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GUIDELINES
FOR AUTHORS
Imprint seeks high quality articles that reflect timely issues
in nursing, nursing school, nursing education, global health issues, and
health care. Nursing students, faculty, and leading experts are all invited
to submit articles, and are encouraged to contact the editor or managing
editor about what to submit and when. Manuscripts are considered for the
General Articles, Features, Letters to the Editor, or Columns and Department
categories. Imprint does not accept academic or clinical
school papers, or graduation speeches. Imprint does
accept poetry. All submissions are acknowledged by the managing editor
via email or hard copy postcard.
Deadlines and Word Count
Deadlines are as follows:
| June 1 |
Sept/October issue |
| July 2 |
Nov/Dec issue |
October 31 |
January issue |
November 3 |
Feb/March issue |
January 5 |
April/May issue |
The length for feature or general articles is 1200-1500 words.
The length for columns is 800-1000 words, except for the Write On (letters)
and poetry columns (see p.4)
Query Letters
We strongly encourage authors to discuss potential manuscript
ideas via e- mail or phone with the editors in order to best tailor them
to our readers and to make sure a manuscript on the same topic hasn't
been accepted recently.
Query letters should include a paragraph describing
the proposed manuscript, its projected length, how the topic will be treated
or approached, an outline, a short biographical sketch indicating the
author's credentials and qualifications for writing the manuscript, and
the author's contact information (email, street addresses, and day and
evening telephone numbers). We do consider completed manuscripts without
a prior query. Manuscripts published elsewhere or submitted simultaneously
to another journal will not be reviewed.
Review Process
All materials are subject to review by the editors. Initial review usually
takes 6 to 8 weeks, although expedited reviews are provided for manuscripts
with time-sensitive data. Authors who believe their manuscripts are time-sensitive
should contact the managing editor before submitting the manuscript. Imprint
staff will inform the author of the manuscript's status as soon as possible.
A manuscript may be accepted or rejected, or we may ask the author to
make revisions before a final decision can be made. Authors who do not
receive notice of the decision on a manuscript eight weeks after submission
may contact the managing editor for an update on the manuscript's status.
Rejected manuscripts are not returned to authors. Authors who submit original
artwork or photographs that are to be returned upon rejection or publication
of the manuscript must include a self-addressed stamped envelope suitable
for safe return mailing of the materials.
All authors of accepted manuscripts are asked to sign and return
to the Managing Editor a copyright release form insuring that: they are
the sole author(s) of the manuscript; they are releasing the copyright
of the manuscript to NSNA/Imprint; the manuscript has not been published
or submitted for publication elsewhere; the manuscript is original.
Manuscript Preparation and Submission
Manuscripts must be typed, double spaced, on only one side of the paper,
with a one-inch margin on all sides, and be sure all pages are numbered.
Include a cover letter including your name, address, phone number,
and e- mail address. We accept email and hard copy submissions.
Send email submissions as word attachments to jonathan@nsna.org.
For hard copy submissions, include a copy of the manuscript and include
all your contact information.
All accepted manuscripts become the property of NSNA and cannot
be reproduced elsewhere without the permission of NSNA.
Style and Editing
We encourage a writing style that is inviting, useful, informative, and lively, with use of headings and subheadings throughout the manuscript. Refer to yourself as "I," rather than "the author" and the reader as "you." Imprint has an informal easy to read style that is conversational in tone, rather than academic. All copy must conform to our editorial style, and this typically involves editing, rewriting, and condensing. We make every effort to retain content, and we send all authors edited copy prior to publication for their review. As time permits, we integrate author’s corrections into the final copy, but this is at the editor’s discretion.
References
Authors are responsible for the accuracy and completeness of their references and for correct text citation. All statistics and factual information must be referenced. All direct quotes, including those from government sources, online publications, and publications that are in the public domain, must be presented as such with quotations and appropriate citations.
Treating direct quotes otherwise will be considered plagiarism.
Plagiarized manuscripts will be rejected.
Imprint uses the American Psychological Association (APA) style
for references. (See http://www.apastyle.org/
for general references, and www.apastyle.org/elecref.html
for online references.) With this format, references must be listed
alphabetically by author's last name and include all elements of formal
citation. The reference format for APA style is described in the 5th edition
of the Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association , a large reference
book that contains hundreds of guidelines on how to format references,
statistics, tables, punctuation, and grammar. It also contains writing
tips and instructions about how to format manuscripts. You may also find
a copy of the Publication Manual in your school library, at a
local bookstore, or online.
