Editorial: In Preparation

Article Outline

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I think I have figured out one of the reasons that the Journal does not get more manuscript submissions each month. Recently, I did some consulting work with a company that was in the process of interviewing a young DVM who had just completed her PhD degree. Looking over her resume, I noticed that she had listed six manuscripts “In Preparation.” I thought about all the manuscripts over the years that I have started writing that are still “In Preparation.” In fact, that is a very interesting term. What does “In Preparation” mean? Typically it means that the data have been collected and are now sitting in a notebook on your desk. This appears to be a very common problem.

I continually challenge my graduate students and fellow colleagues who continue to do research but fail to publish the information. Writing manuscripts may be one of the most difficult jobs that faculty members must tackle and, unfortunately, there is never a good time to write a manuscript. Like clinicians, most academicians are extremely busy and it is difficult to find blocks of time that can be devoted to writing. Work on manuscripts often takes place early in the morning or late at night. I am convinced that, if all of these articles that are “In Preparation” were to be moved to the next level (ie, Submission), the Journal would be inundated with submitted manuscripts.

My advice to young faculty members is, do not list manuscripts in preparation on your CV. Based on experience, some of those manuscripts never move from “In Preparation” to “Submitted.” Also, based on my experience as Editor for the past year and a half, many of the manuscripts that do get reviewed and require major revision never are completed and resubmitted. I applaud those who are diligent in publishing, because it requires great dedication.