Identifying, Evaluating, and Selecting a Conference or Publication Venue
Next, we turn to identifying conferences, journals, and LIS An interdisciplinary field that examines how physical and digital information is organized, accessed, collected, managed, disseminated and used, particularly in library settings. publications to which you can submit proposals or completed articles.
Conferences
When searching for conferences, state library association conferences may be a helpful source, especially for novice researchers. These conferences are often have less competitive acceptance practices, making them more accessible for first-time presenters. Additionally, they can be a productive forum for obtaining initial feedback on your research. Next, you can explore submitting proposals to library and information subject-area conferences. For example, if your work has an OER focus and your target audience is OER librarians and advocates, consider submitting a proposal to the Open Education Conference. Additionally, you can look to ALA conferences and ASRL Conferences. Library Juice Press maintains a great list of conferences to keep up to date on what’s going on in the field. You can check The Library Writer’s Blog for a running list of calls for conferences, journal articles, and book chapter proposals. If your topic or audience is outside librarianship, look for disciplinary conferences that reach your target audience. One way you can do this is by looking at professional organizations within that discipline and seeing if you can find relevant annual conferences hosted by those organizations.
Conferences offer multiple ways to present your ideas and research. Often the options to present include:
- Poster sessions: an opportunity for informal, interactive presentation and discussion The section of a research article where the researchers analyze and interpret the findings. This section provides the “so what” for the research conducted. of various topics based on visual graphics relating to a project or service. Posters are a great way to offer a brief snapshot of your work and interact with fellow conference goers to receive immediate feedback.
- Roundtable discussions: small, informal group discussions providing an opportunity for participants to exchange information, discuss best practices, and network with others around common themes and shared professional challenges.
- Lightning talks: quick, usually under 10-minute presentations, to offer a quick glimpse into ideas, initiatives, and lessons learned.
- Workshops: longer sessions that provide active and in-depth learning. Participants engage with an issue, learn a new skill, develop an action plan, or participate in other activity where hands-on learning is integral.
- Panels: provide a platform for several presenters (often co-authors or project partners) to share findings The section of a research article where researchers share the results from the research. This section takes the results and directly connects them to the research questions or hypotheses posed at the start of the article. Also can be called “Findings.” , innovative ideas, practical experiences, fresh approaches and perspectives, and critical reflection on a current topic or pressing issue.
- Contributed papers: may report the results The section of a research article where researchers share the results from the research. This section takes the results and directly connects them to the research questions or hypotheses posed at the start of the article. Also can be called “Findings.” of completed research, describe research in progress, or present a position on a compelling problem or issue relevant to one or more of the conference tags.
Depending on where you are in your career or the stage of your research, these modes of presenting at a conference benefit you in different ways.
Journals
One of the first questions you may ask when choosing a journal to publish is if you need to be concerned with research impact A way to describe and measure the ways in which research causes some sort of positive impact on a community. Research impact can be measured through quantitative or qualitative data.
metrics? If you are just getting started, this may not concern you (see Course 5, Lesson 4: Measuring, Evaluating, and Articulating Impact for a discussion of metrics). Begin by identifying the type of journal in which you want to publish. There are scholarly-focused journals and practitioner-focused journals, both of which are likely to be refereed. If peer review is not a concern for your professional goals, consider exploring publishing in professional magazines or newsletters. If you have access to professional journals through databases, read them. Stay up to date with the library and information science An interdisciplinary field that examines how physical and digital information is organized, accessed, collected, managed, disseminated and used, particularly in library settings. topics that interest you. Additionally, Belcher (2019) suggests reviewing the citations you’ve collected for your literature review The process of summarizing, synthesizing and/or critiquing literature around a specific topic/idea. This work can help a researcher understand what has happened before and also how past research intersects and or diverges from other research. A literature review can be a full-length manuscript or a subsection within a larger research article. for potential suitable publication venues. You may also want to regularly explore journals in adjacent discipline areas, such as education or communication, depending on your subject area interests. If you want to publish in an Open Access journal, search for potential outlets in the Directory of Open Access Journals under the subject heading “Bibliography, Library Science, Information Science.”
When looking at journals of interest, remember that you can determine if your research topic is a good fit by reading the journal’s aims and scope. Also, pay attention to how frequently issues are published, their acceptance rates, review status (editorial review, anonymized peer review, double-anonymized peer review), and how long it takes from submission to publication. You will also want to know what your rights are as the author. You may also want to see if indexes listing the journal are mentioned. Examples of indexes include Library & Info Sci Abstracts or ERIC. If the journal is not included in any indexes, consider if readers will be able to locate your article. Before submitting a journal article, you may also want to send a query email to the journal editor for feedback on whether they see your article as a good fit for the publication. Remember that you can only submit an article to one publication at a time for consideration. (You’ll find more information on the review and submission process in Course 5, Lesson 1: Working With Editors & Peer Reviewers.)
