Author Guidelines

NOTE: These guidelines are subject to change without notice. They are based on the 2011 guidelines, and will be updated. ** If in doubt about the need to follow a particular guideline, please email cmurphy@stfx.ca **

Goal: Our goal at Geoscience Canada is to publish review-type and broad-interest-type articles in the geological sciences, which are well-illustrated and written in a style that will interest and inform the non-specialist reader with a geoscience background.

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Types of manuscripts Five types of manuscripts are accepted, as follows:

Review papers synthesize existing information in some field of the earth sciences.

Series papers are thematic, generally invited, and integrate recent research results with existing information on a specific topic.

Topical articles discuss the interaction of the earth sciences and Canadian society, or present new research results on a topic of interest.

Conference reports provide a review of some major scientific meeting and its implications to the earth science community.

Regular features comprise book reviews and commentary, which include such things as editorials, letters to the editor, and comment and reply.

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Acceptance criteria

Manuscripts are considered for acceptance on the basis of the following criteria:

The subject matter

- falls within the broad scope of earth science, as defined in the “Glossary of Geology” (fourth edition)

- is likely to be of general interest to the Canadian geoscience community.

Articles are

- technically sound and can be understood readily by the non-specialist with a geoscience background, and

- well illustrated, with good use made of simple line drawings to express concepts clearly.

Any controversial matters are treated in a rational manner, without undue polemics or stress on personalities.

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Points for authors to remember

Before submission of your manuscript, remember these points:

You need to provide the editors with your contact information, including:

- e-mail for you and co-authors and mailing addresses.

Each manuscript is checked by the editor(s) for completeness and conformity to these “Instructions to Authors …” and, if judged to be deficient, may be returned before any reviewing or editing is undertaken.

Review papers, series papers and topical articles are peer-reviewed by at least two people who are knowledgeable in the subject matter. During the submission process, please provide the names of and contact information for at least three potential REVIEWERS of your manuscript using the "Comment to the Editor" box.

Conference reports and regular features are only reviewed by the editor(s).

All manuscripts may be edited for style and length by the editor(s).

Copyright Note: If the author is using a figure copyrighted by another, evidence of permission from the copyright owner must accompany the manuscript when submitted to the editor. It is the responsibility of the author to obtain written permission. Acknowledgement of the source of figures should be made within the figure caption.

Upon acceptance for publication, all copyright ownership transfers to GAC.

After formal review of your manuscript, expect:

- to receive the reviewers’ comments plus the editor’s decision with regard to the suitability of your manuscript for publication in Geoscience Canada.

- recommendations from the editor(s) regarding changes that are required if your manuscript is provisionally accepted for publication.

- to get a tentative due date from the editor(s) for submission of your revised manuscript, which you must confirm so your manuscript can be scheduled for publication.

- to have the opportunity to correct proofs

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Manuscript Preparation

Author(s) name(s) and affiliation(s) The author(s) name(s) and affiliation(s) appear immediately after the manuscript’s Title (Times New Roman #14 font), as follows:

- first name (or initials), last name (Times New Roman #12 font),

- affiliation (university, institution or company),

- mailing address (including postal code), and

- e-mail address of the corresponding author.

Summary For articles and papers (not conference reports or regular features), a short summary is required rather than a typical abstract. It will be:

- approximately 250 words in length,

- written in non-technical language,

- designed to tell the reader what the article is about, including the main conclusions, and

- translated into French or English.

NOTE: Authors are invited to provide their own translation of the summary.

Text layout All text shall be in draft format to facilitate editing, that is:

- on 8.5″ x 11″ pages with line-spacing of 1.5x,

- in Times New Roman #12 font throughout,

- with a hard return between paragraphs (no indents),

- with margins (left, right, top and bottom) of at least 2.54 cm (1″),

- with NO imbedded figures or tables, and

- with a list of figure and table captions at the end.

Spelling and word usage For spelling, word usage and related matters, refer to the following:

- the Gage Canadian Dictionary, revised and expanded edition (1998),

- the American Geological Institute Glossary of Geology (1997),

- The Canadian Style: A Guide to Writing and Editing (1997, and

- Geoscience Reporting Guidelines (2003)

NOTE: Canadian English is the standard. If in doubt about specific words, check with the editors.

