Revised: February 19, 2015
Submissions
Manuscripts: Manuscripts are considered with the understanding that they have not been published previously and are not under consideration by another publication.
Cover Letters: Each manuscript must be accompanied by a cover letter containing the following sentence: “In consideration of WMJ’s taking action in reviewing and editing this submission, the author(s) hereby transfer(s), assign(s), or otherwise convey(s) all copyright ownership to WMJ in the event that this work is published in WMJ.” All co-authors must sign the letter.
Title Page:
a. The title page must designate a corresponding author and provide a complete address, telephone number and e-mail address.
b. Affiliations are needed for each author.
Disclosures: WMJ expects authors to disclose any commercial associations that might pose a conflict of interest in connection with the submitted article. All funding sources supporting the work must be acknowledged, as must all institutional or corporate affiliations of all authors. Author disclosure declarations must be filled out and signed by each author and must accompany the initial submission. (See the Author Disclosure Form.)
Authorship: WMJ follows the ICMJE guidelines for biomedical publications. See icmje.org. “Authorship credit should be based on 1) substantial contributions to conception and design, or acquisition of data, or analysis and interpretation of data; 2) drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; and 3) final approval of the version to be published. Authors should meet conditions 1, 2, and 3.”
Copyright
Accepted manuscripts become the property of WMJ and may not be published elsewhere, in part or in whole, without permission from WMJ. Abstracts may be reproduced without specific permission, provided that acknowledgment of the source is made.
Preparation of Scientific Manuscripts
When structuring your manuscript, follow the guidelines for each manuscript type, listed here.
Submissions that do not meet the following requirements will be returned to the authors for revision prior to peer review. (See the Submission Checklist.)
Manuscripts should be computer-generated and must be submitted electronically. Use one-inch margins and double-spacing throughout. 12 pt. font, Times New Roman is preferred. Pages must be numbered.
Provide each author’s full name and highest academic degree in the byline. If an author holds two doctoral degrees (eg, MD and PhD, or MD and DDS), either or both may be used, according to the author’s preference.
Do not use abbreviations in the title or abstract, and limit their use in the text. Acceptable abbreviations of clinical, technical and general terms can be found in the AMA Manual for Authors and Editors and AMA Manual of Style, 10th ed. All abbreviations must be spelled out on first use.
Avoid the use of medical jargon. Words or phrases that are particular to conversations among medical personnel are inappropriate in scientific writing. (Examples: For “presented with” use “had;” for “experienced a weight loss” use “lost weight.”)
Supply the full and correct names of drugs. Use generic names of drugs, unless the specific trade name of a drug is directly relevant to the discussion. Brand names may be inserted in parentheses.
Please provide any illustrations electronically in their native file format, separate from the main manuscript. Do not embed illustrations in Microsoft Word documents. Figure legends must be typed double space on pages separate from the text and figure. Abbreviations used in the figure must be listed in the legend and all symbols must be explained. All lettering and symbols must be of a readable size—12 pt is recommended.
Tables should be self-explanatory and should not duplicate the text or figures. Please place editable tables at the end of the document, with each on a separate page.
All illustrations and tables taken from other publications must be acknowledged, and written permission to reprint from the copyright holders must be provided at the time of submission.
Units of measure are to be provided in metric, followed by International System units (SI) in parentheses.
Submit a Manuscript
WMJ uses PeerTrack, an online manuscript managing system developed by Aries Systems and used by over 2300 journals. To submit a manuscript, click here.
Review Process
Original research, review articles, brief reports, and case reports undergo a peer review process, with members of the editorial board and others with expertise on the subject serving as reviewers. The medical editor has the final decision as to whether these types of papers will be published.
Editorials, letters, and commentary are reviewed by the medical editor, WMJ staff and legal counsel. Editorials and letters are signed by the authors, are the authors’ opinions, and do not necessarily reflect the policies of the Publishers. Letters are limited to 500 words and subject to editing for length, clarity, and style.
Revisions
It is rare that a paper is accepted without revision as suggested by the Editorial Board or WMJ Editor. After making revisions, submit the revised manuscript with a letter explaining the changes made.
Editing
All manuscripts will be edited by WMJ staff for clarity, organization, grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and in accordance with AMA style. Suggestions for titles are welcome, but are subject to editorial constraints.
Galley Proofs
The author will be asked to review a galley proof prior to publication to verify statements of fact. Galley proofs are for correcting minor and typographical errors only. Revisions in the paper are not possible at this stage and should have been made prior to final acceptance of the paper. Authors are responsible for all statements made in their work, including any changes made by the editors and authorized by the corresponding author. Turnaround time on galley proofs is very short, so be sure an alternate author is available to review them if you will be unavailable for a long stretch of time.
Questions
If you have questions, contact us at 608.263.2758, or e-mail wmj@med.wisc.edu.