Step 2: Read the paper and develop your own thoughts on how it might be improved
Since you will be synthesizing your first thoughts with the suggestions you obtain from your ad hoc committee of reviewers in about a month, read the paper yourself before you read the reviews.
Target dates for Reviewers and the Editor. Typically, the EiC sets the target date in the system for reviewers to complete their review for two weeks hence. We set a short target date on purpose. We don’t expect all reviewers to complete their review by this target date. We know from experience that some colleagues don’t respond until a review is well past due. We set the target date early to allow time for the system to send a reminder to reviewers. We understand human nature that some reviews will come in late, so we recommend that you start working on the development letter a couple of weeks after the reviewers’ target date; typically this is four-weeks after you received the assignment letter. This scheduling provides time for these late reviews to arrive. The EiC usually sets your target date at four weeks after the assignment for this reason.