Material Culture: The Journal of the Pioneer America Society
Sara Beth Keough, PhD, Editor
Dept. of Geography
235 Wickes Hall
Saginaw Valley State Univ.
7400 Bay Rd.
University Center, MI 48710
sbkeough@svsu.edu
Office: 989-964-2195
Manuscript Submission Guidelines
The International Society for Landscape, Place, & Material Cultureis an interdisciplinary organization whose mission is to document the yield of human conduct on the landscape. Material Culture (MC) is committed to offering a dynamic dialogue on all aspects of material culture through the contribution of authors representing a variety of professional backgrounds and cultural experiences. The topics covered by MC include all aspects of the study of the material remains of the past from any region of the world. These include the cultural patterns that explain distribution and diffusion, understanding tradition and innovation among individuals and the societies creating them, the meaning and importance of extant relics and objects to their makers and users, attempts at restoring, maintaining, or engaging with folk and popular culture, and the importance of understanding the relationships of material culture extant in the contemporary landscape. We welcome manuscripts from scholarly individuals, as well as corporate, government, independent, non-profit, or educational sectors interested in these subjects.
MC is a peer-reviewed, scholarly journal issued twice yearly (Spring and Fall) by ISLPMC. MC contains research conducted by members and friends of the organization, along with book reviews, reprints from early issues and other offerings deemed by the Editor to be of interest to its readership. Interest in special issues and guest editing opportunities should be presented to the Editor. Priority consideration will be given to articles in which the author's work is determined to be of interest to our diverse membership. If the article is more narrowly appropriate for a more specific academic specialty, or the article does not meet the journal's quality standards, the Editor reserves the right to return the manuscript. MC may also decline to publish readings of an individual book, film, or other media, although reviews of some aspect relating to material culture from other genres, or sub-genres may be considered. Unless materials are under specific copyright by the author, all material becomes the possession of MC and ISLPMC.
MC uses the Chicago Manual of Style author/date system, 16th edition, for formatting most content. Authors should consult the 16th edition of the manual for questions that are not answered by these guidelines, or contact the Editor. An online version of the manual is available as a free 30 day trial or annual subscription (http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html).
Those wishing to submit manuscripts to Material Culture are urged to observe the following guidelines:
Text
- The following materials should be submitted to the Editor for consideration:
- A letter from the author to the Editor stating that the author will not submit the manuscript to any other journal or place of publication while it is under consideration for publication in Material Culture. Included in the letter should be all contact information for the author (email address, mailing address, affiliation, phone number).
- A completed manuscript in MS Word with ".doc" or ".docx" extension. All images should be imbedded in the text. The title page should list the author's name. Do not use running heads throughout the manuscript. The author is responsible for removing personal identifiers from the rest of the manuscript. The Editor will remove the author's name from the title page before sending a version of the manuscript out for review.
- A short biographical paragraph. The biography should identify the writer's affiliation, expertise and research interests. It is optional, but extremely useful for the biography to include an address at which the author can be reached so that readers can address questions and comments directly to the author. The biography will not be available to reviewers until after a decision has been made on publication.
- Manuscripts and submissions should be made directly to the Editor, Sara Beth Keough via email sbkeough@svsu.edu) or by burning all materials to a CD and mailing the CD to the Editor at the address above. A final draft of the article (after all revisions) and all original image files must be burned onto a CD and mailed to Dr. Keough at the address above.
- All manuscripts should be the original work of the author and should not be submitted to any other journal while they are under consideration by Material Culture. The author's name should appear only on the title page of the manuscript.
- Manuscripts should contain an abstract, key words, an introduction where the author's purpose or argument is clearly stated, a body divided with appropriate subheadings, and a conclusion. Particularly in long manuscripts, this subdivision reinforces the overall structure of the argument and helps the reader follow the author's reasoning.
