Author resilience center

In times of local or global stress, carrying on researching and publishing is difficult. Your main priority is and must remain your own health & safety and that of your families, of course. In order to assist you with continuing your regular publishing activities as far as possible, we offer here a selection of resources that you might find helpful. Some of these are doubtless tools with which you will be already familiar but we trust this center will add some measure of support in difficult times. With very best wishes for your health and personal endeavours.

- The Elsevier Author Experience Team

Stay safe

The most important consideration is your own health and safety, and that of your family.

Consult your country’s medical advice service and do not neglect your mental health opens in new tab/window!

For further information about the Covid-19 pandemic opens in new tab/window, see Elsevier’s Novel Coronavirus Information Center and associated resources.

We encourage authors of manuscripts covering research related to Covid-19, which have passed desk review to submit the manuscript to SSRN opens in new tab/window, our pre-print server. SSRN has opened a dedicated COVID-19 portal opens in new tab/window for this purpose.

Resources

• Building and Environment AE Webinar Series on COVID-19 Control opens in new tab/window

• Mindfulness for researchers: an approach for a healthier, more productive career

• 5 things you should know about burnout

• WHO advice about mental health considerations during COVID-19 outbreak opens in new tab/window

• Covid-19 related articles on ScienceDirect opens in new tab/window

• Podcast: Tips and tricks on homeworking

• Podcast: Keeping mindful during difficult times

Stay connected

Depending on your situation, you may not be able to access your library, lab or other physical resources. Make sure you are familiar with how to access materials remotely. Here is advice on accessing ScienceDirect opens in new tab/window.

Make full use of open access content. As of 2019, 8.5 million articles have been published open access in peer-reviewed journals, according to data from Scopus and ImpactStory opens in new tab/window.

You can also deploy tools, such as GetFTR opens in new tab/window, howcanishareit.com, opens in new tab/window Share Links and the postdoc free access program to find, share and access research.

Familiarize yourself with any scholarly society/association networks which may provide such resources as forums and virtual conferences. Though you may not be able to attend conferences and elicit in-person feedback from your community, there are still many options! You could host your research online or post in a Mendeley group opens in new tab/window. Alternatively, gain feedback by considering posting to a pre-print server such as SSRN opens in new tab/window or consider open peer review titles.

If you are able to, use communications tools such as WebEx opens in new tab/window, WhatsApp opens in new tab/window, Skype opens in new tab/window, WeChat opens in new tab/window, Google Hangouts opens in new tab/window or Zoom opens in new tab/window. Last, harness the power of social media to stay in touch with colleagues, as well as family and friends.

Resources

• Lifting the lid on preprints: part one

• Five tips to make the most of your academic collaborations

• Guidelines for accessing ScienceDirect remotely opens in new tab/window

• Mendeley Covid-19 resources opens in new tab/window

Stay organized

Having to stay away from the office or lab will cause you to rethink your approach to work.

Consider using tools to help plan and organize your tasks and team such as Trello opens in new tab/window, Google Tasks opens in new tab/window, Asana opens in new tab/window or Slack opens in new tab/window.

It will help to anticipate and mitigate for changed/broken deadlines. Some tasks you might not be able to do when you want so consider having alternative (non-time limited) things you can get on with.

If you are unable to make a deadline yourself, remember to update your supervisor/colleagues/funding provider. They should be understanding given the circumstances.

Similarly, be aware that the journal to which you submit is undoubtedly facing similar difficulties. As a result, be aware that the peer review process might take longer than usual. The editors and reviewers will appreciate your patience during this difficult time.

Resources

• A researcher talks about time management and extending his reach with open access

• 3 tips on preparing a literature review

Stay focused

Most journals and other publication outlets are still operating semi-normally, but as noted above, the peer-review process may take longer than normal. If you are not able to publish a full-text article in the timeframe or manner that you originally intended, you might want to rethink your publication output — consider, for example, short articles, working/idea papers, case reports, data articles, preprints.

Note: SSRN opens in new tab/window accepts idea papers, posters, datasets, working papers, negative results, conference papers and more.

• If you are able to, please continue to accept requests to review

• There are lots of great resources on Author Hub and Researcher Academy opens in new tab/window about writing, reviewing, navigating the peer review process and much more

• Steer clear of predatory journals despite pressure to get published — don't take shortcuts!

• If you can’t get through to colleagues, make use of any available tools to help guide you (e.g., JournalFinder opens in new tab/window, Author Services opens in new tab/window)

Resources

• Managing information overload: 5 tips from an editor-in-chief

• “Predatory” vs trustworthy journals: What do they mean for the integrity of science?

• Not all that glitters is gold: how to avoid being scammed

Help & Support

In need of further assistance? Please visit our publishing support center where you'll find answers to many questions, as well as being able to email, chat, phone and set up callback with our dedicated support agents.