Something to look out for as you look for publication venues are predatory journals. Predatory journals are publications that claim to be legitimate scholarly journals but misrepresent their publishing practices. Some common forms of predatory publishing practices include falsely claiming to provide peer review, hiding information about article processing charges, misrepresenting members of the journal’s editorial board, and other violations of copyright or scholarly ethics. This guide from Old Dominion University offers resources and tips for ensuring that you’re publishing with credible venues.
Book Chapters
Book chapters are another publication venue for your work. In addition to The Library Writer’s Blog, the LIS Publications Wiki also has a list of major book publishers in the field. These websites will publish calls for proposals (or CFPs) for chapters relating to the subject matter of the forthcoming book. Because of the nature of the publication process for books, the process from submission to publication of a book chapter takes a lot longer than it does for conference or journal article submissions. Something else to note is that journal articles and book chapters are not interchangeable. The format, tone, language, structure, and reference section often differ from a standalone, peer-reviewed publication to a book chapter, which should align with the rest of the book.
Ultimately, selecting a conference or publication venue will depend on a few different factors. For grad students and early-career librarians who are pursuing a research project for the first time or those you want to get feedback from peers at the early stages of your project, conferences can be a great way to explore ideas and see what direction may work best for the projects. Peer-reviewed journal articles or book chapters tend to be more attractive for those publishing for tenure purposes or to report on the findings of a long-term project. These are just some things to consider as you select a scholarly output for your work.
Now, take some time to look at conferences, journals, and books provided by the resources mentioned above. Try to find one example of each venue that relates to your research, your ideal audience, or your interests and then look deeper at their CFPs, editorial policies, mission or scope, and metrics, if provided. Incorporate this into your practice as you think about how your research fits into the scholarly conversation of the field.
Exercise
Complete the following exercise in your LPOL Workbook. This exercise will help you check for learning, engage with the material, and work through new ideas.
Complete the 4.1.3: Identifying and Evaluating Potential Venues worksheet in your LPOL Workbook to practice identifying and evaluating potential journals.
Topic 3 References
Elmore, Susan A, and Eleanor H Weston. “Predatory Journals: What They Are and How to Avoid Them.” Toxicologic pathology vol. 48,4 (2020): 607-610. doi:10.1177/0192623320920209
Foss, Katie. “Transforming a Journal Article Into a Book Chapter.” https://profkatiefoss.com/2020/06/10/transforming-a-journal-article-into-a-book-chapter/comment-page-1/
Hahn, Trudi Bellardo, and Paul T Jaeger. “From Practice to Publication: A Path for Academic Library Professionals.” College & Research Libraries News 74, no. 5 (2013): 238-42. https://crln.acrl.org/index.php/crlnews/article/view/8944/9676
Ivins, Tammy, and Anne Pemberton. How to Write and Get Published: A Practical Guide for Librarians. Blue Ridge Summit: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated, 2019.
“Where (and Where Not) to Publish Your Work.”. Old Dominion University. 2024. https://guides.lib.odu.edu/publish/predatory
Identifying, Evaluating, and Selecting a Conference or Publication Venue
Next, we turn to identifying conferences, journals, and LISLibrary and Information Science An interdisciplinary field that examines how physical and digital information is organized, accessed, collected, managed, disseminated and used, particularly in library settings. publications to which you can submit proposals or completed articles.
Conferences
When searching for conferences, state library association conferences may be a helpful source, especially for novice researchers. These conferences are often have less competitive acceptance practices, making them more accessible for first-time presenters. Additionally, they can be a productive forum for obtaining initial feedback on your research. Next, you can explore submitting proposals to library and information subject-area conferences. For example, if your work has an OER focus and your target audience is OER librarians and advocates, consider submitting a proposal to the Open Education Conference. Additionally, you can look to ALA conferences and ASRL Conferences. Library Juice Press maintains a great list of conferences to keep up to date on what’s going on in the field. You can check The Library Writer’s Blog for a running list of calls for conferences, journal articles, and book chapter proposals. If your topic or audience is outside librarianship, look for disciplinary conferences that reach your target audience. One way you can do this is by looking at professional organizations within that discipline and seeing if you can find relevant annual conferences hosted by those organizations.
Conferences offer multiple ways to present your ideas and research. Often the options to present include:
Depending on where you are in your career or the stage of your research, these modes of presenting at a conference benefit you in different ways.
