Scientific publishing for greater research impact

Summary

The year 2021 brings to Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems the transition to a new editor-in-chief team. Handing over responsibilities is an appropriate opportunity to contemplate what lessons can be learned to improve the quality and impact of publications. At the same time, it is a good moment to outline a vision for the forthcoming development of the journal. Publishing the highest-quality research requires collaboration between the authors, the editorial team and the referees on a daily basis, regularly supported and guided by the publisher. Scientists will serve in any of these three roles—editor, reviewer, author—on a regular basis. A collegial attitude is needed at any given stage of the publishing process to improve the scientific product. Here, we share some insights from the editorial process for authors to succeed in not only finding approval by editors and referees, but also by readers and users of the scientific insights. We are convinced that the topics addressed in Nutrient Cycling in Agroecosystems are highly relevant not only for the scientific community, but for the future of our planet given the implications that nutrient cycling in agriculture has on food security, climate change, biodiversity, water and air pollution. Regardless of our role in the publishing process, we must strive to improve quality and outreach of our work rather than the sheer quantity of output. With a rather steady average number of publications of around 80 since 1997, the journal has clearly aimed at maintaining quality rather than growth. We hope that these insights prove useful as a guide to better publications in this and other journals.