Most traditional journals, even online ones, require authors to submit manuscripts as formatted Word documents. Correctly formatting then typesetting such manuscripts is often burdensome for both authors and editors.

Every aspect of Australian Journal of Taxonomy, by contrast, is fully online. Authors edit their papers online, reviewers review online, authors deal with revisions online, and typesetting and publication are done online. This has the potential to substantially ease the burden on authors, reviewers and editors, a prerequisite for rapid taxonomy.

To contribute a paper to Australian Journal of Taxonomy:

1. Click on My Dashboard at left. Note that for security and quality-assurance purposes you need to be a registered user of the Taxonomy Australia website to contribute to Australian Journal of Taxonomy. If you are already a registered user, log in; if you are not yet registered, you will need to register first (register here for free).

2. Click on the Start a new paper button.

3. Contributions are authored using a convenient web form, with fields for the standard content of taxonomic papers. The authoring form may be customised by including or excluding optional fields.

4. Contributions in the Australian Journal of Taxonomy authoring and editing pipeline are accessible from a personal dashboard for each logged-in (primary) author, and may be shared with co-authors.

5. At any time, papers may be viewed with an approximation of the final publication formatting.

6. When your paper is complete, submit it for peer review.

7. Reviewing takes place online. Reviewers are able to provide comments on every section of the paper, as well as overall comments and a recommendation.

8. Once reviews are complete, the paper and reviewer comments will be available from your dashboard. Deal with the reviewer's comments, then submit for a final check by an editor, and publication.

9. Your dashboard will also be a convenient place to track your published contributions.

As a diamond open access publication and to keep costs to a minimum, Australian Journal of Taxonomy has no paid staff or editors. To help offset the workload, all contributors to Australian Journal of Taxonomy may be asked at times to help with other papers, as a reviewer or by invitation onto the panel of Subject Editors. Please engage - the Australian taxonomic community benefits from an efficient, effective journal for the rapid and timely publication of new species.