Instructions for Authors

The instructions for authors have been updated in June 2024. Download PDF.

HOW TO SUBMIT A BOOK PROPOSAL

  1. If you consider submitting a book proposal to the Luther-Agricola-Society, you can do so by sending your proposal, abstract of the planned manuscript and an indicative contents list (as well as a list of contributors, if it is an edited collection) to the secretary of our society soc-agricola@helsinki.fi. You may send one or two sample chapters and/or a detailed outline of the project as well. If you prefer, you are welcome to send the complete manuscript. There should be enough material so that the secretary and the board can evaluate the book’s quality, significance, originality, presentation of the argument and level and suitability of referencing. Send your proposal well in advance, preferably by March of the year before intended publication.
  2. The board of the society will make a preliminary assessment of the proposal. If the evaluation is positive, the board will recommend that the proposed work is included in the publishing plan of the society. The plan is then confirmed at the society’s annual meeting (usually in April).
  3. We aim at publishing high quality, scholarly works, and in order to maintain a high standard of publications, all book proposals and manuscripts undergo a rigorous process of assessment by peer review. Hence, after the first evaluation by the board and inclusion in the publishing plan, the complete manuscript will be refereed in double blind process. The board makes the final publishing decision based on the referee reviews. Depending on the availability of the reviewers, the review process may vary from six to ten weeks. At least two positive reports are required for every work commissioned.
  4. Once the reports and the author’s response have arrived, the board will decide whether to put the book project forward for a contract. If approved, terms are negotiated and a contract offered to the author.
  5. The author is responsible for the contents, grammar, proofreading and indexes of the manuscript. The author writes the first outline for the back cover text. The final manuscript should follow all the instructions given in this sheet.
  6. If you have any questions about the review process of your book proposal or manuscript then please do not hesitate to contact the secretary of the Luther-Agricola-Society.

SUBMITTING A MANUSCRIPT

  1. Do not include your name in the manuscript.
  2. Submit the manuscript in an editable file format (.doc, .docx, .rtf, .odf). In case of a monograph, it is recommendable to have separate files for every chapter. Send all images also as separate files. The image quality must be 600 dpi or more.
  3. Submit only proofread text. Manuscript written by a non-native speaker must be orderly language revised. The author is responsible to take care of the language revision.

HOUSE STYLE GUIDE/LAYOUT

  1. Page layout: A4, 2cm margins all around, font size 12 and line spacing 1.5, justified text, no page brakes.
  2. Use only italics for emphasis. Do not use bold or underlining. Do not write headings with all capitals.
  3. Begin paragraph with an indent. However, no indent in paragraphs that do not follow another paragraph (i.e. paragraphs that come after headings, quotations etc.).
  4. Indicate all quotations exceeding three lines with 2cm indents on left side of the quotation. Use single quotation marks to denote quotations within a quotation. Mark quotations within text with double quotation marks: ”Lorem ipsum”.

CITATIONS

  1. Use only footnotes. The superscript note is marked after the sentence ending mark (period, question mark, exclamation mark), or, if footnote concerns a one word only, after the word in question.
  2. Follow the basic footnote format: Author surname year, page number(s): Hallamaa 2007, 4–10.
  3. Separate different publications with a semicolon, also in case when referring to two or more publications by the same author in the same footnote: Hallamaa 2008, 318; Hallamaa 2009, 203–205. Palmén 2013, 121–122; Hallamaa 2014, 75.
  4. Publication by two authors is given with both names using ampersand: Hallamaa & Palmén 2008, 318–320. Publication by three or more authors is expressed shortened with abbreviation ‘et al.’: Palmén et al. 2013, 207.
  5. Give exact page numbers. Do not use abbreviations such as f., ff. or ibid.
  6. Sources may be cited with commonly used abbreviations. Abbreviations need to be given in a separate list under a heading of its own in the end of the manuscript before bibliogpraphy.
  7. Footnotes can include text (discussion etc.).

BIBLIOGRAPHY

  1. Give sources and literature in separate lists in the end of the manuscript: Bibliography (heading), Sources (subheading), Literature (subheading).
  2. List only cited publications.
  3. The pdf version of these guidelines contains examples of different types of bibliographical entries.