Publish in Elements

Each year, Elements magazine publishes six thematic issues on subjects related to mineralogy, geochemistry, and petrology.

Thematic articles are invited and peer-reviewed contributions solicited by the Guest Editor(s). Read below for how to propose a thematic issue and become a Guest Editor.

Proposals are reviewed twice per year by the Elements Editorial Board. Accepted proposals are assigned a publication date and organized by the Guest Editor(s), an assigned Principal Editor from the Editorial Board, and the Managing Editorial Team.

Proposing a Thematic Issue

Would you like to read about a certain topic in Elements? Do you think your research area would make a great thematic issue? Let our editorial team know! Send us an email and/or submit a proposal.

Every year, Elements publishes six thematic issue on subjects related to the broad disciplines of mineralogy, geochemistry, and petrology. How does our thematic lineup come into being?

Each Elements issue begins with an idea and/or interest about a particular area of science. Whether through an email or a conversation at a meeting, that idea is brought forth to the editorial team for consideration for inclusion in Elements.

The editorial team looks for topics that

  • are broadly related to mineralogy, geochemistry, and petrology
  • are interdisciplinary
  • represent established but progressing fields
  • would have interest to a broad cross section of readers
  • haven’t been adequately or broadly represented by Elements before or have advanced considerably since the topic was covered previously

If a thematic topic meets that criteria, the editorial team invites the submission of a 1–2 page proposal that provides more detailed information. Each proposal is carefully evaluated by our editorial team for thematic scope, content, and authorship. Feedback is then provided to the proposers.

Twice a year, the editorial team meets to determine the Elements publishing schedule and lineup. Only three thematic topics are slated in any given meeting and those selected will strike a balance between petrology, mineralogy, and geochemistry disciplines. Proposals that cannot be included in the current lineup are retained and reconsidered for future publication. Typically, our lineup is set ~1.5 to 2 years in advance of publication.

Once a proposal has been accepted and included in the Elements lineup, the fun really begins! Over the subsequent 15–20 months, timelines and deadlines will be set, authors are invited by the guest editors to write articles, and articles go through several stages of review (by external reviewers, by the guest and principal editors, by the Elements copy editorial team, and by proofing). At the end of this process, the issue goes to press and shipped to our over 16,000 readers.

The journey from an idea to published magazine involves many steps. The goal? A lineup of well-written thematic issues that readily conveys the exciting aspects of mineralogy, petrology, and geochemistry.

Information for Guest Editors

As a Guest Editor, it is your responsibility to set the tone for the thematic issue. Along with one of our Principal Editors, you will oversee the writing and review process of the thematic content.

Your goal is to present topical content that is engaging and well written in order to introduce the Elements audience to this exciting area of the geosciences. Below are documents that provide important information and forms for coordinating a thematic issue of Elements.

Information for Authors

Are you preparing an article for an upcoming issue in Elements? The documents below provide important information and guidelines about how to write and structure your article.

Your goal is to write an article that is engaging and well written in order to introduce the Elements audience to an exciting area of the geosciences. You will be writing a magazine review article, not a research journal article. This could be the one and only time a reader is exposed to your science, so don’t overwhelm them with jargon or details. 

Elements Open Access Policy

Elements offers both Green Open Access and Gold Open Access options. Read below for the important distinction between these two options.

Green Open Access: As per the License to Publish agreement signed by the author(s), authors retain non-exclusive rights to reproduce the in whole or in part in any printed volume or online, for non commercial, educational or research purposes. Note that this is NOT the edited, proofread, and typeset version available at Elements or GeoScienceWorld. The “Accepted Manuscript” refers to the version of the manuscript that has been accepted for publication following peer review. Fee: free

Gold Open Access: Authors or their institutions can include or post the the article for which an author or institution pays the article processing fee immediately upon publication. This means the article in any version is posted and made available on another institution’s website, presumably for free to anyone. Fee: US $2000 per article.

Click here for more information on Elements and MSA’s self-archiving policies.

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