Over 80% of Bhammers want to publish. Thanks to Jason Peppard for seeking advice through the CELS mailing list.

Let's collaboratively share what we all individually find out while "learning the ropes" of publishing in the ELT world.

Here's a start (I've edited parts - gomen):

Micheal Cooper, Miyazaki, Japan, says:
My Module 1 paper will probably appear in the next issue of Comparative Culture. Ask the editors for their standards, and remove evidence that it was done as an assignment (explicit assignment question references,references to module texts, etc.).

John Racine Tokyo, Japan, says:
I disagree somewhat with Micheal's advice above. For in-house journals(kiyou, in Japanese) probably anything's ok. But for real peer-reviewed journals, you really shouldn't remove all evidence that it was an MA paper. If you used a module text as a resource then you really MUST acknowledge it as a source.

Also, in the author's note, you should acknowledge the fact that it was an MA paper by stating something like: "An alternate version of this paper was submitted towards completion of an MA ...." This kind of disclosure is expected from all authors publishing in journals following APA guidelines at least.

I'm new to this too, but my advice would be to find a journal that deals specifically with the issue you are examining. Usually there are very specific details about a journal's area of interest on their website. If you find one that suits your paper, then, like Micheal said, be sure to
closely follow the editorial/style guidelines that the editors expect. I was recently told by a reviewer that my style errors gave him/her the impression that I had "taken a casual attitude toward the publication process". In fact, I take the process very seriously; it was only myignorance of the editorial conventions that gave that impression. In other words, give it to them in the format they want to see.
Other specifics: If you're writing up an experiment/survey style paper, you may be required to include statistical analysis to show whether or not the effect you're describing actually exists. If only a handful of participants took part, you may be asked to bump up the numbers to improve the
reliability of your results. I don't know much about what to expect from submitting a more "theoretical" paper. Maybe someone else can offer some ideas.

Jeannette Littlemore, CELS, says:
I think that going for national (rather than international) journals is always a good start. Focusing on the research gap (i.e. why your article is needed) is always a good way to start. You need to answer the questions: why am I writing this? and why should anyone care about what I have written? If you are happy that you have answered these two questions then you are a long way towards writing something publishable. That’s my main ‘thought for the day’!

Nicholas Groom, CELS, says:
My advice would be more in line with what Micheal suggests, i.e. "remove evidence that it was done as an assignment (explicit assignment question references, references to module texts, etc.)." For a start, our MA course materials are not public documents, so there is no point in citing something that the journal's audience has no access to. It also looks a bit naive - as, indeed, would citing published 'broad coverage' introductory level textbooks such as Brown, Harmer et al where you should actually be citing more specialized and cutting-edge stuff - which in effect means previously published journal articles and book chapters that focus specifically on the same issue as your paper. This is what editors and audiences alike expect to see - they will not be impressed by work that explicitly acknowledges a substantial debt to basic level pedagogic materials, whether published or not. The trick is to present yourself as a fully-fledged member of the academic discourse community, and that involves showing a high degree of familiarity and engagement with the specialist literature in your field, not with basic stuff you read for your MA.

Many of our students have published revised versions of coursework assignments or dissertations, and quite a few have appeared in internationally-recognized journals. (We really need to draw up a list - you'd be very impressed!) However, few if any of them have explicitly acknowledged MA origins or cited MA materials, as far as I can remember. Acknowledgements tend to be more subtle - a typical technique is to include the names of tutors and/or supervisors in the acknowledgments bit ("The author would like to thank X, Y and Z for their constructive feedback on an earlier version of this paper"), and to include the fact that the author is doing or has recently completed a (distance) MA in ------ with the University of Birmingham. That would do nicely.

I would certainly second everything else that John says, though - adhere fanatically to the journal's stated style guidelines, and expect to do a lot of rewriting before the final version goes to print. As John says, your initial submission is likely to get pretty comprehensively eviscerated by the reviewer(s), but don't let that put you off - view the criticisms constructively - they are in fact offered in the same spirit - reviewer's don't get paid for doing this work, remember - they do it because they are interested in it, and interested in helping you to get the best out of yourself. Incorporate their suggestions into your revised text as much as you can, and resubmit it a.s.a.p.