Types of Paper
Contributions falling into the following categories will be considered for publication in the VJM: Original article, Case study, Review.
Original Article:
Studies that are of scientific quality and that are of interest to the diverse readership of the journal. Manuscripts should include abstract and appropriate experimental details to support the conclusions. Original articles should be no more than 8000 words (including abstract, main text, table, annexures and references) and should not normally include more than 6 display items (tables and/or figures).
Case Study
A case study should report on specific cases that are unique, exciting, and current to exercise in the relevant fields of study. Case studies should make a distinct contribution to the scientific field. A case could be an individual or a community depending on the nature of the study. We expect most case studies to include an abstract, an introduction, a brief case report, and a discussion (should be no more than 6000 words)
Review
Reviews have a word limit of 5000 words including abstract but excluding references, tables, and figures. Self-invited manuscripts would be considered only if the authors are highly reputable demonstrated by a track record of productivity in the relevant field being reviewed.
Before you submit your manuscript, it’s important that you read and follow the guidelines below.
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Format
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Article files should be provided in Microsoft Word format.
The text is single-spaced; uses a 12-point font; employs italics, rather than underlining (except with URL addresses); and all illustrations, figures, and tables are placed within the text at the appropriate points, rather than at the end.
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Title page
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• Title. Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formula where possible.
• Author names and affiliations. Please clearly indicate the given name(s) and family name(s) of each author and check that all names are accurately spelled. Present the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lowercase superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide affiliation of all authors, including the country name and e-mail address.
• Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, also post-publication. Ensure that the e-mail address given is kept up to date by the corresponding author.
*You should never include people who have not contributed to the paper or who don’t want to be associated with the research.
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Abstract
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All submissions must include a concise and factual abstract. The abstract should state briefly the purpose, design/methodology/approach, findings, and research implications, and have originality. The maximum length of your abstract should be 250 words in total, including keywords. Authors are invited to submit 3-5 keywords associated with their paper.
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Headings
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Headings must be concise, with a clear indication of the required hierarchy.
The preferred format is for first level headings to be in bold, and subsequent sub-headings to be in medium italics.
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Footnotes
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Footnotes should be used sparingly. Number them consecutively throughout the article. Many word processors can build footnotes into the text, and this feature may be used. Otherwise, please indicate the position of footnotes in the text and list the footnotes themselves separately at the end of the article. Do not include footnotes in the Reference list.
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Figures
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All figures (charts, diagrams, line drawings, webpages/screenshots, and photographic images) should be submitted electronically. Please make sure that artwork files are in an acceptable format (TIFF, EPS, or MS Office files) and with the correct resolution.
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Tables
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Tables should be typed and submitted in the main body of the article. Give each table a brief title. Number tables consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text and place any table notes below the table body.
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Math formula
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Please submit math equations as editable text and not as images. Present simple formulae in line with normal text where possible and use the solidus (/) instead of a horizontal line for small fractional terms, e.g., X/Y. In principle, variables are to be presented in italics. Powers of e are often more conveniently denoted by exp. Number consecutively any equations that have to be displayed separately from the text (if referred to explicitly in the text).
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References
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All references in your manuscript must be formatted using one of the recognised APA styles.
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Author/s can use the template attached here (VJM Manuscript Template (Doc)).
Research Data
This journal encourages and enables you to share data that supports your research publication where appropriate and enables you to interlink the data with your published articles. Research data refers to the results of observations or experimentation that validate research findings.
Acknowledgments
Collate acknowledgments in a separate section at the end of the article before the references and do not, therefore, include them on the title page, as a footnote to the title or otherwise.
Research funding
Your manuscript must reference all sources of external research funding in the acknowledgements section. You should describe the role of the funder or financial sponsor in the entire research process, from study design to submission.