- In writing, try to keep technical jargon at an absolute minimum. This is particularly true when using architectural terms. If a clasped purlin is important enough to include in your manuscript then it is important enough to warrant a brief definition or better yet a small sketch. This is particularly important in dealing with vernacular buildings where the terminology has not yet become fully standardized and where the terms used in formal architecture do not always neatly fit folk examples.
- The same philosophy should be used when introducing locations. Everyone in Batavia may know the location of Clermont County. However, for those who are not familiar with the area, it is helpful to provide a little prompting. For example: "Clermont County, on the Ohio River just west of Cincinnati, provides some excellent examples of this kind of structure." Because readers come from many different backgrounds, it is perhaps wise to err on the side of over explanation. Also, a small, accurate map to introduce a region with data location is preferred.
- Sub-headings: Please use the following guidelines to sub-divide manuscripts as necessary:
- 1st Level Heading (A-Level): BOLD, flush left, 14 pt font, capitalize all significant words
- 2nd Level Heading (B-Level): BOLD, flush left, 12 pt font, capitalize all significant words
- 3rd Level Heading (C-Level): BOLD, italicized, indented 1 tab from the left, capitalize first word of heading, first word after a colon, and all proper nouns
- If more than 3 levels of sub-heading are needed, please consult with the Editor for the proper format
- Example:
- Studying National Identity
- Early Theoretical Approaches
- Key Theorists: The works of Benedict Anderson
- Footnotes are not accepted and Endnotes should be used minimally, if at all. Points, which are important enough to be included in the manuscript, ought to be important enough to include in the text of the article. If Endnotes are necessary, DO NOT use the MS Word automatic Endnote feature! Instead, use a superscript number in the body of the manuscript, and place the Endnotes by number after the conclusion and before the References section.
- A long title should be spelled out the first time, and an appropriate acronym should follow in parentheses for future reference. In this document, Material Culture (MC) was spelled out initially and succeeding references have used MC.
- Numbering from zero through nine should be spelled out while anything after 10 should use numerals in all occurrences. Use numerals in all of the following cases, regardless of the numbers involved:
- All units of measure (use numerals with American units, although metric conversions can be included in parentheses)
- All centuries, even the 1st through 9th centuries. Use a lower case "c" for century.
- All numbers containing a decimal or currency, even if the number is less than 10.
- ***Maintain consistency: If a paragraph contains many numbers, use numerals throughout the entire paragraph, even for numbers 0-9
Other formatting guidelines:
- All submissions should be double-spaced. Please remove the extra space that MS Word puts between paragraphs. (To do this on a PC, highlight all text, right click, choose "paragraph," and check the box that says "Don't add space between paragraphs.")
- One space should appear after all punctuation.
- The text should be 12 point using Times New Roman, Cambria, Calibri, or Arial fonts, and should start at the flush left margin. The first line of each paragraph should be indented 1 tab space.
- Quotes: Any direct quote longer than 3 lines of text in the manuscript should be in block quote format. Block quotes should be single space and indented ½ inch on both the left and right margins. A line space should separate the block quote from the preceding and proceeding paragraphs.
Length of manuscript is not an overriding consideration. MC welcomes short notices, comments on previous articles, and longer works, including individual examples to wider theoretical interpretations. For research manuscripts, submissions should be between 5000-6000 words, and revisions can expand to 7000 words. If a longer manuscript is necessary, please contact the Editor with rationale.
Images
Images are not required for submission, but often they help to illustrate an author's point about material culture. Try to keep the use of images to a minimum. Typically, 5-7 images in a manuscript are appropriate. If an author thinks more than 7 images are needed, they should consult the Editor and explain the rationale. If possible, the Editor will accommodate such requests.
- All images must be submitted in electronic format (.jpg or .gif) and should be included in the initial submission, imbedded in the manuscript. Authors are responsible for scanning photographs when digital images are not available. Scans should be done at a resolution of 300 dpi (dots per inch).
