Pearls for Editors
Jay Liebowitz, DSc, most recently the inaugural Executive-in-Residence for Public Service at Columbia University, N.Y., used his experience as an editor and author to share wisdom on several important topics. Dr. Liebowitz is the founding editor-in-chief of Expert Systems with Applications: An International Journal and has been the editor or author of nearly 50 books.
When serving as an editor for a book, always provide clear guidelines to authors at the outset of a project. Many publishers have specific stipulations for how to properly format references and how many figures can be included in the book. Co-authors should be made aware of these details early in the process. Also, authors of different chapters may need to stay in touch with one another to prevent duplicative content.
Another key pearl: Always have a back-up plan, Dr. Liebowitz said. This advice applies both to authors, who may experience events in their professional or personal lives that derail the schedule, and to editors, who must anticipate that one or more authors may ultimately fail to deliver on the finished product. Equanimity, professionalism and good communication, he noted, are key traits that editors must cultivate over time.
The discussion was moderated by Max Konig, MD, assistant professor of medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, and Andrea Fava, MD, assistant professor of medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, both of whom are well published themselves. They both noted that they learned new things from the discussion. Dr. Konig and Dr. Fava led the session with poise and thoughtfulness and the audience walked away with a greater understanding of how to achieve success in their own careers.
Jason Liebowitz, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York.
