How to Properly Disclose Preprint Information during Journal Submission?

Posting a preprint is an excellent way to share your research early. But once it is out there, what is the next step?

When you decide to submit your work to a peer-reviewed journal, it is crucial to accurately submit preprint information according to the journal's policies. Doing so ensures your paper meets the journal's guidelines and is essential for your submission to clear the initial screening and move on to peer review.

Preprint policies vary by journal; here’s a quick guide.

✅Cambridge University Press:

Cambridge's preprint policy permits you to share any pre-submission version of your manuscript anywhere, at any time, under any license[1].

It is best practice to link preprints to the final published work. If you have posted your preprint online, you should cite it in your submitted manuscript, including details such as a DOI or another persistent identifier [1].

✅Taylor & Francis:

Taylor & Francis encourages authors to share an early version of their research as a preprint to increase visibility and support open research. Posting on a preprint server will not be considered as duplicate publication, and this will not jeopardize consideration for publication [2].

If you have posted your manuscript to a preprint server, please cite your preprint in the manuscript you submit to the journal, to ensure there will be a link to the manuscript from the final version of record [2].

✅Frontiers:

Should the content of the manuscript has previously appeared online, such as in a thesis or preprint, this should be mentioned in the Acknowledgements section, in addition to listing the source within the reference list [3].

✅MDPI:

While not mandatory, we encourage authors to provide preprint information in the cover letter to improve the efficiency of the editorial process. MDPI's editors will check for a preprint version [4].

MDPI also supports Preprints.org, where services like Friendly Journals or MDPI Topics can automatically sync your preprint information when you submit your manuscript to a journal, requiring no extra steps from you [5].

✅Nature:

Nature Portfolio journals encourage posting preprints of primary research manuscripts on preprint servers of the authors’ choice. The posting of preprints is not considered prior publication and will not jeopardize consideration at Nature Portfolio journals [6].

Authors should disclose details of any preprint postings, including the DOI and licensing terms, upon submission of the manuscript or at any other point during consideration at a Nature Portfolio journal [6].

✅American Society for Nutrition (ASN) :

ASN journals will allow the submission of the Author’s Original Version (AOV) of a manuscript that has been previously posted on preprint servers [7].

Upon first submission to an ASN journal, the author must inform the journal via the cover letter that the manuscript has been posted to a preprint server and provide the name of the preprint server, the copyright license under which the manuscript is posted, and a link to the Author’s Original Version (AOV) [7].

You can typically find a journal's specific policy in sections like "Editorial Policies" or "Author Guidelines" on its official website. If the requirements are not explicitly stated, the best practice is to provide the information proactively in your cover letter.

References

[1] Preprint policy. (n.d.). Cambridge Core. https://www.cambridge.org/core/open-research/preprint-policy

[2] Taylor and Francis. (n.d.). What are preprints and preprint servers? Author Services. https://authorservices.taylorandfrancis.com/publishing-your-research/making-your-submission/posting-to-preprint-server/

[3] Team, M. (n.d.). Frontiers in Acoustics | About. Frontiers. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/acoustics/for-authors/author-guidelines

[4] MDPI | Information for authors. (n.d.). https://www.mdpi.com/authors

[5] Preprints.org - the multidisciplinary preprint platform. (n.d.). https://www.preprints.org/

[6] Preprints & Conference proceedings | Nature. (n.d.). Nature. https://www.nature.com/nature/editorial-policies/preprints-conference-proceedings

[7] Author self-archiving policy - ASN Nutrition journals. (n.d.). Oxford Academic. https://academic.oup.com/pages/self_archiving_policy_ASN