- Images must be in black and white (as that is how they will be printed in the journal). If color is essential to an image (such as remote sensed image), a color version will be made available to readers on the journal's website, and a reference directing the reader to the color image will be made in the text of the journal either in the caption of the black and white image or at the beginning of the article itself. If color images are necessary, it is the author's responsibility to coordinate with the Editor to make this possible.
- All images should be referenced within the text of the article, imbedded within the article, and captioned. Captions should contain a figure number, a description of the image, and a source.
- The original image files in black and white (.jpg or .gif) should be included on the CD the author sends to the Editor with all materials, either at the time of first submission and/or with the revised manuscript. The original image files are necessary for printing and publishing the manuscript. Please name all image files with the author's last name, an underscore, and the figure number, no spaces. For example: Keough_Figure1. If images are re-organized in the text during revision, it is the author's responsibility to make sure the individual images files/names reflect the new organization in the text.
- If images are the property of someone other than the author, it is the responsibility of the author to secure permission for their publication in MC.
- Tables and graphs should follow the same standard as images, and although they may be included in the text, they should still have captions and contain a data source.
- Maps: The journal does not employ its own cartographer. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the author to create all necessary maps, employ their own cartographer, and/or obtain permission for use of a map already created by someone else. Credit for cartography must be included in map captions.
- All images, tables, and graphs should be referred to as "Figures" in the text. Captions should be placed below the image in the text. For example: Figure 1. Map of the study area. Map by Author.
References and Citations
It is important that authors carefully adhere to the rules for citing sources in the text and in the References page. MC uses the Chicago Manual of Style (author/date), 16th edition. References should be placed in alphabetical order in the Reference page.
References
- The page of the manuscript where full citations of cited sources begins should use the heading "References" (no quotes) in bold, flush left.
- References should follow the adopted citation style, (CMS author/date).
- Use a lower case "a" or "b" to differentiate publications by the same author in the same year.
See the following quick-reference examples:
Evanston Public Library Board of Trustees. 2008. "Evanston Public Library Strategic Plan, 2000-2010: A Decade of Outreach." Evanston Public Library. Accessed July 19. http://w ww.epl.org/library/strategic-plan-00.html.
[If information accessed on a website does not have a publication or posting date, use the accessed date.]
Glassie, Henry. 1963. "The Appalachian Log Cabin." Mountain Life and Work 39 (4): 5-14.
__________. 2000. Vernacular Architecture. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Kniffen, Fred. 1965. "Folk Housing: Key to Diffusion." Annals of the Association of American Geographers 55 (4): 549-577.
Jackson, J.B. 1997a. "An Engineered Environment." In Landscape in Sight: Looking at America, edited by H.F. Horowitz, 8-24. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
__________. 1997b. "Notes and Comments: The True Purpose of Landscapes." In Landscape in Sight: Looking at America, edited by H.F. Horowitz, 36-48. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
Jordan, Terry G., John T. Kilpinen, and Charles F. Gritzner. 1997. The Mountain West: Interpreting the Folk Landscape. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press.
Spoden, Muriel, ed. 1976. Historic Sites of Sullivan County, Tennessee. Kingsport, TN: Kingsport Press.
Wargo, Buck. 2009. "Investors take advantage of Las Vegas housing deals." Las Vegas Sun, October 2. http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/oct/02/investors-take-advantage-housing-deals/ Last accessed August 2, 2010
In listing the publisher and place of publication, there are four rules:
- If the state is named in the name of the publisher, it is not included in the place. Examples:
(named) Lexington: University Press of Kentucky
(unnamed) Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press. - Use postal code abbreviations for states.
- Generally, if a publisher has U.S. and overseas offices, use the U.S. office.
- If the city of the publisher is well known, such as New York, it is not necessary to list the state.
Web citations
Web sites should not be cited solely by a URL. The bibliographic information should be as complete as possible using the following format. Do not italicize the name of the webpage. Authors must list the date the website was last accessed.
