Configure Commentaries

A publication may invite an Author to submit a commentary on a previously submitted article. The commentary feature may be used when an Editor determines that a particular submission requires comment or response from another individual (a subject-matter expert, one of the Reviewers of the submission, etc.). This feature enables the publication to associate the commentary with the related article, making it easy to track the relationship between the two and, if desired, schedule them for publication together.

The existing submission (also known as the "parent" submission) may be anywhere in the editorial/review process at the time a commentary (also known as the "child" submission) is solicited.

Basic workflow for initiating and managing a commentary

An Editor (with appropriate permissions) initiates the commentary process from the record of the "parent" submission by clicking the Solicit Commentary link.
On the Target Publication Schedule page, the Editor enters information about target publication date, volume, and issue, as well as due dates for the Author. (Default data may appear in some fields as configured for the "parent" Article Type.) The Editor may also pre-select an Article Type for the invited submission from a list of configured Invited Article Types. A pre-selected Article Type cannot be changed by the Author.
The Editor uses the Author Selection Summary page to identify Authors to invite. (Once Authors have been invited, this page displays a list of Authors who were invited or selected as alternates as well as the status of each invitation.)
- This page allows Editors to search the publication database for Authors.
- The page also allows Editors to upload an external Author List file (.csv, .tab, .txt). (For details, see the article, Upload Author List, in the Editor section of Help.)
- Editors (with appropriate permissions) may also proxy register potential Authors. The Author Selection Summary page includes a link for this purpose: Register and Invite New Author. The Search for Alternate Authors page includes a similar link: Register and Select as Alternate.
Once Author selections are made, the Editor can send invitation emails.
If an Author declines the invitation, alternate Authors can be promoted on the Author Selection Summary page. The Editor can also use this page to uninvite an Author at any point after the invitation has been sent and before the Author submits the commentary. (System features include automatic uninviting and promoting of Authors.)
An Editor (with appropriate permissions) can also change the due date of a commentary on the Details page of the "parent" submission. A letter may be configured to be sent to the invited Authors alerting them of the changed due date.

For information on using commentaries, see Solicit and Manage a Commentary.

To Configure:

Permissions must be granted to Editors. Go to RoleManager > Editor Role. Select the appropriate Editor role and click Edit. On the Edit Role Definition page, go to the Proposal/Commentaries section, check the box next to the applicable permission(s) described below, and click Submit.

Editors must have the following permissions in order to solicit and manage a commentary:

Invite Authors/Solicit Commentaries. (Sub-permissions to this setting relate to managing Alternate Authors.)
Override Author Invited Submission Due Dates

Additional permissions that may be useful for Editors to have:

Assign Authors (without Invitation) (if publication's workflow allows)
Lock/Unlock Predefined Article Type
View All Proposals and Submissions with Commentaries
Proxy Register New Users (in Proxy Activities section)
Send Author Reminders (in the Administrative and Reporting Functions section)

Article Types must be configured. Create one or more Article Types configured as "Invited." In addition, set the Author Invitation Parameters on the "parent" Article Types. For details, see Configure Article Types for Invited Submissions.

Letters for invited submissions are needed for the commentary workflow and must be associated with the following ActionManager events:

Solicit commentary on submission
Author assigned (not invited) for commentary
Invited submission due date changed
Uninvite Author
Author unassigned after accepting invitation
Author unassigned after assignment
Promote alternate Authors
Author agrees to invitation
Author declines invitation
New child submission sent to publication

For details on configuration of letters, see Create Letters.

For details on associating letters to events, see Link Letters to ActionManager Events.

Invitation notes may be made available to Authors in letters and in the system interface. See Display Additional Information for Invited Authors.

Information about solicited commentaries may be included on the "parent" submission's Details page. Add the section heading, Author(s) Invited to Submit Commentary. For specific instructions, see Configure Details Page.