Our New Column

This month we are introducing a new column, "Notes from the Trenches," with the first article by Sandy Shoup. Magazines supporting any hobby tend to try to provide information by "noted" authors, or well-known people in the hobby. Reefkeeping Magazine is no different, and we attempt to provide articles and columns by well-known authorities.

Yet, this standard approach sometimes misses the point of the magazine; that is, to provide useful information. In concentrating on the well-known authors, this approach neglects the large body of good and useful information accumulated by the regular hobbyist. This column is an attempt to give those hobbyists a voice. The features in this column are written by those previously unsung and unheard reef authorities: You folks! The idea behind this column is to provide a chance for hobbyists to express themselves on, really, whatever they feel is worth writing about that relates to the broad category of marine aquariums.

Anyone may submit an article for publication in this column, by sending the manuscript to any of our editorial staff mentioned below. The two criteria for publication are simple:

• First, the article has to be interesting.
  

• Secondly, it has to be well written.
  

All submitted articles will go through our standard multi-layer editorial review process and be reviewed by at least three people, and we will all have to agree that the article warrants publication. Once the editorial review has occurred, the author will be notified of the results. If the article is accepted for publication, the manuscript (with editorial comments) will be returned for revisions, if necessary, and the article will be used at some future date. Authors will be paid a small fee for the use of the article.

We anticipate that this column will be irregularly published; we might go several months between features. On the other hand, we might get a lot of good submissions, and it will appear regularly. All hobbyists are urged to submit articles. The authorship is not fixed and will vary from month-to-month. Successful authors are at no advantage in the editorial process the second time around, but neither will they be discriminated against. Each submitted manuscript will be judged on its merits, so a previous rejection is immaterial to the success or failure of a subsequent submission.

We hope you will enjoy this new feature and take advantage of the possibility to be heard!

Ronald L. Shimek, Ph.D.
Science Editor

Editorial Staff:

Skip Attix
Eric Borneman
Ron Shimek