Journal house style is for the benefit of readers; now everyone can access it

Imagine that your paper has been accepted by the BMJ. After the work of writing and revision, you are looking forward to seeing it in print and receiving the acclaim of colleagues. The proofs arrive. You settle down to read your hard-wrought prose—and revel in how well it reads. Then you notice the “? to author” inserted here and there. To answer some of these queries, you turn back to your original— and realise how much has been changed. You wonder what's been done to your paper. Was this really necessary?

Like every paper published in the BMJ, yours will have undergone scrutiny by a technical editor. These invisible professionals are the most exacting readers of the paper. Their scrutiny and revision adds value by making your paper clear, concise, and accurate. Their mission is to remove …