For authors
Instructions for Authors
What to prepare, what to declare and how to submit to Journal of Water. The requirements below apply to every manuscript; anything specific to an article type is confirmed by the editorial office before submission.
The sequence
From fit to first decision
- 01
Check the fit
Read the Aims and Scope and decide which question your work answers. Where fit is uncertain, describe the work to the editorial office before preparing a submission.
- 02
Prepare the manuscript
Assemble the text, figures, tables and supplementary files, and the declarations listed below. Anonymize the reviewer copy if you are requesting double-blind review.
- 03
Submit through one route
Choose one of the three routes below. Authors must use only one submission route for the same manuscript.
- 04
Editorial screening
All submissions undergo initial editorial screening. Manuscripts that meet the journal's scope and minimum requirements proceed to independent peer review.
- 05
Peer review
Single-blind by default; double-blind review is available on request. Manuscripts that proceed to external peer review are normally evaluated by at least two independent subject-matter experts.
- 06
Decision and revision
Editorial decisions are based on scope, scientific quality, methodological rigor, ethical compliance, reporting quality, and relevance to the journal. Revisions are returned with the reviewers' comments and a response is expected to each point.
Article types
Routine article types: Research Article; Review Article; Systematic Review and Meta-analysis; Methods Article; Data/Resource Article; Short Communication; Case Study.
Invitation-only formats: Editorial — invitation only; Perspective/Commentary — invitation only.
What every submission carries
Manuscript and files
The full text with its figures and tables, in an editable word-processing format, plus figure files at a resolution that stays legible at printed size. Supplementary material is submitted as separate labeled files.
Title page
Title, all authors with affiliations, the corresponding author and contact address, and any acknowledgments. Where double-blind review is requested, this is a separate file.
Abstract and keywords
A self-contained abstract that states the question, what was done and what was found, with keywords that describe the water system, the method and the setting.
References
A consistent reference style throughout, with a DOI where one is registered, so each citation resolves for a reader.
Methods and reporting
Enough detail for the work to be assessed and repeated: sites and sampling, instruments and analytical methods, model set-up, inputs and calibration, and the treatment of uncertainty. Report the conditions your result belongs to.
Permissions
Written permission for any figure, table or extended quotation reproduced from another source, with the source credited in the caption.
Declarations
Stated in the manuscript
- Data availability. Every empirical research manuscript must include a data-availability statement. The statement says where the supporting data can be found and on what terms, or why they are restricted.
- Ethics and consent. Research involving human participants or animals names the approving committee and reports that informed consent was obtained. Identifiable individuals require written consent to publication.
- Clinical-trial registration. Interventional clinical trials must be registered in an accepted public trial registry at or before the first participant provides consent for enrollment. The registry name, registration number, and registration date must be reported in the manuscript.
- Competing interests. Financial and non-financial interests a reader could consider relevant are declared; where none exists, the manuscript says so.
- Funding. The funder and grant reference for the work, or a statement that the work received no specific funding.
- Authorship. Everyone listed meets the authorship standard in the Editorial Policies and has approved the submitted version.
If you request double-blind review
For double-blind review, remove author names, affiliations, acknowledgments, funding details, institution names, and other identifying information from the reviewer manuscript. Provide identifying information separately in the title-page file or submission form.
After acceptance
Production and publication
Accepted manuscripts are copyedited, typeset and returned as proofs for the corresponding author to approve. Corrections at proof stage are limited to errors introduced in production and to factual corrections in the author’s own text.
Accepted articles are published open access under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license, with authors retaining copyright. The article processing charge becomes payable after acceptance; nothing is payable at submission or during review.
Once published, the article carries its registered identifier and remains available at a stable address. Corrections after publication follow the corrections and retractions policy.
Where to send a manuscript
- Primary route ManuscriptZone
- Alternative route Simple manuscript submission form
- Assisted route Editorial email — [email protected]
Authors must use only one submission route for the same manuscript.