Are you planning to submit a preprint? Perhaps you’ve heard that preprints have become an important part of the scientific literature.
They have allowed some impressive strides to be made regarding the speed of research dissemination. Because they are so important, you may have considered submitting your own research as a preprint.
But how do you do that?
In this article, we will address how to submit a paper as a preprint and what you need to provide along with the submission.
Creating an account and preparing your submission
First, you need an account to access the Preprints.org submission platform. If you already have an account for another MDPI platform, you can use that. If not, you will need to register and create an account before you are able to submit your preprint.
Once you have done that, you will need to provide a few things:
- Manuscript title;
- Abstract;
- Keywords;
- Names, affiliations, and email addresses;
- Manuscript;
- Supplementary materials;
- Copyright holder permission;
- Additional documents.
Each of these things is an important part of your submission. Here, we will now go over what you need to submit a preprint in detail.
Manuscript title
The importance of this is fairly self-evident. When you submit a preprint, you need a good title for your work. This will engage and inform the reader of the nature of your research and give them some sense of the work’s focus.
Abstract
An abstract is a brief description or summary of the work. It generally explains the project, the topic that it covered, what experiments were performed, and then what conclusions were drawn.
The goal of an abstract is to inform the reader in a general way about the research. Abstracts also provide a first impression for readers. They capture the reader’s interest and encourage them to read the full paper.
A clear and well-crafted abstract is crucial and may increase the visibility and impact of your research.
Keywords
Keywords are critical for research as they allow authors to categorize their research. The keywords selected can be almost anything related to the project, but they are usually specific major elements. These might include the type of tools or techniques used.
Keywords will almost always include the main topic being studied. For example, if a paper is studying malaria, this will almost certainly be a keyword. Think about the important parts of your research and the tools used when deciding on keywords.
Names, affiliations, and email addresses
All the names of the authors that contributed to the research should be included. In addition, any relevant affiliations (for example, the institution that the authors belong to) should be included. Contact information and email addresses also need to be included in the submission system.
Authors should use institutional email addresses (e.g., those provided by a university), where possible, or email addresses used in previously published papers. Alternatively, we recommend the use of ORCID identifiers, which can be linked to the Preprints.org account during the submission process. In the manuscript file, only the corresponding author’s contact details should be provided.
Manuscript
Of course! The most important part of your submission.
Manuscripts should be submitted in Microsoft Word or LaTeX format. For LaTeX files, please ensure that all the files (e.g., bib file, references) necessary to create a PDF are included in a .zip or similar format. Be careful to include all the necessary parts for a LaTeX document, as missing parts can prevent the document from compiling properly.
Supplementary materials
While not always the case, sometimes, research has supplementary materials that need to be submitted along with the manuscript. When you submit a preprint, you want to make sure that all the research information is there.
These might include things like data or information about additional experiments. If relevant, make sure that supplementary materials get included in the upload.
Copyright holder permission
In cases including previously published materials (e.g., figures, schemes, tables), copyright permissions need to be granted if they do not fall into the public domain.
These permission files should also be included in the preprint upload. If your research requires copyright permissions, make sure that you get them and that they are included.
Additional documents
Some types of content, like research conducted on humans or experimental animals, have additional requirements. These might include ethical approval statements from a research ethics committee or informed consent forms signed by the research participants.
Other information or documents might include information regarding conflicts of interest, funding, or data availability.
Please visit our Instructions for Authors page for further information.
Why submit your research as a preprint?
Preprints can be useful for researchers. They allow researchers to share their results by publishing initial drafts. These drafts can then receive feedback on the findings from other researchers across the globe. A broad pool of researchers providing feedback can help researchers to address any flaws in research before the publication of the full research paper.
Feedback could also be recommendations for new research directions. As preprints are open to comments, they are perfect for advancing fields in which preliminary results are key.
But there are many, many more reasons, and we will address these in other articles.
Are you ready to submit a preprint?
Click the submit button on Preprints.org to submit a preprint. You will be directed to the login page first if you have not logged in. If you have not yet registered an account on Preprints.org or any other MDPI platform, you will have to register and log in first to submit your paper.
Submitting a preprint on Preprints.org is a straightforward process that allows you to share your work quickly and efficiently.
By following the steps outlined above, from registering an account to preparing your manuscript, carefully entering your metadata, and uploading your files, you can ensure a smooth submission process.
Once posted, your work will be disseminated globally, so you may receive feedback and foster new collaborations.
