Question about submitting an article to mutiple journals

[Geezer]

I have a general question about submitting an article--a scientific article, obviously--to journals for publication*: Can you submit your article to several journals, and then withdraw the submission from the journals once a particular journal forwards the paper for refereeing or agrees to publish it? Or must you wait until you're rejected before submitting it elsewhere?

Back story: We--okay, primarily me...my advisor hasn't been especially "hands on" with this project, and I'm the one TeXing it--are finishing an article. From all the reading I did of the literature on the topic, I've found one particular journal for which our work is a very good fit; however, it's not really a "high impact" journal (impact factor just under 2.0). There's another journal, which a much higher impact factor (and probably a corresponding rejection factor) that's seems to be a decent fit for our work, but it may not be a perfect fit for the journal.

I'd really like to get this paper published sooner rather than later--who doesn't?--but I also want to have the highest quality publication list I can have.

So, is it unethical to submit an article to multiple journals?

*My advisor just left for Europe which is why I'm asking y'all right now.

 

[Pengwuino]

I'm pretty sure accepted practice is to only send to 1 journal at a time.

 

[Geezer]

I'm pretty sure accepted practice is to only send to 1 journal at a time.

I assumed so--it seems like the most ethical approach--but I've had so many friends spend the better part of a full academic year waiting for their articles to be published. Sooo frustrating.

 

[Pengwuino]

I assumed so--it seems like the most ethical approach--but I've had so many friends spend the better part of a full academic year waiting for their articles to be published. Sooo frustrating.

It doesn't get better with time.

 

[ZapperZ]

Submitting to multiple journals at once is asking for trouble. DON'T DO IT!.

Your advisor just left for Europe is a poor excuse. I hear that they have internet access there in this Europe. He/she should have been consulted to where it should be sent. If your advisor is someone who is aware of the standard practice, think of how "happy" he/she will be with you when he/she finds out that you did this! Is this something you wish to jeopardize?

Zz.

 

[Geezer]

If your advisor is someone who is aware of the standard practice, think of how "happy" he/she will be with you when he/she finds out that you did this! Is this something you wish to jeopardize?

I wouldn't even consider submitting an article until he signs off on it (his name is on it, too, after all).

I was simply curious. I wasn't seriously considering doing it. The idea popped in my head, I was logged on, so I asked PF.

 

[twofish-quant]

Can you submit your article to several journals, and then withdraw the submission from the journals once a particular journal forwards the paper for refereeing or agrees to publish it? Or must you wait until you're rejected before submitting it elsewhere?

It's extremely rude to do that, and will get you into pretty big trouble (i.e. if you do this once then the next time they'll toss any submissions into the trash).

The problem is that if both journals accept then you will waste the time one group of reviewers, who just put a lot of work in reading your submission for nothing. Not to mention the mess that will get caused as one journal is trying to put together the issue and a paper gets removed at the last moment.

 

[Choppy]

When I review a paper, I spend a lot of time on it. This is time that I am in no way compensated for other than an understanding that others will put in the same effort when I submit my own work for peer review.

I would be extremely frustrated if I put in this effort and found out that the authors withdrew their submission for a reason other than perhaps themselves discovering a serious flaw in the work.