I really enjoyed @toniwhited's talk this week on the editorial process, sponsored by @AEACSWEP and @Affect_Finance. Moderators @anusha_chari and @JuliaAFonseca were outstanding! I'd like to share a few notes I took on Toni's advice. All quotes are attributed to her. 1/14

Three pieces of advice for authors:
1. Position your papers well. Literature reviews are to situate your paper in the literature, not to summarize the literature.
2. Polish your papers. Write and re-write them. 2/14

3. Send your paper out! People sit on papers for years and years, especially following rejections. Take reviewer comments seriously, but don't give up! 3/14

Six pieces of advice for referees:
1. Summarize the paper for the editor in a way that is a little bit broader than what the author does.
2. Give advice, especially if you (and the paper) are not in the editor's field. 4/14

3. “Explain, if you like the paper, why it moves the field forward." And, if you don’t like the paper, explain why it doesn’t.
4. For an R&R, pick about 3 major things that would improve the paper. Other, lesser concerns should be optional for the authors to address. 5/14

More on these major concerns:
“Find a few things that would add sparkle to the paper.”
(This is my favorite quote from the whole talk!)
5. Get your report in on time. 6/14

6. Restrain yourself. "It's the author's paper. It's not your paper."
“We need to be more tolerant of a little bit of roughness around the edges. Otherwise, we will progress too slowly.” 7/14

Three pieces of advice for editors:
1. Everyone has different tastes, but you can't let your preferences take over. The journal will become less relevant. The profession will pass the journal by. 8/14

2. Overcome hesitancy to take chances. Editors feel awful when they let in papers that are bad/wrong, but we all do it.
3. Guide authors in R&Rs. Tell authors which of the referee's concerns must be addressed and which are optional. 9/14

Last up are a few questions from the audience!
Q: When is a paper ready for submission?
A: The paper should be "properly baked". If you are presenting at conferences/seminars, get to the point where you're not getting new questions. 10/14

(continued answer) If you are unable to present, send the paper out for comments. The paper is baked when you get no new comments. 11/14

Q: Tips on writing?
A: Write a draft, put it away for three months. Repeat this at least twice. "I re-write papers at least five or six times."
Also, the the first page is prime real estate. Make it count. 12/14

Q: What makes the difference in a paper getting an R&R?
A: “Did you explain to the editor that somebody else besides you and the referee might be interested in the paper?” This is key. If there are issues, you may be given the chance to fix them. 13/14

(continued answer) A: Paper can be super well executed, but if you haven’t explained why the question/topic is interesting, you’re not going to succeed. "It's all about ideas in the end."

Thanks again to Toni for providing her insights! 14/14