Guidelines for proposing a volume in the Proceedings of the British Academy series

Proposals for Proceedings volumes that do not arise from British Academy Conferences or from other British Academy programmes and activities are not eligible: if you are unsure whether your proposed volume is eligible, please first email [email protected], explaining how it is associated with the British Academy.

There is a presumption that all British Academy Conferences will lead to a proposal for a Proceedings volume.

Edited collections are an important part of the academic publishing landscape in most (if not all) humanities and social sciences disciplines, with the best examples being more coherently structured and focused than journal special issues.

Aim and tone: a well-structured volume that drives scholarship forwards. A Proceedings volume should drive scholarship forwards by discussing new research and the latest developments in the subject, making an innovative and lasting contribution to the field. It should be well-structured, with a strong conceptual underpinning.

Disciplinary / subject coverage: within the social sciences, humanities and arts (SHAPE) disciplines, with interdisciplinary proposals welcome. All subject areas within the SHAPE disciplines are eligible, but ideally the volume’s theme should be in an area of research that is advancing rapidly; and the subject should not be too narrowly specialist, so that there is scope for some broader resonance. As with the British Academy Conferences scheme, interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary proposals are particularly welcome (including proposals that show the connection between SHAPE disciplines and the natural sciences). Volumes that arise from British Academy/Wellcome Conferences scheme will encompass health and wellbeing themes.

Chapter types: both research papers discussing new evidence and theories, and review papers that explore broader implications. Editors are encouraged to be creative about the kinds of contributions they would like to include and to feature a range of chapters in their edited volume. These could include discussions of new research, reviews on different aspects of the topic, papers explaining the importance of the topic to those in related subject areas and to the wider world, or papers looking to the future.

Extent: about 12 chapters, each about 10,000 words long. The guide length for a Proceedings volume is 12 chapters, with each chapter up to 10,000 words long. This is only a guide, however, and we will consider longer volumes, or volumes with more but shorter chapters. Keep in mind that if the chapters are too short they will not make their mark, and long volumes may need to justify their length.

Readership: scholarly, academic. The content of a Proceedings volume should be primarily aimed at academics in the relevant subject area, together with non-academic experts where appropriate. But elements of the volume – in particular the Introduction – should be able to reach out to academics in other SHAPE disciplines.

Contributors: high calibre, international, diverse. The list of contributors to a Proceedings volume should display high-calibre expertise, and appropriate international representation. Editors should consider imbalances in the list of contributors and endeavour to achieve a diverse representation of talent – with diversity defined in the broadest sense (including age, career stage, institutional affiliation, ethnicity and gender). A Proceedings volume may provide a particular opportunity for papers by early career scholars to be included alongside those of senior academics.

A conference or equivalent academic meeting can form an excellent foundation for an edited collection. But, while a conference and a subsequent edited volume may be intimately linked, the Editor should take the opportunity to think afresh about the framing of the subject matter in the publication proposal in order to create a volume of lasting significance. We therefore recommend that a proposal for a Proceedings volume should be submitted after the conference has taken place, and once the final shaping of the material for publication has been considered.

Editors should not presume that all papers delivered at the conference must appear in the volume, and should therefore consider the suitability for inclusion of each conference contribution. Equally, additional chapters may be commissioned to provide a more rounded or better balanced treatment of the subject, and a broader interest to the themed volume.

Editors should not assume that all conference contributors will wish to participate in a related volume, and explicit consent should be established from all intended contributors before submitting the publication proposal form.

An ambitious and substantial Introduction by the Editor(s) is important to a themed volume. This introductory section will sell the topic and the volume to the reader, explaining why the topic is so important and why it deserves a dedicated volume. It will provide a reader coming fresh to the topic with background information of sufficient depth, interest, and clarity to encourage them to take up the volume, even if they come from another specialist field.

The Introduction will describe the aims of the volume, and explain the comparative framework that holds the papers together. It will discuss the current state of debate in the field, suggest why the volume is particularly timely, and offer a clear statement as to how the book as a whole, through all its different empirical approaches, contributes to and progresses the discipline. Having set this context, the Introduction will define and frame the basis for each paper the volume will cover. At this point the ‘road map’ that has been set out for the authors will become apparent to the reader.

