September, 2003  

Submitted by Larry Walker
JBS Editor-in-Chief

Submissions to JBS are up and the pool to select papers from is growing. 22 people attended the Writer’s Workshop and many indicated they want to submit articles to JBS. The workshop covered what reviewers look for, putting manuscripts together, how to handle reviewers comments, common mistakes, Rapid Review system, scientific graphics and there was time for discussion. In 2004, JBS will go to 8 issues, with an extra issue in March and September. Papers from the conference will be solicited for the March issue and Larry will make an appeal at the Session Chair Orientation. [Two topics have been firmed up at this time – one on Chemoinformatics and one on Label-free Detection Technologies].

More assistance is needed in soliciting manuscripts, but it should be understood that these papers must still be peer-reviewed. Long-term goal is to have reviews and/orcommentary in every issue.

With the Journal expanding, a new system is being implemented with addition of Associate Editors for facilitation of the review process. In the future, the addition of another tier of Section Editors may be considered for solicitation of manuscripts for certain topics. The SBS office will assist with the organization and ensuring adequate communications are taking place. Strategy for the future – Publication Committee requested to help develop this process and determine how to implement this. Plan is to set up an interim meeting before board meeting in January.

With regard to the Journal, there is a need to formalize a policy on the division of labor between office staff and editors. Marilynn will put together an outline for the Committee to review.

The review guidelines need to be updated with more guidance on the manuscript review process so authors can see criteria for which they are judged. Page charges for issues exceeding 88 pages will be covered by the SBS and authors will only be charged for color figures. No fixed page limit on manuscripts will be set, but abstracts will be limited to 250 words or less.

JBS will begin focusing on two new areas over the next two years, based upon strategies set by the board – biomarkers and ADME/Tox. In order to implement this, changes will need to be made to the key word index and new reviewers will be needed to address these areas. New Products section guidelines are being sorted out to ensure integrity and neutrality.

SBS News – M. Larkin would like to theme issues when possible. The December issue will be focused on careers (finding jobs, leadership, etc.). SBS News will continue to be more like a tabloid with 6 issues next year.