Homicide Studies, Journal Editor: Call for Applications

The Homicide Research Working Group (HRWG) Publications Committee is looking for a new editor for Homicide Studies. Management of the journal begins January 1, 2021.

The new editor should:

• be a member of HRWG, and have been a member for at least the previous 3 years, and
• show a commitment to both the HRWG mission and the field of homicide research.

The new editor will serve for a minimum of 3 years, during which time SAGE will provide a stipend of $4,000/year.

Interested parties need to provide a letter of application that includes:

1. outlining their vision for Homicide Studies and highlight plans for moving the journal forward;
2. detailing the support their institution agrees to provide, including release time available for the editor (and attach a letter from their institution confirming their support);
3. outlining their experience relevant to the position; and finally,
4. discussing the responsibilities detailed below.

Application Procedure

Applications are due electronically no later than September 30, 2020, to Kimberly McCorkle, Chair of the HRWG Publications Committee at kmccorkle@uwf.edu. Per HRWG bylaws, the HRWG Publications Committee members will review all applications, as the HRWG Publications Committee is responsible for the general oversight and central policy formation for all publications produced on behalf of the membership of the HRWG, as well as for the recommendation to the HRWG President, for editors, coeditors, and editorial board members for all such publications. The Publications Committee consists of the editors, and/or co-editors, of  the journal, the annual meeting proceedings, the HRWG web site, and any other publications sponsored by the HRWG, in addition to other interested members appointed by the President. The selection of candidates shall then be forwarded to the HRWG steering committee members, who are responsible to review and approve the selection of the editors and/or co-editors and editorial board members, if applicable, of all publications sponsored by the HRWG, in accordance with the approved guidelines for each publication.

It is expected that the selection of a new editor will be made by mid-October. Dr. Jay Corzine, Jay.Corzine@ucf.edu, the current Homicide Studies editor, will answer informal inquiries about details of the journal management prior to application submission.

Additional Details for SAGE Journal Editors

The Editor of a SAGE-owned journal reviews manuscripts, supervises the peer review process, and submits accepted manuscripts to SAGE for publication in the journal in both the online and print versions, as applicable. The Editor will run an editorial office with a managing editor or editorial assistants as needed, and preferably use SAGETRACK to review manuscripts. The Editor also selects an editorial board to assist in the peer review process, solicits manuscripts as necessary, and assists in promoting the journal whenever feasible.

Scope & Responsibilities

1. Journal development and scope
2. Editor will understand the discipline and journal’s fit within the discipline and in the larger journal market. Editor will be familiar with past publications of the journal, and ideally have reviewed for the journal and/or contributed to it.
3. Editor, in consultation with SAGE editor, will define the journal’s scope and submit an Aims & Scope document to the SAGE editor, with a oneparagraph summary for posting on the website and in other materials as decided by SAGE staff.
4. If an Aims & Scope document already exists, Editor and SAGE editor will review the document together to see if any changes are necessary or desirable. Editor will review Aims & Scope regularly to make sure they reflect the journal’s mission and publication strategy.
5. Editor will develop the journal. Strategies include writing editorials, soliciting special issues and topics where applicable, finding guest editors, and commissioning or soliciting articles or reviews that are in line with the journal’s scope, when applicable.
6. Editor, in consultation with SAGE editor, will submit a Manuscript Submission Guidelines document for publication in both the print edition and online edition, where applicable, and on SAGETRACK when necessary. Editors of social science titles will use either APA or Chicago styles. Call for Applications 243
7. Manuscript Submission Guidelines will include types of pieces accepted (i.e., letters to the editor, research articles, book reviews, etc.), the journal’s style manual, manuscript length, abstract requirement, blinding requirements, how to deal with supplementary files where applicable, the journal’s SAGETRACK site for submission, and any other requirements for all articles not specified in the journal’s style manual (APA or CMS). These other requirements could include, but are not limited to use of gendered pronouns, place names, idiosyncratic spellings, or use of symbols, for instance.
8. SAGE reserves the right to edit these guidelines for content and clarity.

iii. If a Manuscript Submission Guidelines document already exists, Editor and SAGE editor will consult on any changes that may need to be made.

