Academia is well known for having a “publish or perish” environment. This means that the pressure to publish quality science quickly is incredibly high. One of the setbacks of getting multiple publications out is the amount of time it takes for an article to go through peer review, approval, and editing.
The editing process is an important part when it comes to publication, so freelance editors have seen this as an opportunity to speed up this process before an article even gets submitted.
A study from 2011 showed that having a manuscript copyedited BEFORE submission resulted in a decrease in time to acceptance by one month. One month is a long time in the academic world! It is thought that this occurs because the language is clearer and reviewers don’t have to fumble over grammar and clarity issues and can focus more on the science.
This leads us to the second benefit of pre-submission editing—providing a new perspective! While you know your experiment very well, can new readers understand? If you can fix the readability of the article, peer reviewers may have an easier time understanding the material.
Lastly, having a well-edited submission increases your credibility. Reader perception, especially a reviewer’s, is important in establishing credibility for your work. If you have a poorly written manuscript, they may not trust the science. Check out the cited article to learn more about how this is of even more importance to writers that are not native English speakers.
Let me know what you think!
Sources:
Bailey, M. (2011). Science Editing and Its Effect on Manuscript Acceptance Time. AMWA Journal: American Medical Writers Association Journal, 26(4), 147–152.
Dick, M. H. (2010). Reflections on Copyediting I. SPARC Japan Newsletter, 7, 1–5.