In a cautionary tale highlighting the perils of predatory publishing, an author found themselves entangled in a web of deceit after unwittingly submitting a review article to a predatory journal, Journal X. What began as an innocuous response to an invitation for an invited review quickly turned into a nightmare of unexpected invoices and a glaring absence of peer review.
Upon realizing the predatory nature of Journal X, the author embarked on a mission to extricate their manuscript from its clutches. Despite multiple attempts to communicate via email, phone calls, and certified letters, the author was met with resounding silence from the journal's editorial board. Periodic vanishing acts of the manuscript from the journal's website, only to reappear in later issues, added insult to injury.
Thankfully, the author had not signed a copyright agreement or paid any fees to the predatory journal, providing a glimmer of hope for reclaiming their work. Guidance from the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) suggested that, in the absence of copyright transfer, the manuscript could find refuge in a legitimate journal, accompanied by an editorial note elucidating the ordeal.
While legal recourse was contemplated, the author's university legal counsel advised against it, leaving communication as the primary tool for resolution. A final ultimatum to the publisher, threatening legal action if the article was not promptly removed from the journal's website, yielded results. The publisher, after some prompting, acquiesced to the demand, paving the way for the manuscript's redemption.
With the specter of duplicate publication dispelled, the author now embarks on a journey to submit their manuscript to a reputable journal, armed with hard-earned lessons in scholarly integrity. The editor of the legitimate journal stands ready to welcome the manuscript, confident that the ordeal with predatory publishing is firmly in the rearview mirror.