1. Editor will represent the journal positively at conferences and meetings attended.
2. Soliciting manuscripts
3. Editor will encourage submission of manuscripts that meet the Aims & Scope and Manuscript Submission Guidelines of the journal.
4. Editor will ensure a steady flow of papers through the journal. While this will vary from journal to journal significantly, the journal should have enough accepted papers to meet publication deadlines.
5. Editor will help craft a Call for Papers or informational flyer when asked.
6. Editor and SAGE staff will work together to solicit manuscripts when paper flow lags. SAGE staff will provide Editor with manuscript recruitment suggestions, and Editor will follow those applicable to the journal.
7. Managing the peer review process
8. Editor will set up, when applicable, and use SAGETRACK to review manuscripts. All manuscripts should be submitted via SAGETRACK.
9. Editor will initially review all manuscripts for content, appropriateness to the journal, completeness, style including spelling and grammar, and blindedness. Managing editors or editorial assistants may be used in reviewing articles for completeness, style, and blindedness, but may not make ultimate desk acceptance or rejection decisions.
10. Except in certain circumstances determined in consultation with SAGE editor, all manuscripts should be put through double-blind peer review. While we acknowledge that authors and reviewers may, through style, citations, or other means, find out whom the reviewers or authors are, this is the ideal.
11. Editor will solicit reviewers for each article. Editors should receive at least two reviews for each manuscript put through the review process, pending exceptions. Reviews should be gathered in as timely a manner as possible while still preserving the quality and relevancy of the review.
12. Editor will gather reviews for each manuscript and provide significant feedback to authors about the decision on their manuscripts in a timely manner. This may or may not include showing authors the content of the reviews, as deemed appropriate by the Editor.
13. Editor will provide reasonable deadlines for revise and resubmit decisions.
14. Submitting manuscripts to SAGE for publication
15. Editor will collect Exclusive License to Publish agreements from lead author for all accepted articles. This collection occurs automatically for journals using SAGETRACK.
16. Editor will ensure articles arrive at SAGE in the manner in which they are to be published, i.e., with correct style, appropriate figure or table numbers, and correct equations.
17. Editors will export articles along with ELPs and any supplementary material from SAGETRACK to SAGE within two weeks of acceptance, as each article becomes ready. All issue material, articles, supplementary material, biographies, editorials, introductions, table of contents, and editorial board changes will be submitted by the production deadline specified for the journal.
18. All articles will then go through SAGE’s production department to be posted in Online First if the article is submitted ahead of the production deadlines, or in the final online issue and print issue, where applicable, if submitted at the production deadlines.
19. Editor will supervise the typesetting of articles when necessary. Editor will check for all errors and submit them to the production editor by production’s deadlines.
20. Appointing editorial board members
21. The editor will appoint or remove editorial board members in consultation with the HRWG Publications Committee, and the HRWG Steering Committee.
22. Editorial board members will function as reviewers, policy makers, or journal promoters as deemed by Editor.
23. Criteria for choosing editorial board members should include service to the journal, knowledge of the field, quality of reviews, quality of research, prominence, and diversity, either by research interest, topic expertise, gender, geography, nationality, ethnicity, though not all may be applicable to every journal.
24. Appointing associate editors
25. As per HRWG bylaws, editors and/or co-editors of all publications sponsored by the HRWG shall be selected by the HRWG President and approved by the Steering Committee in accordance with the approved Call for Applications guidelines for each such publication. Editorial board members shall be recommended by the journal editor and/or co-editors, and approved by the Publications Committee and the Steering Committee. The HRWG Vice President shall serve as the chair of this committee.
26. Appointing managing editors or editorial assistants
27. Editors of most journals will need editorial assistants or a managing editor to help organize their workload. Editors themselves will need to select and hire assistants or managing editors.
28. The duties of managing editors and editorial assistants may include checking in and blinding manuscripts in SAGETRACK, making sure manuscripts are complete and formatted in the proper style, keeping track of each manuscript’s progress, proofreading accepted manuscripts before they are sent to SAGE, organizing editorial board meetings, scheduling “Meet the Editor” sessions or journal panels at conferences, coordinating shipments of marketing materials to editorial board members, and other miscellaneous tasks necessary to run the journal.
29. Assisting in the promotion of the journal
30. Editor will provide SAGE editor with journal information and input for newsletters, press releases, free trial emails, journal emails, marketing flyers, posters, and other promotional material.
31. Editor will be open to social marketing and Web 2.0 media such as podcasts, blogs, social bookmarking, portals and micro-blogging.
32. Editor will positively represent the journal at conferences.
33. Contractual obligations
34. Editor will comply with all items in the contract as signed by both Editor and SAGE.
35. All changes to the contract need to be requested through SAGE editor in deadlines either specified in the contract, or well in advance of their necessity.

Essential Job Functions:

• Editor will use SAGETRACK’s reporting function to submit to SAGE and the HRWG publications committee a yearly report including total manuscripts submitted, acceptance rate, current number of accepted manuscripts, total number of withdrawn manuscripts, current length of backlog, and a list of planned special issues for the upcoming year.
• Editor will network to solicit manuscripts, find reviewers, find editorial board members, and increase the readership of the journal.
• Editor will hold an annual editorial board meeting to discuss the journal.
• Skills:
  • Editor must be computer-literate, and must be able to operate MS Office Suite, Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Acrobat Reader, and SAGETRACK online peer-review system.
  • Editor must be able to use the internet for research.
  • Editor must be able to understand Thomson Journal Citation Reports and know how impact factor is calculated.
  • Editor must know how to use the Thomson Web of Science.