Headings All headings shall be flush with the left margin, and on their own line. Use three or fewer orders of headings, as follows:

PRIMARY HEADINGS are bold and in upper case,

Secondary Headings are bold and in upper and lower case, and

Tertiary Headings are bold and in italics.

Footnotes Footnotes are

- confined to relevant material at the beginning of the paper, such as change of address or institutional affiliation following the authors’ names, or

- contained within a table and refer to notes at the bottom of the table.

Acknowledgements Acknowledgements shall

- appear under a primary heading at the end of the text and preceding the references

- include reference to reviewers, technical support staff, funding agencies, and others as appropriate, and

- include permission to publish if appropriate.

References In the text, references shall be referred to

- by the author’s name and year of publication, e.g.

- According to van Staal et al. (2003a, b) and Goodfellow (2004), or

- Their results (van Staal et al. 2003a, b; Goodfellow 2004) show …

- as “in press” for material accepted for publication in a journal, e.g.

- According to Wilson (in press), or

- Her results (Barr, in press) show…

- as personal communications (“personal communication”), either written or oral, showing the communication date, e.g.

- According to Nowlan (personal communication 2005), or

- His results (Nowlan, personal communication 2005) show …

NOTE: Manuscripts in preparation or in review are not acceptable as references.

Sequential references are listed chronologically, not alphabetically, e.g. (Nowlan 1981; Abbott 1986; van Staal 1994; Fyffe 2003)

References appear as a compiled list called References under a primary heading at the end of the text after Acknowledgements.

Single-authored papers are listed alphabetically and chronologically, from oldest to most recent.

Dual-authored papers with the same two authors are listed chronologically, from oldest to most recent.

Dual-authored papers with a different second author are listed alphabetically.

Multi-authored papers with the same lead author are listed chronologically, from oldest to most recent.

Reference formats are shown in the following examples; include digital object identifier (DOI) address, if available.

Abstract:

Bleeker, W., and Stern, R.A., 1997, The Acasta gneisses: an imperfect sample of Earth’s oldest crust (Abstract): Geological Association of Canada-Mineralogical Association of Canada, Annual Meeting, 1997, Abstracts, v. 22, p. A13.

Paper in Special Volume:

Monger, J.W.H., 1993, Cretaceous tectonics of the North American Cordillera, in Caldwell, W.G.E., and Kaufman, E.G., eds., Evolution of the Western Interior Basin: Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper, 39, p. 1–48.

Paper in Scientific Journal:

Stern, R.A., Percival, J.A., and Mortenson, J.K., 1994, Geochemical evolution of the Minto block: a 2.7 Ga continental magmatic arc built on the Superior craton: Precambrian Research, v. 65, p. 115–153.

Book:

Carswell, D.A., 1990, Eclogite Facies Rocks: Chapman & Hall, New York, 527 p.

Website:

Jones, A., 2006, Name of article: [www.goodsite.com/page.htm]

NOTE:

Use an en-dash between page numbers.

Use a single “p.” for both single and multiple page numbers.

Figures

The following guidelines apply to all figures, which include line drawings, maps, and photographs.

Figures should be placed in sequence at the end of the manuscript. They should not be embedded within the manuscript.

Ensure that each figure is visually simple and clearly legible when scaled to fit a one-column or two-column width for publication.

Assign each figure a separate number, i.e. Figure 1, 2, 3, etc.; where it is necessary to use sub-numbers (e.g. Fig. 1a), insert a), b) etc. in the top left corner of each figure; please keep the style of labeling consistent throughout the paper.

Assign a separate file name to each figure so that the file name reflects its author and Arabic number, e.g. “Wilson-etal-Fig-1.”

Write “Figure” in full when using the word as a caption label or in the open part of a sentence. Use “Fig.” when placing the word in brackets as a text reference.

List figure captions at the end of the manuscript, after References.

The following guidelines are specific to line drawings and maps.

Draft all line drawings and maps in CorelDraw or Corel-compatible software, i.e. readily importable into CorelDraw. PDF versions are requested for the peer-review stage.

Use patterns and/or simple labels instead of grey shades (colour is prefered).

Use Arial or similar sans serif font on all line drawings and maps.

