Wherever you are in the world, undoubtedly the novel coronavirus has touched your life, from your family’s well-being to your own physical and mental health, your community to your livelihood. But as an author compiling your valuable research and knowledge into a manuscript for publication, the need to carry on in the face of COVID-19 is more important than ever.

Focusing, writing and reaching goals are extra challenging right now…yet aren’t science and technology all about overcoming challenges? So, as you find new ways to develop content for your book – whether it’s your first or just the latest of many – rest assured that Elsevier remains dedicated to supporting your research, writing and production. Let’s look at some of the available resources you can tap.

Success Will Come to the Resilient

Survival as an author will depend on your ability to cope in the face of obstacles, limited options and setbacks. You may already be using some of our tools to help your authoring process. However, if you’re feeling stuck, check out our Author Resilience Center, where we’ve pulled together various resources to help you get or stay on track.

Your flexibility and ultimate book publishing success should center around four tenets:

• Stay safe
• Stay connected
• Stay organized
• Stay focused

While these may seem obvious, and some easier to achieve than others, it never hurts to have back-up to help you implement these strategies.

Nothing is more important to your work than your own health and safety, and that of your family. It’s vital to maintain both your physical health and your mental wellness. Check out our free health and medical research on the novel coronavirus and COVID-19. We also have tips and tricks on working at home and avoiding burnout, as well as mindfulness sessions.   

Assuming you’re not able to use your usual resources, like your library and lab, in person, remote access is your new best friend! You’re probably staying connected with your colleagues via social media, as well as communications tools like WebEx, WhatsApp, Skype, WeChat, Google Hangouts, or Zoom. But did you know we’re working with institutions to connect you and your fellow researchers to ScienceDirect? Since you can’t join others in your field at conferences, you can easily get feedback by posting your research in a Mendeley group.   

How do you stay organized as you try to research and write in a busy household or cramped apartment? You’ve had to alter your approach to work, making it harder to meet deadlines or adapt when they’re changed. Try out some helpful planning and organizing tools, like Trello, Google Tasks, Asana or Slack. And if you think you’ll miss a deadline, reach out sooner than later to reset expectations – you’re not the only one having to swerve in these uncertain times.

Keeping your eye on the prize – in this case, your published book – will help make things a bit more normal. Employ assets like our Author Hub (with quick-start guides, Q&A’s and helpful videos) and Researcher Academy for supportive ideas on sharpening your writing and maximizing your research. Stay in touch with your publisher, to avoid surprises and unnecessary pressure.

Take Your Desktop Publishing to the Next Level

If you’re deep into the writing process, we hope you’re using Elsa to make progress on your manuscript wherever you’re located. This online content creation platform has a centralized dashboard to help you write, edit, track progress, and monitor manuscript quality. Seamless collaboration, version and edit tracking, and suggestions for richer content are just some of the Elsa features that save you time and make your creation sing. Active Elsa users are also invited to regular training webinars, with subjects like references and uploading Word documents…so watch your inbox!

Pandemic-Specific Content is Available Now

Scientific researchers and healthcare communities worldwide have stepped up in an unprecedented way since COVID-19 emerged. To support their efforts, and yours, Elsevier has compiled a wide range of related resources for you to read, download and data mine. Our Novel Coronavirus Resource Directory gives you a complete overview of these textbooks, evidence-based clinical guidance and 28,000+ research articles. All resources are free to access including coronavirus-related book chapters and articles on ScienceDirect. There’s also a Research Hub focused on drugs, vaccines and other clinical research, and the opportunity to identify research expertise and collaborations.

Here for You Through the Familiar – and the Unexpected

Since our partnerships with authors began in the 1880s, we’ve had plenty of time to gain insights into your research, writing and publishing processes. When the novel coronavirus came along, we applied that information to find ways to help you make both the small and large adjustments necessary to bring your books to fruition. Just like your commitment to your topic, our commitment to you doesn’t waver.