Authors' Contributions
Authors are required to state their contributions to the manuscript. The statement can be of several sentences, describing the tasks of individual authors referred to by their initials. Use the following format: JDE carried out the genetic studies, participated in the proteomic analysis and drafted the manuscript; JSR carried out the immunoassays and performed the statistical analysis; JMP conceived the study, and participated in its design and coordination and helped to draft the manuscript. Add a statement that all authors have read and approved the final version of the manuscript and agree with the order of presentation of the authors.
Competing Interests
State if there is any competing interest of any sort. If there is no financial interest, use the following format: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Research and publishing ethics
VJM works hard to ensure the content we publish is ethically sound. Any manuscript you submit to this journal should be original. That means it should not have been published before in its current, or similar, form. Exceptions to this rule are outlined in our pre-print and conference paper policies.
Your work should not have been submitted elsewhere and should not be under consideration by any other publication.
If you have a conflict of interest, you must declare it upon submission; this allows the editor to decide how they would like to proceed.
By submitting your work to the VJM, you are guaranteeing that the work is not in infringement of any existing copyright.
Third party copyright permissions
Prior to article submission, you need to ensure you’ve applied for, and received, written permission to use any material in your manuscript that has been created by a third party. Please note, we are unable to publish any article that still has permissions pending. The rights we require are:
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Non-exclusive rights to reproduce the material in the article or book chapter.
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Print and electronic rights.
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Worldwide English-language rights.
To use the material for the life of the work. That means there should be no time restrictions on its re-use e.g., a one-year license.
Online Submission
There are a number of key steps you should follow to ensure a smooth submission. Before submitting your work, it is your responsibility to check that the manuscript is complete, grammatically correct, and without spelling or typographical errors.
Submission process
Submission to this journal can be done online. Make sure that you are guided stepwise through the process to uploading of your files. Online Submission.
Online submission link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf1a-EOkfTn54QMvhkcJhLUI_CgvrQblQN5vbQ9LJVgMNDwBg/viewform?usp=pp_url
You will receive an automated email from the journal editor, confirming your successful submission.
Additionally, a duly completed electronic copy of your manuscript can be forwarded to vjm@sjp.ac.lk
Manuscripts can be submitted throughout the year.
Post submission
Review and decision process
Each submission is checked by the editor. At this stage, they may choose to decline your manuscript if it doesn’t fit the journal aims and scope, or if they feel the language/manuscript quality is too low.
If they think it might be suitable for publication, they will send it to at least two independent referees for double blind peer review. Once these reviewers have provided their feedback, the editor may decide to accept your manuscript, request minor or major revisions, or decline your work.
During this period, we will send you updates on the progress of your manuscript via email. Each time we contact you, we will quote the manuscript number you were given at the point of submission.
If your submission is accepted
Once an article is accepted for publication in the Journal, the author should submit the final/amended version in MS-Word format to the same e-mail addresses: vjm@sjp.ac.lk. Once an article is submitted, the author/s cannot submit the same manuscript to another journal without getting the withdrawal permission from the chief editors of the Journal.
Copyright
All accepted authors are sent an email with a link to a copyright form. This should be checked for accuracy, for example whether contact and affiliation details are up to date and your name is spelled correctly, and then returned to us electronically. Note that your manuscript cannot be published until we receive the copyright form from all authors.
Editing and Proofing
Once we have received your completed copyright form, you are asked to exercise language editing. Authors are responsible for exercising language editing by professional editing bodies. VJM will provide the list of language editors as per the requirement of authors.
Next, the article will pass directly into the production process. We will carry out editorial checks, copyediting, and typesetting and then return proofs to the corresponding author. This is the final opportunity to correct any incorrect author details.
When the page proofs are finalised, the fully typeset and proofed version is published online. This is referred to as the EarlyCite version. While an EarlyCite article has yet to be assigned to a volume or issue, it does have a digital object identifier (DOI) and is fully citable. It will be compiled into an issue according to the journal’s issue schedule, with papers being added by chronological date of publication.
