Development, implementation and impact of a new preprint solicitation process atProceedings B

Abstract

Preprints are manuscripts posted on a public server that do not yet have formal certification of peer review from a scholarly journal. The increasingly prominent online repositories for these preprints provide a means of rapidly making scientific results accessible to all with an Internet connection. We here describe the catalysis and subsequent development of a successful new process to solicit preprints for consideration for publication in Proceedings B. We present preliminary comparisons between the focal topics and geographic origin of submitting authors of papers submitted in the traditional (non-solicited) route versus solicited preprints. This analysis suggests that the solicitation process seems to be achieving one of the primary goals of the preprint solicitation endeavour: broadening the scope of the papers featured in Proceedings B . We also use an informal survey of the early-career scientists that are or have been involved with the Preprint Editorial Team to find that these scientists view their participation positively with respect to career development and knowledge in their field. The inclusion of early-career researchers from across the world in the preprint solicitation process could also translate into social justice benefits by providing a career-building opportunity and a window into the publishing process for young scientists.

A guide to preprinting for early-career researchers

“…Public comments posted on the preprint can also help inform and positively shape the editor's decision upon manuscript submission to a journal. Some journals such as Proceedings of the Royal Society B and Open Biology have appointed preprint editors who check the latest preprints to solicit submissions to their journals ( Neiman et al, 2021 ).…”

Despite COVID: showcasing new research in evolutionary biology from academic care-givers in the middle of a pandemic

“…In particular, we wanted to include submissions from authors from countries other than those in western Europe and North America, not least because Proceedings B itself currently suffers from a significant Western bias both in publications (e.g. [11]) and in editorial board membership, which it is working to overcome. We are conscious that as societies progress to ‘living with COVID’, lockdowns will become a memory that many of us would rather forget—and that for many more established researchers, disruption over a year or so may not be a major issue in the long term.…”

Proceedings B 2021: the year in review

“…In 2021, 45 papers have been submitted to the journal via the preprint route, 17 have been accepted, 18 rejected, and 10 are still in review. For those interested in reading an article on the preprint solicitation process, how it originated and how it is implemented at Proceedings B, a valuable summary was written by Maurine and her colleagues which was recently published in our Biological Science Practices article category [4] https://royalsocietypubl ishing.org/doi/ 10.1098/rspb.2021.1248.…”