Resubmitting a reframed paper after desk-rejection?

In our newest "how can we help you?" thread a reader asks:

Does it ever make sense to re-submit to the same journal after desk-rejection?

For context: I recently submitted an article to a leading generalist journal. The article was desk-rejected for reasons of framing -- specifically, they said that my paper is framed too narrowly for a generalist audience. The paper as a whole should appeal to a broader audience than my narrow subfield. (In fact, some friends from other fields want to use my argument in their own research.) But I can see how the abstract (and maybe some of the early language) makes the paper seem too specialist for a generalist journal. Is desk-rejection usually final, even if I change the framing? The journal's editors are switching soon. Would it make a difference if I submit to a different editorial team?

We've discussed whether it's okay to submit to a journal a radically different version of a paper that's they've already rejected, and some readers though it depends on how much time has passed and how different the paper is. But, as for simply reframing the paper and resubmitting after a desk-rejection, that doesn't seem like a good idea to me--though I suppose you could always ask the editors by email.

What do readers think?

Comments

[Guy]

If the paper is suitable for a general philosophy journal, then send it to a different journal. There are plenty of them.