier to break in there.

(I'm speaking as someone who publishes without a fancy affiliation. Every so often it may affect me, but mostly I think my work is considered on the same terms as anyone else's.)

[adel9216]

Maybe it's better than you think? Could you ask one or two other people in your field for their opinions of the manuscript?

How should I do this? I'm always afraid to cold email people I've never met in person and ask them to read my papers...I know that I need to develop a network of collaborators as a young scholar, and i'd love to get feedback from more senior scholars. But I would feel more comfortable contacting people after actually meeting with them in person at a conference or something like that.

[Parasaurolophus]

Maybe it's better than you think? Could you ask one or two other people in your field for their opinions of the manuscript?

How should I do this? I'm always afraid to cold email people I've never met in person and ask them to read my papers...I know that I need to develop a network of collaborators as a young scholar, and i'd love to get feedback from more senior scholars. But I would feel more comfortable contacting people after actually meeting with them in person at a conference or something like that.

It's definitely better when you email people you've met--if nothing else, it makes it more likely that they'll respond to you. But there's also no harm in contacting someone you don't know, telling them a little bit about yourself and your work, and how it connects up to theirs, and then asking if they'd be willing to have a look at a paper you're working on. Just keep it brief, and keep the pressure low. You'll probably have better luck with people who aren't the biggest household names in the discipline, but who are just starting to make names for themselves. Or those who are quite old and very emeritus, but still research-active (because they have more time, and often travel much less and so are hungry for new contacts). It's also a lot easier to do with people you don't know but who live in your area, because you can suggest (or set up) a face-to-face meeting with them over tea, coffee, or whatever, or during their office hours.

[Kron3007]

It's important to note that some of the editors at top science journals are not scientists at all, but are professional editors.  They are often not looking for the best research, they are looking for which papers will be cited the most to boost their impact factor and other all important metrics.  So, I would not really take this as a commentary on the quality of your work, it is more of a reflection on the state of the publishing world.  Personally, I hate chasing impact factors and much prefer to support my society's journal, national (Canadian) journals, etc.  However, given the reality of how things work, I do also balance this with targetting some "top" journals, even though it makes me feel dirty.

I assume many of you have seen the rejection letter from Nature from a nobel laureate stating that their work (that the Nobel was based on) would not be of interest to broad enough audience that has been floating around.  This is the world in which we live...

[Hegemony]

I think emailing people you don't know is unlikely to have a high success rate.  You will usually be ignored, which could be depressing.  Make contacts and have conversations at conferences and lectures, and then ask timidly if they might be willing to look at something you've written.