Murmurations: Journal of Transformative Relational Practice

www.murmurations.cloud

 

Dear Contributors and Reviewers,

Before submitting to or reviewing for this journal, we invite you to read papers across the journal and the information in the section About the journal to familiarise yourself with the ethos and objectives of the journal. This is likely to help your submission progress as we get many papers where writers have not attended to the focus and style of this journal.

Some things to hold in mind...

• This is a relational practice journal. Papers need to show relational practice-in-action and make connections with theory.
• The journal's focus is on systemic and relational practice across different professions and disciplines. In particular, on the ethics and aesthetics of coordination, power relations, cultural and neurodiverse considerations and so on.
• Think of practitioner writing as a form of inquiry. You're not so much reporting on as writing from within active relationshps with a commitment to transparency and contextual detail.
• Contributors and reviewers are expected to speak in the first person with a reader-audience in mind. 
• Papers need to demonstrate critical thinking about the cultural and socio-political contexts in which practice, the lives of practitioners and their conversational partners are taking place.
• Papers need to reflect a balance of classic and contemporary sources/references which reflect ethnicity, gender, age, culture, sexual orientation, ability, neurodiversity and other areas of lived experience, history or identity which are or have been subject to oppression/erasure.
• Find ways of generating rich, reflexive discussion with classic and contemporary writers from systemic and other disciplines in your writing. 
• This is a trans-professional and international journal so please explain all terms, describe the context for your subject or practice clearly, and describe institutions or cultural practices in your community or country, don't use acronyms and instead use full term, e.g. write National Health Service, not NHS. 
• Articles are normally between 4000 - 7000 words including references. 
• Practice and Research Notes are normally 2000 - 4000 words including references.

 

Submission Process

• Please submit your paper through the website.
• Multimedia: Send the editors an email describing your submission and why you think it is suited to Murmurations. Once we have reviewed your proposal, we will ask you for a WeTransfer link.
• Your submission will generate an automated acknowledgemnt to you.
• Once we have reviewed the suitability of your submission, we will either email you or send it to be reviewed by two or three peer reviewers.
• You will usually receive feedback within 8-12 weeks.
• Poetry is considered outside this process and not subject to peer review.

 

Writing a Review

Reviewers, please read 12 Steps to Writing a Review. Do suggest any amendments to this guidance.

 

Reviewer Options

• Accept with No Changes.
• Accept with Minor Revisions (e.g. typographical, grammatical, additional sentence or two, minor clarifications)
• Revisions Required (e.g.  restructuring, improvement in writing style, additional content, or critical thinking, more political and/or systemic practice focus needed)
• Reject (not suited in content or style of writing for this journal).

 

Review Process

• The review process is entirely electronic and conducted using links in emails to reviewers.
• Papers the editors consider suitable for review are sent to two or three reviewers who have 6 weeks to review the paper and submit decision with feedback to Editors.
• Reviewers are then invited to review a paper and need to accept or decline to review the paper.
• Once a reviewer has accepted to review a paper, reviewers are sent a link to download the paper and to upload their review with a recommendation.
• Editors communicate decision and feedback to writers.
• Writers have 8-12 weeks to respond to feedback and resubmit.
• Reviewers may be asked to review the resubmission.
• Once the review process is complete, i) contributors receive a letter from the Editors informing them of the outcome; ii) the Editors send each reviewer a copy of the other reviewer's report and the Editor's decision letter.