Example:
Keiffer, A. 2007. "PAS Welcome Message." Homepage. http://www.pioneeramerica.org/index.html Last accessed December 3, 2007
In-Text Citations
- Scientific notation is the preferred citation style. For a paraphrased statement simply put author and year (Jones 1991). "A direct quote should be set off in quotation marks with page numbers supplied" (Jones 1991, 56).
- The in-text citation goes after the sentence, but before the period.
- For multiple citations within the same reference, put citations in chronological order.
- When referencing a conversation, interview, or email, use "pers. comm." and the date if possible.
- When referencing a website within the text of the article, the name of the website author, or the organization, or the website itself should be stated in parentheses with the date of publication. If a date of publication is not available, the date the website was accessed by the author should be included. The URL is not appropriate for an in-text citation.
- If the end of a sentence requires both an in-text citation and a reference to a figure, include each in their own set of parentheses and list the reference to published material first.
- Use the following examples for the author/date system, or consult the Chicago Manual.
(Kniffen 1965).
(Kniffen 1965, 5-6).
(Smith, J.S. 1989; Smith, G. 1991).
(John Smith, pers.comm. 2010).
(Evanston Public Library 2008).
(Kniffen 1965) (Figure 3). - Please address all submissions, questions, comments, and inquiries to the Editor of M/C.
Process
All materials must be submitted to the Editor according to the guidelines above. If the guidelines are not followed, the Editor reserves the right to return the manuscript to the author without review. If a map or chart for the manuscript is under construction at the time the manuscript is submitted, or permission is being sought for use of an image, the author must indicate that in the materials submitted (such as in the caption for the image). Manuscripts will not be accepted for publication until all materials have been received.
Once all of the materials are submitted in the proper format, the submission will be forwarded for a double-blind review by two experts. This usually takes place in a timely manner and the Editor will be happy to keep track and report on the process. In some cases, additional rounds of reviews may be necessary to bring the manuscript to publishable quality.
Authors will be notified when a final determination has been made on their manuscript. One of the following decisions will be made on the manuscript by the Editor:
- Accepted for publication (The manuscript can be published as is, with minor copy-editing changes)
- Accepted with minor revisions (The manuscript requires some small revisions, but additional reviews are likely not necessary if the Editor is satisfied with the changes made by the author).
- Accepted with revisions (The manuscript requires some revisions. Additional reviews may or may not be necessary depending on how satisfied the Editor is with the changes made by the author.)
- Accepted with major revisions (The manuscript addresses a topic that is appropriate for publication in Material Culture, but it requires significant changes before being published. Additional reviews may be necessary.)
- Revise and Re-submit (The manuscript addresses a topic that is appropriate for Material Culture, but it needs so much revision, that it will likely look/read very differently once changes have been made. Additional rounds of reviews will be necessary before the manuscript can be accepted.)
- Rejected in current form (The manuscript does not address a topic appropriate for publication in Material Culture, or the quality of the research is so weak that the manuscript cannot continue through the review process without compromising the quality standards of the journal. If this decision is made, authors still have the option of turning in a completely new manuscript based on the comments from the Editor and reviewers.)
The Editor and her staff assume the responsibility for copy-editing the manuscripts. The Editor will consult with authors on changes that significantly alter the text of the manuscript.
All authors will receive a PDF file with the final, published version of their manuscript and all necessary citation information. Authors MUST NOT, under any circumstances, post this file on a public website. Material Culture is indexed with a number of scholarly databases (JSTOR, ProQuest, EBSCO, America: History and Life, Historical Abstracts, Geo-Abstracts, and the MLA International Bibliography), and public posting of published articles goes against the journal's legal agreements with these organizations.
If there are any additional questions, they should be directed to the Editor as quickly as possible. It is the goal of PAS to publish its periodicals in a timely manner, and the Editor requests that authors appreciate this and work with her in the same fashion.
Thanks in advance for your cooperation. We appreciate your interest in Material Culture and look forward to reading your manuscript.
Sara Beth Keough, Ph.D. Editor
(rev. 08/11)