Choose font sizes that remain legible when the figure is scaled to fit the desired publication size.

Use a plain line-bar scale (metric) on all maps.

The following guidelines are specific to photographs.

Each photograph shall be in jpg format (300 dpi at published size).

Crop each photograph to show only what is necessary.

Where text or graphics are added to the photograph, use Arial or similar sans serif font, and choose line widths/symbols that are legible but do not obscure the image.

Where image orientation is unclear, indicate the correct way up.

Ensure that all photographs include a scale, either on the image or in the caption.

Tables The following guidelines apply to all tables.

Prepare each table in Microsoft Excel or Excel-compatible software.

Assign each table a separate number, i.e. Table 1, 2, 3 etc.

Assign a separate file name to each table so that the file name reflects its author and Arabic number, e.g. “Wilson-etal-Table-1.xls.”

Use Arial or similar sans serif font at a size (usually 8 to 10 point) that remains legible when the table is scaled to desired publication size.

Reduce the size of large tables containing extensive geochemical data by using representative samples or averaged values.

Place explanatory notes at the bottom of the table in a font size smaller than the body text.

List table captions on a separate page at the end of the manuscript, following the list of figure captions.

Manuscript Submission

Digital Files For review purposes, a manuscript may be submitted as a PDF file in draft format, and

according to the “preparation” specifications above; with figures and tables appended to this file.

Please number the lines in the text sequentially before making the PDF as it is helpful to the reviewers and editor.

Uploading a separate Word document for the text only is encouraged as some reviewers prefer to edit a Word document rather than a PDF.

During the submission process, please provide the names of and contact information for at least three potential REVIEWERS of your manuscript in the "Comment to the Editor".

For accepted manuscripts, digital files must be submitted, as follows:

All text is in Microsoft Word, including the list of captions for figures and/or tables.

The text files shall not contain imbedded figures or tables.

Each text-file name includes the author’s name(s), preferably at the beginning of the file name, for example:

“Wilson-etal-subject.doc”.

Tables are in Excel, or an Excel-compatible spreadsheet, rather than as Word or WordPerfect tables.

Line drawings and maps are in CorelDraw, or Corel-importable format, and

Photos are in jpg or tif formats (300 dpi at published size).

Each figure and table has a separate file name that includes its Arabic number, for example

“Wilson-etal-Fig-1.cdr” or “Wilson-etal-Table-1.xls”.

Deadlines

The nominal deadline for each issue of Geoscience Canada is the first day of the month, three months prior to that issue, as follows:

March issue – 1st December

June issue – 1st March

September issue – 1st June

December issue – 1st September

NOTE: Manuscripts are normally published in order of acceptance date, rather than submission date. The typical turn-around time of a manuscript, from submission to publication, is three to six months but some manuscripts can take more or less time, depending upon the speed of the review process and the number of accepted manuscripts in the queue to be published.

Where to submit

Please submit your manuscript, in digital forms, to the editor of Geoscience Canada using the online submission system at http://journals.hil.unb.ca/index.php/GC/index

Corresponding Editor:

Andrew Kerr – Geoscience Canada Scientific Editor
c/o Dept. of Earth Sciences
Memorial University
St. John's, NL, Canada  A1B 3X5
web: http://journals.hil.unb.ca/index.php/GC/index
NOTE: Please use the web address for submissions; please do not submit articles directly to the editor.

E-mail:akerr@mun.ca

EXCEPTION: A manuscript that is part of a series shall be submitted directly to the “series editor”.

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Authors checklist When the answer to each of the following questions is “yes,” the manuscript is ready to submit to the editor(s).

1 Have you read this entire document?

2 Does the manuscript have a summary (where applicable) rather than an abstract?

3 Is each illustration marked with the figure or table number?

4 Are the illustrations adequate for review purposes; are they reduced to their desired size? Have you indicated the published size for the figure or table?

5 Are the references in the format used by Geoscience Canada?

6 Have the references been cross-checked against the text?

7 Have you obtained non-exclusive reprint permission for previously published work, where appropriate?

8 Are your digital files (manuscript, figures and tables) in the appropriate formats (see Digital Files above)?

9 Have you compiled a list of potential reviewers (names and contact information)?