Publishing options

As you research, and publicise the work you have done, you may receive emails from companies asking you to consider using them to publish your findings.  This can happen after conference presentations, or depositing your work in the institutional repository.  Sometimes these are completely genuine, but sometimes they are from predatory publishers.

So, how can you tell the difference?  At the most basic level, do some quick investigations about the company.  Search for them online and check whether they are established in your subject area.  See what else they have published and if these are from researchers you would expect to find in your field.  If you are being asked for any money, or to transfer all of your rights to the work, alarm bells should start to ring.  If in any doubt, the Academic Liaison Librarians would be happy to assist with this.

These publishers have always existed, and you find them in every publishing  model, but they are now using the Open Access movement and requirements as their latest reason for approaching researchers. This is probably because some Open Access journals charge Article Processing Charges themselves, so it is becoming more common to make a payment for publication (it is by far not the only Open Access option though - there are several other options that do not involve paying fees).

You can check possible journal publication options and their policies and fees using the Sherpa Romeo service.  However, if you just want to find titles that are open access, the Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) is a good place to start. You can check out the titles in your research area and also assess whether they are good options for your publication. You may also find some useful, freely available, research to download whilst you are there.