Typically, chapters in an edited volume will fall into two categories:

• Research papers – the majority of the volume should discuss current research in the field. It is important to explain the accepted evidence/theories first, in order to lay the ground and set the context for the new evidence/theories. By explaining the current evidence/theories and then discussing the new evidence/theories, you lead naturally to looking forward towards the future of the field and exciting the reader about the possibilities of research in this area.
• Review-type papers – it can be useful to include one or more review papers that explain the wider implications of the topic, including to other areas of scholarship. However, rather than making vague allusions to widespread implications inside and across disciplines, it is important to be specific. Take a few of the most important implications, for the discipline and for areas outside it (if relevant) and explain exactly how the research discussed in this volume has a direct influence for researchers in these areas. This is important for making the publication appeal to a wide audience, and to explain the value of this field to other specific areas.

It is also possible to include opinion pieces in the volume.

You may find it beneficial to include a Conclusion that ties the volume together at the end, but this is a recommendation not a requirement.

The Proceedings series operates three submission rounds per year. Please see the proposal submission deadlines above for closing dates.

To submit a proposal, please download and complete the following document:

Proceedings proposal form.

Once completed, this document should be submitted to the Publishing department prior to one of the three deadlines above. Please submit your completed form via email, to [email protected]. You may also direct any queries to the same address.

Discipline-relevant assessors (usually Fellows of the British Academy) will evaluate the following: how well conceived and coherent your volume is; does it offer an innovative approach; the calibre and range of the proposed contributors; the quality of the scholarship to be published; whether it features cutting-edge research; the likely impact of the volume on scholarship; whether there are any dimensions (e.g. disciplinary, chronological, geographical) in which the volume is obviously lacking; the likely range of readership of the volume; its overall appropriateness as a volume in the Proceedings of the British Academy series.

The final selection will be made by the British Academy’s Publishing and Conferences Committee.

Applicants will be notified of the outcome within the time frame indicated in the submission deadlines. Successful applicants will receive a Licence to Publish from the Publishing department, and the Notes for Editors will provide detailed steps to guide you through the next stages.

Where the Publishing and Conferences Committee believes that a proposal for a volume may benefit from further work, it may invite unsuccessful applicants to resubmit the proposal. Unless specifically invited, resubmissions will not be accepted.

Each author may upload the ‘author accepted manuscript’ version of their chapter in the Proceedings volume to institutional or centrally organised subject repositories where it may be made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International Licence (CC BY-NC-ND), provided that (a) it is not made publicly available until 12 months after the publication in the Proceedings of the British Academy series, (b) the Proceedings is attributed as the original place of publication with the correct citation details given. The series is therefore compliant with open access requirements for work that has also been supported through UKRI.

Where Editors can draw on appropriate funding, content in volumes can be made available open access immediately on publication. Editors wishing to explore that possibility should contact [email protected].

The British Academy’s Code of Practice describes the standards of transparency by which the British Academy abides in administering applications for research awards and other proposals for support, and embodies the principles of equity, integrity and confidentiality for all who are involved in the assessment of proposals. The Code is intended to act as guidance to assessors in discharging the responsibilities placed on them in assessing proposals, and it sets out the proper conduct expected of them. Please read the Code in full. The Academy is regretfully unable to enter into correspondence regarding the decisions of the awarding Committee, which are governed by the Code of Practice. Please note that by applying in this scheme, applicants undertake to accept the terms under which applications are assessed.

The British Academy is committed to protecting and storing securely any personal and sensitive data held. This Privacy Notice sets out the basis on which any personal data we (the British Academy) collect from you in relation to administering the Proceedings of the British Academy scheme. Please read the following carefully to understand how we will use your ‘personal data’ (‘personal data’ means any information relating to you, through which you can be identified, such as name, contact details and employment information).

Further information on the British Academy’s privacy policy.

How will your data be used?

As a volume proposer, your personal data (name, contact information, employment information) is stored by the British Academy’s Publishing Department. Application forms will be retained for ten years in the case of successful applications, and five years in the case of unsuccessful applications. This information can be updated at your request.

As part of your relationship with us, the British Academy’s Publishing Department will use your personal data to: process your application; pass your application onto the proceedings assessors and to the awarding Committee (Fellows of the British Academy who serve on the Publications and Conferences Committee); and to convey the outcome of your application. Other relevant members of British Academy staff may also view your application.

Proposers must secure the permission of all contributors to be listed as potential contributors in their proposal.

The legal basis of processing

We will process your personal data for the purposes identified in this document on the following legal bases:

• Our legitimate interests, which relate to the processing of your personal data for the purposes of administering the Proceedings of the British Academy scheme, as outlined in this document
• Where you have freely consented to our use of your personal data for a specified purpose on an informed and unambiguous basis. Where this is the case, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time by contacting us at the address below.

Contact us

If you have any questions about Data Protection, or if you would like to speak to us about the way in which we process your personal data, please email [email protected].

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