In the text, the author's name(s) and date of publication are in parentheses
immediately following the reference.
Examples of APA Style:
Journal article:
Fine, M. A., & Kurdek, L. A. (1993). Reflections on determining
authorship credit and authorship order on faculty-student collaborations.
American Psychologist, 48, 1141-1147.
Book:
Nicol, A. A. M., & Pexman, P. M. (1999). Presenting your findings:
A practical guide for creating tables. Washington, DC: American Psychological
Association.
Book chapter:
O'Neil, J. M., & Egan, J. (1992). Men's and women's gender role
journeys: Metaphor for healing, transition, and transformation. In B.
R. Wainrib (Ed.), Gender issues across the life cycle (pp. 107-123).
New York: Springer.
Online reference
Article in an Internet-only journal:
Fredrickson, B. L. (2000, March 7). Cultivating positive emotions to
optimize health and well-being. Prevention & Treatment,
3, Article 0001a. Retrieved November 20, 2000, from http://journals.apa.org/prevention/volume3/pre0030001a.html
Please note that there are several reference styles for online references,
depending on whether the source in an online journal only, on online article
based on a print source, or a stand-alone document with no indicated author
or date. Refer to www.apastyle.org/elecref.html
for formatting information.
APA style calls for a list of References at the end of the article instead
of a Bibliography. All references cited in the article must be listed
alphabetically by author's last name in the list of References. All manuscripts
accepted for publication are checked for factual accuracy of content and
references. Authors must submit copies of source materials for fact checking
during the editing phase. If the article is submitted electronically,
the background source material can be sent in hard copy to the attention
of the managing editor with a cover note explaining the article it accompanies.
Photos
Hard copy photos accompanying articles may be submitted in black and white or color and must be in good condition, with identifying captions on the back, and contact information for whom the photo should be returned to. Electronic photos may be emailed to jonathan@nsna.org,
but must be high resolution files (300 dpi for 5x7 image),
with captions provided in the body of the e- mail . Images copied from web sites, or images that are 75 dpi or lower, are not acceptable quality and will not be considered. Generally, a high-resolution image will be over 500K as a file size. We accept JPEG or TIFF files. Please do not send PPF photo files or photos embedded in Word or other word processor documents. NSNA requires a photo release form before publishing any photos of identifiable individuals, as well as a photographer’s release if the photos are not by the author. For more information, email: jonathan@nsna.org.
Criteria Used in Accepting Articles for Imprint
1. |
Topic has not been published in Imprint
within the last two years. |
2. |
Subject matter is relevant to Imprint readers. |
3. |
The article is accurate and properly documented |
4. |
Length and word count are within guidelines. |
Imprint Columns Open for Submissions or Suggestions for Topics
Frequency: Every Issue or Every Other Issue
(Note: some columns are written by NSNA Board members. Please check with
managing editor, jonathan@nsna.org, before submitting.
Write On - Letters to the Editor
Letters to the editor responding to articles in Imprint or nursing
issues.
(Suggested length: between 200-400 words max.)
Legislation/Education
Informational columns focusing on current NSNA resolutions and the legislative
process.
Happenings
State and local chapters report on projects and activities in which they are participating to promote member recognition and networking.
Submissions to the "Happenings" reporter through the NSNA office are encouraged, along with photos highlighting student activities.
(See photo guidelines re: permission to publish.) Or, submit articles directly to the Happenings reporter
on www.nsna.org or visit Happenings Reporter.
Up Close
Highlights outstanding NSNA members. Readers are invited to submit names
for consideration to the Up Close reporter through the NSNA office, or
directly to the Up Close reporter on www.nsna.org
. Click on Publications/Imprint/Up Close reporter.
Reflections
Human interest stories about emotional or life-changing experiences with
patients or other nursing school experiences.
Poetry
Creative poetry dealing with a poignant nursing or nursing student issue.
Submit Manuscripts to:
Jonathan Buttrick / Imprint Managing Editor
National Student Nurses Association
45 Main Street, Suite 606
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Tel: 718-210-0705 ext. 104
Email queries and electronic submissions to: jonathan@nsna.org
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