Subject & Course Guides: Resources for Editors of Scholarly Journals: Launching a Journal: Getting Started

Launching a New Journal

Starting a new scholarly journal can be a complex process. Many decisions have to be made before accepting submissions and publishing the first issue. The resources on this page can help guide editors and boards through the process.

Some things to consider when starting a new journal:

What is the journal's purpose? What unique niche will it fill?
What is the administrative structure of the journal? Editorial board? Advisory board?
What standards will you use to judge articles for inclusion?
Who will do copy editing and proofreading?
What is the format of the journal? Print, online, or both?
Is the journal going to be Open Access, available only by subscription, or a combination?
Where is the journal going to be hosted/printed? Is there a Memorandum of Agreement (or Memorandum of Understanding) that spells out expectations for the journal and the host/printer?
Who will obtain the journal's ISSN from the Library of Congress’ ISSN website?
What are the terms for the journal's publication agreements with authors?
How will the journal be funded initially? How will funding for the journal be sustained?
How will you recruit peer reviewers?
How will you solicit content?
How will you advertise your journal?

See the following for more detailed information about the process of starting a new journal:

Gaining Independence: A Manual for Planning the Launch of a Nonprofit Electronic Publishing Venture
This report from the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) is designed "to help universities, libraries, societies, and others implement alternatives to commercially-published scholarly and scientific information"

Getting Started
Michigan Publishing's wiki has many resources for editors and scholarly societies thinking of starting a new journal.
A Baker's Dozen of Issues Facing Online Academic Journal Start-ups
This issue of the Web Journal of Mass Communication Research contains a history of the online publishing movement, as well as a step-by-step guide to navigating through the issues involved in starting a new academic journal. There is also an extensive list of references that might be helpful.
How to Start an Open Access Journal: A Starter's Guide to Familiarize Yourself with the Key Issues in Starting an Open Access Journal (infographic)
This infographic from the Hybrid Publishing Lab is a great visual overview of the steps needed to start a new Open Access journal. The authors describe seven issues that need consideration:
-- Scope and Content Strategy
-- People and Workflows
-- Journal Management
-- Design
-- Marketing and Distribution
-- Financing
-- Licenses
Declaring Independence: A Guide to Creating Community-Controlled Science Journals (pdf)
This guide from the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) was designed to help scientists and scholarly societies in the sciences explore new models of publication in order to transform academic journals "from commercial commodities back to instruments of service to education and research."