Resource Spotlight: How to Publish in Biological Sciences by John Measey

Photo by Susan Q Yin on Unsplash

Article by Anna Castillo 

A few months ago, one of my coworkers asked if there could be a guide to publishing for staff in the department. I recently came across a book that fits the bill. It's called How to publish in Biological Sciences: A guide for the uninitiated  and written by by John Measey. I wish I'd had it when I started working in research*, and it's the guide that I'm glad to have now. It includes practical details on topics like the publishing industry, open access and copyright, and peer review, in addition to addressing philosophical aspects of publishing (for instance, quality and quantity). It also includes links to a wealth of resources such as Unpaywall and the Open Policy Finder from Jisc. 

Other things I like about it are:

1. It's free
2. It's immediately accessible via web (the site is https://howtopublishscience.org/)
3. It's a living project, in the words of John Measey. Readers can propose updates, so as the publishing landscape evolves, so can the book (see the "About the Author" page for more specifics).

Closing Thoughts

I would recommend this as a resource to anyone working in research, as well as anyone else who is interested in learning more. Even though the primary audience is biological scientists early in their career, there is plenty that applies to other people and fields of study, and plenty of food for thought to go around.