Special Issue Proposals ISSN 0974 – 3340
The editors of Sutra welcome proposals for special electronic issues on topics that fall within the scope of the journal. As Sutra is only able to publish one to two issues per year, the editors will seek to identify the proposals of the highest quality for publication.Special issues of Sutra should offer
- either an authoritative review of current thinking and debates in a particular area of mathematics, that at the same time takes these debates forward
- and/or a presentation of state-of-the-art analysis within an area of current approach and academic interest, that thus informs approach debate in this area.
They should:
- Advance understanding of topics in the mathematical sciences and its applications
- Provide pointers to future trends and challenges.
Each special issue is the
responsibility of guest editor(s). Those wishing to guest edit a special issue
should prepare a proposal as outlined below, then send this to the TMRF Office. On the basis of the proposal, the editorial board of Sutra will decide whether or not the guest editor(s) should proceed with
preparation of the special issue.
Proposals should:
- Set out the importance of the area and topics that the special issue will focus on;
- Explain the anticipated contribution of the special issue in advancing understanding in this area;
- Identify articles/papers and authors for possible inclusion in the special issue, with a brief description of each paper. (These papers do not need to have been written at the time that the proposal is presented, although our assumption is that most will be based on work already in progress). Where a given author(s) has published extensively on a subject already, it is necessary to have some indication of the new contribution to be made by the proposed paper for the special issue;
- Indicate the time-scale in which the special issue could be produced (paper writing, reviewing, and submission of final copies to Sutra) assuming the proposal is accepted.
To assist the editors in understanding how the papers in the proposal
would contribute to a coherent special issue, the proposal should
include a matrix that:
• Lists the key policy issues that the special issue intends to address
• Shows which papers will contribute to our understanding of which policy issues.
This matrix can also act as a useful tool during the preparation of a special issue, by showing authors the overall context of the issue and how their paper is supposed to contribute to this.
An issue of Sutra should be 30,000-35,000 words long, meaning a maximum of eight to ten articles if these are on average 3200 words long (including abstract, figures, appendices, tables etc). Special issues with fewer, longer articles are also possible. Proposals should include more possible articles than can be included in the eventual issue. This is so that the refereeing process can select the best 8/9/10 articles for final inclusion in the issue.
Editing a “Successful” Special Issue
Once a proposal has been approved in principle by the Editorial Coordinator, it is the responsibility of the Guest Editor(s) to deliver the soft copy of entire issue to Sutra within the agreed time-scale. Guest Editors must organize a double-blind reviewing process for all papers submitted for inclusion in the special issue, so as to:
• Identify those papers to be finally included in the special issue
• Strengthen these papers, so as to ensure the highest possible standards for the issue.
The editors of Sutra require to see copies of all correspondence between reviewers and Guest Editors at the time that the completed draft of the special issue is submitted to Sutra.
Guest Editors should keep the Editorial Coordinator of Sutra informed by e-mail of progress in preparing the special issue and in particular alert them in advance if agreed deadlines are likely to slip.
Once the final selection of papers has been made and final versions (as per Sutra format guidelines) of all these have been received, the Guest Editors should send electronic copies (e-mail attachment / soft copy in CD) to TMRF Office. At the same time, they should send soft copies of the correspondence with reviewers to the TMRF Office.
The Editorial Coordinator of Sutra will then check the quality of the issue before forwarding it to Web Manager for publication. The Editors reserve the right to request a third review of papers and, if necessary, to request modifications to an issue before approving it for publication. However, the procedures set out above are designed to minimize the need for such measures.
• Lists the key policy issues that the special issue intends to address
• Shows which papers will contribute to our understanding of which policy issues.
This matrix can also act as a useful tool during the preparation of a special issue, by showing authors the overall context of the issue and how their paper is supposed to contribute to this.
An issue of Sutra should be 30,000-35,000 words long, meaning a maximum of eight to ten articles if these are on average 3200 words long (including abstract, figures, appendices, tables etc). Special issues with fewer, longer articles are also possible. Proposals should include more possible articles than can be included in the eventual issue. This is so that the refereeing process can select the best 8/9/10 articles for final inclusion in the issue.
Editing a “Successful” Special Issue
Once a proposal has been approved in principle by the Editorial Coordinator, it is the responsibility of the Guest Editor(s) to deliver the soft copy of entire issue to Sutra within the agreed time-scale. Guest Editors must organize a double-blind reviewing process for all papers submitted for inclusion in the special issue, so as to:
• Identify those papers to be finally included in the special issue
• Strengthen these papers, so as to ensure the highest possible standards for the issue.
The editors of Sutra require to see copies of all correspondence between reviewers and Guest Editors at the time that the completed draft of the special issue is submitted to Sutra.
Guest Editors should keep the Editorial Coordinator of Sutra informed by e-mail of progress in preparing the special issue and in particular alert them in advance if agreed deadlines are likely to slip.
Once the final selection of papers has been made and final versions (as per Sutra format guidelines) of all these have been received, the Guest Editors should send electronic copies (e-mail attachment / soft copy in CD) to TMRF Office. At the same time, they should send soft copies of the correspondence with reviewers to the TMRF Office.
The Editorial Coordinator of Sutra will then check the quality of the issue before forwarding it to Web Manager for publication. The Editors reserve the right to request a third review of papers and, if necessary, to request modifications to an issue before approving it for publication. However, the procedures set out above are designed to minimize the need for such measures.
Special Sections
The editors of Sutra also welcome proposals for special sections within an issue of the journal (a total of 3-4 articles, including a brief introductory piece). The procedures for preparing proposals and editing “successful” special sections are the same as for special issues, with the exception of the number of papers involved.
For more details contact TMRF Office.
Read Submission Guidelines before sending the manuscript to Sutra »
Sutra welcomes submissions from within and without the international mathematical community. Articles may feature new results, surveys of recent work in a particular field, profiles of mathematicians past or present, historical notes and so on...