SCS Blog Guidelines

SCS Blog Guidelines

The SCS Blog publishes posts on a variety of topics relevant to SCS members and the discipline of Classical Studies. Authors may reflect on current research or projects, issues of importance to the classics profession, and methods for teaching. Submissions must be original and not submitted elsewhere, including online platforms. Pieces should be substantive in nature, not simply accounts or summaries of the topics being covered; posts should have a main idea and examine the subject from a specific perspective. The SCS is interested in the experiences and work of members and classicists at large, and we encourage submissions for the SCS Blog. We also publish reviews of digital projects, which have their own set of special guidelines (see below). (Affiliations of writers with any organization they are writing about should be disclosed clearly; normally a parenthetical note along with the professional title is sufficient). Comments on the SCS Blog will be moderated by the SCS.

What We Do Not Publish

  • Publicity for books or similar works: While a post may mention a scholarly work, the focus of the post must be distinct from the book or project itself.
  • Sponsored articles or promotional material for commercial products or services.
  • The SCS Blog does not, as a rule, post anonymous content, meaning content written and submitted by one or more authors whose identities are unknown even to the editors of the blog. However, we are aware that there are situations where someone(s) might have valuable insight to share but not be able to do so out of concerns for retaliation or professional repercussions. Accordingly, the SCS Blog has adopted the following consent-based confidentiality policy:
    • Pseudonymous articles may be published if circumstances warrant.
    • At least one author for such an article will need to share their identity with the editor-in-chief or, if the author or authors feel unable to share with the editor-in-chief, then with another editor (i.e., member of the Communications Committee). Members of the Communications Committee are listed in a page linked on the SCS Governance site.
    • The editor-in-chief (or other editor) to whom authorial identity is disclosed will not share with the other members of the Communications Committee, except by express consent of the author(s).
    • The editor-in-chief (or other editor) will share with the Communications Committee both the content of the post and the reasons for its pseudonymity; the editor-in-chief (or other editor) will withhold any potentially identifying details if the author or authors have not consented for the disclosure of their identity to the Communications Committee.
    • The Communications Committee will vote on whether to approve any pseudonymous post.
    • In situations where the author(s) of the post must remain entirely anonymous, or where the Communications Committee decides not to publish the post pseudonymously, the editor-in-chief will offer suggestions for other disciplinary venues that do publish anonymous content.
  • Announcements: If you wish to submit an announcement of any kind, please email info@classicalstudies.org
  • Any content with a polemical tone: the SCS blog is meant to be a space for constructive discourse.
  • The SCS is a nonprofit organization that does not expend a significant amount of effort on political lobbying and does not endorse candidates or political parties. Posts on the SCS Blog must not endorse candidates and generally should not include direct calls for lobbying action. Posts on the intersections of the ancient world, modern scholarly inquiry, and current political subjects are welcome and encouraged.
  • Posts that contain factual inaccuracies.

Guidelines for Submission

  1. Most SCS Blog posts range from 1000 to 1500 words in length. All posts are edited; SCS editorial staff will review the post and then contact you with any suggestions for revisions. We reserve the right to refuse a post if we determine it is inappropriate for publication on The SCS Blog.
  2. If you refer to online materials in your post, please include hyperlinks to them. If you wish to include photographs, send them in the email along with your post text; JPEG, TIFF, and PNG are all acceptable file formats. Be sure to provide captions and credits for any photographs. It is the responsibility of the guest blogger to secure permissions from the image copyright holder. Permissions should be forwarded to the web editor along with the image and the associated credit line.
  3. Please embed all required hyperlinks to people, places, and sites, directly into the word document you submit.
  4. Along with the body of your post, please send a biography of no more than 50 words. You may include a headshot of yourself, as well as references and links to your professional website and/or Twitter handle.

To submit a post for consideration, please email the Editor-in-Chief, Christopher Polt (polt@bc.edu), using the subject line: “SCS Blog Submission"