Preparing Your Manuscript and Figures

For the best shot at a paper that moves quickly from manuscript form to the pages of Science, we recommend that authors carefully check the instructions and guidelines in the pages below before uploading their new or revised manuscript using the buttons at the bottom of this page. (The information listed in these pages is the most recent available; click here for a PDF version of the Information for Contributors that appeared in the 6 February 2009 edition of the print Science, which contains more limited information.)

If you are submitting a new manuscript, follow the links in the left-hand column. For submitting a revision after peer review, use the links in the right-hand column.

Important note to submitters: Science cannot at present accept files in Word 2007's .docx format. Please see our instructions for Word 2007 users before submitting.

[Return to Information and Help for Authors home page]

Preparing Your Manuscript for Initial Submission The Science Contributors FAQ Quick answers to frequently asked questions on Science's manuscript criteria, review process, and embargo policies, formats for figures and supporting online material, and more. General information for authors Categories of papers, manuscript selection criteria, conditions of acceptance, and other important data for scientific contributors. Preparing your initial manuscript Your initial submission should combine text, tables, figures, and most supporting online material in a single (preferably PDF) document. Here's information on the acceptable file formats, naming conventions, and generally how to set things up before submitting. [Authors preparing their PostScript or PDF file for submission from TeX or LaTeX sources should also see our discussion on ensuring legible output from these sources.] Preparing efficient figures for initial submission Some tips on preparing illustrations, to keep the size of your upload managable. Additional resources Some general style guidelines for Science manuscripts and a review of the journal's reference style, along with a list of commonly used journal abbreviations for references.		Preparing Your Revised Manuscript (after Peer Review) License-to-publish and conflict-of-interest forms Information on our publication license agreement with authors and our author COI disclosure policies, and downloadable PDF versions of the relevant forms. Preparing your text and tables -- using Word or WordPerfect General guidelines for manuscript preparation using the popular word-processing packages. We prefer to receive manuscripts in this format at the revision stage. Preparing your text and tables -- using LaTeX Although we prefer to receive revised manuscripts in Word or WordPerfect, we will also accept LaTeX-formatted papers. Please carefully follow our instructions for setting up your TeX. Preparing your art and figures At the revision stage, figure files are uploaded separately from the manuscript text. Here are guidelines for preparing, formatting, and uploading figures at the revision stage. [Important note: We cannot accept art in Microsoft PowerPoint or Word format at the revision stage! Please adhere to the formatting guidelines here.] Preparing your supporting online material Acceptable file formats and procedures for figures, tables, movies, sound clips, and other material to supplement your paper online.

To Advertise   |   Find Products