ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH

Received at Editorial Office: 25 Apr 2022
Article revised: 11 Sep 2022
Article accepted for publication: 12 Oct 2022

I don't know if anyone else has had a similar experience. It took almost half a year for the review process, and surprisingly, there were five rounds of revisions with a total of three reviewers. One of them kept rejecting it and consistently asked basic questions about the model (as if they didn't understand the model at all). I asked the editor if all three reviewers had to approve it before it could be accepted. I thought it would be secure after two rounds, but in the fourth round, another reviewer rejected it as well, stating that they needed research from multiple cities instead of just one. I was really frustrated and couldn't take it anymore, so I wrote a long argumentative letter to the editor, expressing my dissatisfaction with the lack of respect for my hard work and questioning the reviewers' backgrounds and potential conflicts of interest. I basically wanted to make a point even if it meant "dying with dignity." However, the editor unexpectedly retracted the rejection and asked for revisions for the fifth round. The two reviewers who rejected it didn't continue reviewing or provide any feedback, while the other reviewer agreed to accept it. There were delays and a month later, based on the previous review comments, only one reviewer uploaded their feedback, which was positive. The other two reviewers didn't provide any feedback, but the article was accepted. I wanted to share this story to encourage everyone not to give up until the very end and hope that all your hard work will be accepted.

Received at Editorial Office: 25 Apr 2022
Article revised: 11 Sep 2022
Article accepted for publication: 12 Oct 2022

I don't know if anyone else has experienced the same difficulties. It took almost half a year for the article to be reviewed, and there were a total of five rounds of revisions with three peer reviewers. One of the reviewers consistently rejected it and constantly asked basic questions about the model (the kind you wouldn't even know about modeling). I asked the editor if all three reviewers had to approve it for acceptance. I thought it was stable after the second round, but to my surprise, another reviewer rejected it in the fourth round, stating that research from multiple cities was needed, not just one. I was really devastated, so I wrote a long argumentative letter to the editor, expressing my frustration about the lack of respect for my work, questioning the reviewers' expertise, and demanding that they declare any potential conflicts of interest. I basically wanted to go down fighting. However, the editor unexpectedly withdrew the rejection and asked for revisions for the fifth round. The two reviewers who rejected it refused to continue reviewing or submitting their opinions, while the other reviewer still agreed to accept it. It was a series of delays, and one month later, based on the feedback from the previous round, only one reviewer uploaded their opinion, which was in favor of acceptance. The other two reviewers did not submit their opinions. I wanted to share this story to encourage everyone not to give up until the last moment and to hope that everyone's work can be accepted.