Journals
One of the first questions you may ask when choosing a journal to publish is if you need to be concerned with research impactResearch impact A way to describe and measure the ways in which research causes some sort of positive impact on a community. Research impact can be measured through quantitative or qualitative data. metrics? If you are just getting started, this may not concern you (see Course 5, Lesson 4: Measuring, Evaluating, and Articulating Impact for a discussion of metrics). Begin by identifying the type of journal in which you want to publish. There are scholarly-focused journals and practitioner-focused journals, both of which are likely to be refereed. If peer review is not a concern for your professional goals, consider exploring publishing in professional magazines or newsletters. If you have access to professional journals through databases, read them. Stay up to date with the library and information scienceLibrary and Information Science An interdisciplinary field that examines how physical and digital information is organized, accessed, collected, managed, disseminated and used, particularly in library settings. topics that interest you. Additionally, Belcher (2019) suggests reviewing the citations you’ve collected for your literature reviewLiterature Review The process of summarizing, synthesizing and/or critiquing literature around a specific topic/idea. This work can help a researcher understand what has happened before and also how past research intersects and or diverges from other research. A literature review can be a full-length manuscript or a subsection within a larger research article. for potential suitable publication venues. You may also want to regularly explore journals in adjacent discipline areas, such as education or communication, depending on your subject area interests. If you want to publish in an Open Access journal, search for potential outlets in the Directory of Open Access Journals under the subject heading “Bibliography, Library Science, Information Science.”
When looking at journals of interest, remember that you can determine if your research topic is a good fit by reading the journal’s aims and scope. Also, pay attention to how frequently issues are published, their acceptance rates, review status (editorial review, anonymized peer review, double-anonymized peer review), and how long it takes from submission to publication. You will also want to know what your rights are as the author. You may also want to see if indexes listing the journal are mentioned. Examples of indexes include Library & Info Sci Abstracts or ERIC. If the journal is not included in any indexes, consider if readers will be able to locate your article. Before submitting a journal article, you may also want to send a query email to the journal editor for feedback on whether they see your article as a good fit for the publication. Remember that you can only submit an article to one publication at a time for consideration. (You’ll find more information on the review and submission process in Course 5, Lesson 1: Working With Editors & Peer Reviewers.)
Something to look out for as you look for publication venues are predatory journals. Predatory journals are publications that claim to be legitimate scholarly journals but misrepresent their publishing practices. Some common forms of predatory publishing practices include falsely claiming to provide peer review, hiding information about article processing charges, misrepresenting members of the journal’s editorial board, and other violations of copyright or scholarly ethics. This guide from Old Dominion University offers resources and tips for ensuring that you’re publishing with credible venues.
Book Chapters
Book chapters are another publication venue for your work. In addition to The Library Writer’s Blog, the LIS Publications Wiki also has a list of major book publishers in the field. These websites will publish calls for proposals (or CFPs) for chapters relating to the subject matter of the forthcoming book. Because of the nature of the publication process for books, the process from submission to publication of a book chapter takes a lot longer than it does for conference or journal article submissions. Something else to note is that journal articles and book chapters are not interchangeable. The format, tone, language, structure, and reference section often differ from a standalone, peer-reviewed publication to a book chapter, which should align with the rest of the book.
Ultimately, selecting a conference or publication venue will depend on a few different factors. For grad students and early-career librarians who are pursuing a research project for the first time or those you want to get feedback from peers at the early stages of your project, conferences can be a great way to explore ideas and see what direction may work best for the projects. Peer-reviewed journal articles or book chapters tend to be more attractive for those publishing for tenure purposes or to report on the findings of a long-term project. These are just some things to consider as you select a scholarly output for your work.
Now, take some time to look at conferences, journals, and books provided by the resources mentioned above. Try to find one example of each venue that relates to your research, your ideal audience, or your interests and then look deeper at their CFPs, editorial policies, mission or scope, and metrics, if provided. Incorporate this into your practice as you think about how your research fits into the scholarly conversation of the field.
Exercise
Complete the following exercise in your LPOL Workbook. This exercise will help you check for learning, engage with the material, and work through new ideas.
Complete the 4.1.3: Identifying and Evaluating Potential Venues worksheet in your LPOL Workbook to practice identifying and evaluating potential journals.
Topic 3 References
Elmore, Susan A, and Eleanor H Weston. “Predatory Journals: What They Are and How to Avoid Them.” Toxicologic pathology vol. 48,4 (2020): 607-610. doi:10.1177/0192623320920209
Foss, Katie. “Transforming a Journal Article Into a Book Chapter.” https://profkatiefoss.com/2020/06/10/transforming-a-journal-article-into-a-book-chapter/comment-page-1/
Hahn, Trudi Bellardo, and Paul T Jaeger. “From Practice to Publication: A Path for Academic Library Professionals.” College & Research Libraries News 74, no. 5 (2013): 238-42. https://crln.acrl.org/index.php/crlnews/article/view/8944/9676
Ivins, Tammy, and Anne Pemberton. How to Write and Get Published: A Practical Guide for Librarians. Blue Ridge Summit: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated, 2019.
“Where (and Where Not) to Publish Your Work.”. Old Dominion University. 2024. https://guides.lib.odu.edu/publish/predatory