This editor profile is the fourteenth in a series which will introduce you to a selection of our editors.
This week we have an interview with David Williams, Editor-in-Chief of Biomaterials

What aspect of being an editor do you find most rewarding?
To be the editor of what is widely recognized as a very good scientific journal, at the forefront of research developments, is very rewarding.  We have now, in the biomaterials field, made a significant contribution to the improvement of the health of millions of patients worldwide.  It’s becoming even more exciting, as we use new and highly sophisticated materials, in areas such as regenerative medicine and gene therapy. 

Can you describe how it feels when you come across a groundbreaking paper?
At the beginning, when I see a paper that I think might be groundbreaking, I need to be cautious, because there are times when the referees disagree. I think that it is an important aspect of being an editor, not to get carried away. 

What advice would you give to a new editor?
First of all, everyone’s approach is unique.  But, I’ve developed my own ground rules.  The first is that being an editor is intellectually very challenging and, therefore, I choose to work on the journal when I feel that I am at my brightest, usually in the early morning.  Secondly, it is very, very important to be scrupulously fair to all authors, wherever they come from and without any pre-conceptions about them, or their institutions. That can be very difficult. 

What would you change about your role as editor or the scientific journal publishing industry if you could?
Right now, I’m very happy with my journal, my role and with publishing in general. In the last five to 10 years, there has been a real improvement in scientific publishing, both in quality and responsiveness. The service we’re getting from the industry is making a significant contribution to science.

How do you balance your role as editor with your other roles?
I probably spend four or five hours every day on the journal. How I fit that in with the rest of my life isn’t easy.  I formally retired from the University, but I am now very busy with consulting work and global visiting professorships. I am assisted in my role as Editor-in Chief, by a great Managing Editor, Peggy O’Donnell, who is also my wife.  Now, with Internet access, we can do our work wherever we are in the world. 

When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I’m Welsh and for a long time I wanted to be a rugby player, but I soon had to give that one up. Parental and school control determined that I would become some kind of academic, and I didn’t have a problem with that.

Why did you choose engineering as your field of study?
I trained as a metallurgist and I was trying to figure out how my work could have value.  I went to a lecture, by an orthopedic surgeon, on the metals that were used in major surgeries.  That was in 1967. Later, I saw an advertisement for an engineer, working in orthopedics. The field has evolved substantially in the last 40 years; for the last six years, I’ve been the Director of the UK Centre for Tissue Engineering, which is as much biology as anything. 

Tell me about collaboration.  What is the secret to success?
There has to be something in it for everybody.  There are many dangers in collaboration.  Politicians, senior academics and the funders of research tend to favor collaborative research, but you should do it only when it’s sensible and not just for the sake of it. 

What keeps you awake at night?
Much of my consulting involves giving evidence in court, so the thoughts of testifying before a judge can keep me awake.  There’s nothing like the Federal Court of Brooklyn to get the adrenalin going! 

What is the biggest lesson you've learned in your career?
Thoroughness in everything you do. Many people, in many walks of professional life like to delegate, and then move on. If I take on something, I like to see it through to the end. 

What is your biggest achievement?
I class being editor of Biomaterials as a major achievement. Also, last year, I received the Founders Award from the US Society for Biomaterials.  That was for 40 years of landmark contributions to the subject. It was the first time a non-American was given the award.

What is your favorite quote?
There’s a quote from Lord Slim, “All that doth not advance must retrograde.”  That keeps you on your feet all the time.  You have to keep pushing things forward. 

What are you currently reading?  Would you recommend it? If so, why?
I’m just finishing the biography of John Fowles, John Fowles- A life in Two Worlds, which is fascinating. He is an English author, who wrote the French Lieutenant’s Woman. I like biographies because they attempt to show you how other people deal with life’s good and difficult points. 

Who or what is your biggest inspiration?
Churchill.  I have, here in my office, a whole collection of his books, including some original manuscripts.  I know he made a lot of mistakes, but as regards to the comments I made about professionalism, he is a great example. 

What would you like your legacy to be?
I’m not quite there yet, but in a few years’ time, I think I will have made a significant impact on the understanding of biomaterials science. I’m writing a series of essays on the fundamentals of biocompatibility and I hope that my legacy will be my writing on the subject. 

What do you like to do for fun?
We travel an awful lot and we try to make that as much fun as possible.  Photography is a passion and I write poetry, mostly for myself.  I find it fun and challenging.  I take scientific writing very seriously and poetry is the antithesis to that.