This is a draft document, intended to assist those who are considering writing for the IPTN Journal. It will be updated in the light of our experience and your feedback.
1. Editorial Role
The IPTN Journal editors will adopt an active editorial style to ensure that content:
- Is well written and grammatically correct (while accepting that English may not be the author’s first language)
- Is factually and historically accurate
- Does not use oppressive, non-inclusive or intolerant language
The IPTN Journal editors will work collaboratively with authors to refine and reshape their submissions as required.
Disclaimer
The IPTN Journal is a program of IPTN (The International Playback Theatre Network). The editors exercise editorial freedom, and all views expressed in the Journal by contributors are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the IPTN.
2. Sourcing Content
The IPTN Journal editors source IPTN Journal content in a variety of ways:
- Posting a call-out on the IPTN website and social media for new and original material
- Reviewing leadership essays
- Republishing articles from other journals (with permission)
- Inviting colleagues to submit reviews (of books, events, and training workshops for example)
- The editors reserve the right to include an article or not
The editors may decide to select a theme for a particular edition of the Journal, linked to concepts or topics related to the practice of Playback Theatre. This will be clearly communicated to the readership and to the Playback Theatre Community as part of the invitation to contribute articles or images.
3. Variety of Contributions
The editors will work over time to ensure that the range of published material is representative of the diversity of countries and communities that make up the global IPTN membership.
Factors such as country of origin, gender and other characteristics of authors whose work is included will be recorded (both within each edition and across consecutive editions) to monitor and reduce possible bias.
Efforts will be made by the editors to encourage and enable voices less heard to take space in the IPTN Journal.
4. IPTN Journal ‘house style’
Abstract
Each article will feature an abstract that very briefly outlines the content and findings of the article (usually 150 – 250 words).
Acknowledgements
Where an article has previously been published elsewhere, it is the author’s responsibility to ensure that the correct acknowledgments and credits are obtained from the original publisher.
Article length
Articles will typically be 3000 – 4000 words.
Biography
Authors whose work is to be published should supply a brief personal biography, up to 150 words maximum. See example below:
‘Radhika carries a deep love for the performing arts; both as a medium of exploring the self as well as connecting with the outside world. And in Playback Theatre, she discovered a medium that could do both of these! She is the co-founder of First Drop Theatre, a Bangalore based Applied Theatre company. An Accredited Trainer from the Centre for Playback Theatre, USA, Radhika is also the faculty for Playback Theatre at the Applied Theatre India foundation and the co-editor of the International Playback Theatre Network (IPTN) journal.’
Book reviews
Will include full title and publication details with cover image. Usually 750 – 1250 words.
Confidentiality and consent
Authors will be asked to confirm that all photographs are used with the knowledge and consent of the people in them. Real names and any other identifying information should only be used with permission of those involved.
Copy editing and proof reading
The Journal Editors may draw on support from suitably experienced Playback Theatre colleagues to check for accuracy, help with overall editing tasks, and undertake final proof reading. In some instances, we may ask for input and opinion from a Playback Theatre practitioner with relevant expertise. (This does not constitute a formal peer review process as such, but we may move further in that direction over time.)
Edition title
The IPTN Journal will be titled according to the month and year of publication as follows: IPTN Journal May 2022
Language and spelling
The default language of the IPTN Journal will be English.
English is increasingly the language of choice for international professional and academic journals. The availability of good quality, free, online translation software significantly reduces accessibility issues.
‘Playback Theatre’ will always be written in full, with the first letters in capitals. The American English spelling is accepted (i.e., ‘Theater’).
The editors recognise that different forms of English are in common use and the Journal may include articles that reflect this.
Payment
There is currently no payment for contributions to the IPTN Journal.
Publication date
The IPTN Journal is currently published annually at the beginning of April.
References
A formatted references list of all quotes and other information that has been included from outside sources must be included. The examples below show the format to be used for different kinds of source material:
Collins, M. E., Garlington, S., & Cooney, K. (2015) Relieving human suffering: Compassion in social policy. Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare, 42(1) 95–120. //scholarworks.wmich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3889&context=jssw
Dauber, H. and Fox, J. eds. (1999) Gathering Voices: Essays on Playback Theatre. New Paltz, N.Y., Tusitala Publishing
Fox, J. (2019) Leadership Online Course Lecture notes 5a, Centre for Playback
Vorobyova, A. (2019) Information provided in response to the online questionnaire for this research
5. Publication Timeline and Sign off Procedure
The IPTN Journal editors welcome submissions for publication (or discussion about submissions) at any time. However, the circumstances around each submission vary widely, depending on various factors, for example:
- When the first draft is received
- How much editing (and dialogue about editing) is required
- If there’s a need for translation
- If permission from third parties is required
As a result, it is difficult to set out a firm timeline that will be consistent in every case.
The following rough guidelines will generally apply however:
September
Call for articles and other material
December
Cut-off date for new articles and other material
January and February
Final drafts are agreed between Journal Editors and authors and signed off.
It is essential that authors take responsibility at this stage for checking the final draft and confirming that they are completely satisfied with it, and that no further changes are required from their perspective.
Further tweaks or changes to the content of articles or other writings will not be possible after this stage.
February and March
All content is formatted, and proof read for online publication
April
The latest edition is published online
6. Current Edition and Archive
The current edition of the IPTN Journal will remain on the ‘Latest Edition’ page of the IPTN website for one year. When it is replaced by the new edition, it will be converted to PDF and added to the IPTN Journal Archive.
Radhika Jain and Steve Nash (Co-editors)