Germinate includes peer-reviewed and non-peer-reviewed sections.
The peer-reviewed section includes short research and review articles and photo essays. Submissions to this section undergo a double-blind review. The identities of both reviewers and authors remain unknown to each other throughout the review process.
The non-peer-reviewed section showcases diverse genres, including but not limited to reportage, essays, narrative nonfiction, fiction, memoir, poetry, and visual or audio storytelling.
Length: We accept research and review articles for the peer-reviewed section and non-peer-reviewed work in various formats. Peer-reviewed research and review articles should be between 2,500 and 3,000 words. Non–peer-reviewed word count is similar, but can be longer when appropriate.
Format: Texts should be submitted as an MS Word file. High resolution mages should be uploaded or sent separately. See our Graphics Guide.
Acknowledgments: Any acknowledgments should be placed after the main text before the reference list.
Funding information: The grant provider and grant number can be written if the research has received a funding grant.
Style guide: Germinate follows a house style. See our Style Guide.
Once we receive your submission, we will respond within one week with a decision on whether it is suitable for the journal.
If you have submitted content for the peer-reviewed section suitable for the journal, we will forward it to the two independent experts (reviewers). We will ask the reviewers to send their reports within four weeks of receiving the content. Based on the reviewer reports, we will make a recommendation for rejection, minor or major revisions, or acceptance. If the reviewers recommend any revisions prior to publication, we will ask you to address them within three weeks. Once we receive your revisions, we will start the production process immediately and publish your content within two weeks.
If you have submitted content for the non-peer-reviewed section, we will follow the same process, except the review process. If your submission is suitable for publication, we will start the copy-editing process immediately and publish your content within four weeks.
In both cases, once your work is accepted for publication, please provide a 1-2 sentence bio and a recent headshot.
The time from submission to publication is approximately four weeks for the non-peer-reviewed content and twelve weeks for the peer-reviewed content. This timeframe may change depending on the content, editing, workload, and number of simultaneous submissions.
Each issue includes a variety of peer-reviewed pieces of various lengths and formats that analyze historical events and sources, focus on primary sources, explicate pedagogical approaches and/or student work, research notes as well as digital humanities projects, reviews of exhibitions, games, and other media. Peer-reviewed pieces are typically 2500-3000 words in length.
Research Articles are short pieces presenting original research. Given the relatively short length, these pieces are succinct, direct, and specific.
Research Postcards are research notes and a travelogue from a research trip, conference, or workshop. These pieces are intended to serve as avenues for scholars to showcase the pulse of gathering, rather than extensive historiographical or historical works.
Teaching Resources highlight discussions related to pedagogy as well as recent classroom work in various settings. These pieces could include student work (with relevant permissions sought and obtained) as well as critical analyses of tools.
Primary Sources could explore oral history methods as well as what constitutes a primary source.
Photo-essays are visual-led storytelling that offer a new analysis of a historical event or process.
Sensibilities are reviews of games, exhibits, blogs, podcasts, websites, films, etc.
In Place focuses on place-specific projects and stories. These could include digital humanities projects and tools.
Peer-reviewed pieces will be read by two readers as part of Germinate’s editorial policy. While submitting their work, authors should encourage relevant media that accompany their articles in the submission form.
The use of other people’s work without correct attribution and permission is considered a very serious offense by the academic community. All submissions to the Journal will be uploaded to Similarity Check to assess if the content closely matches content available elsewhere. If a high similarity report is produced, or a case of allegation is made against a publication, the Editor-in-Chief will carry out an independent investigation, following COPE guidelines, and remedial actions will be taken.
For questions regarding the submission process, please contact the editors at g-ehr@aseh.org.
