For some time, ERC has posted newly accepted manuscripts online as soon as they are accepted, as Accepted Preprints. From January 2010, they will also be published online in their final format a few weeks after acceptance, well ahead of the completed print issue of ERC. This new ‘continuous publication’ format is a particularly important development for ERC, as it will give authors rapid exposure of their work, without waiting for the complete print issue of the journal to be compiled, which will continue to be published quarterly. Please recall as well that ERC reviews, which are very popular with our readers, will continue to be freely accessible online.
Most high impact journals impose fairly strict limits on the length of the original scientific research articles they publish. This does not seem to detract from their quality or readability. On the contrary, brevity and clarity usually go hand in hand. ERC has historically been quite permissive in this respect, a luxury we can no longer afford as the number of manuscript submissions continues to rise. We hereby ask our authors to strive to be succinct, to avoid providing unnecessary or repetitive information, and to make good use of the online Supplementary Data capability of ERC.
Finally, I take this opportunity to thank our hardworking Editorial Board members and reviewers for their selfless efforts on behalf of the journal, and the outstanding staff of the Editorial Office in Bristol for keeping us all on our toes. And to all, of course, best wishes for a wonderful New Year.
