Submissions

This journal is not accepting submissions at this time.

Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.
  • The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
  • The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Guidelines included in the provided templates
  • The submission file is in OpenOffice, Microsoft Word, or RTF document file format.
  • Where available, URLs for the references have been provided.
  • Two documents will be attached, a coversheet and the anoymised text using the templates provided

Author Guidelines

Submission Types

Please choose the appropriate type from the following options when submitting your paper:

Invited contribution - Any contribution solicited by the Editor-in-Chief or other member of the Editorial Board. Reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief. Word count is negotiable with the Editor-in-Chief.

Case studies - Reports on experiences or best practices in practical settings. Reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief. Word count should be 3,000-5,000 words.

Refereed research articles - Reports on empirical research within library and information science. We encourage authors to report their research methods in full, including both successes and difficulties so that other researchers can learn from the experience. Reviewed by at least two double-blind peer reviewers, with a possible third reviewer as deemed necessary by the Editor-in-Chief. LIR's focus is on "research into practice". Authors are therefore asked to keep contributions as clear and practical as possible, and to explain how the research results should affect practice. Authors are also asked to report any research methodologies thoroughly. Word count should not exceed 7,000 words and should include an abstract (100-150 words). 

Opinion - Critical approaches to thoughts on issues related to the focus and scope of the journal. Reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief. Word count should be 3,000-5,000 words.

Conference reports - Reports from any CILIP-affiliated conference. Reviewed by the Editor-in-Chief. Word count should be 1,000-3,000 words.

Book reviews - Reports on a review of a book; typically assigned by the Associate Editor for Book Reviews. Reviewed by the Associate Editor for Book Reviews.

Manuscript preparation

For all papers types two documents must be submitted: an anonymised document with the full paper excluding any identifying data and a coversheet document with full author names, contact for lead author, job titles and affiliations, using the following Word templates:

Papers must appear in APA 7th Edition style.

Language - Please use correct, clear, and concise English in all manuscripts. Adhere to British spelling (rather than American or Canadian spelling.)

Word count - The maximum length of a paper is 7,000 words although this may be negotiated with the Editor-in-Chief. Abstracts should be 100-150 words. Provide a biography of up to 75 words for each author.

References - Please use APA 7th edition style for in-text citations and references, inserting the name and year in the text as instructed by APA guidelines.

The Occasion Use this heading only to describe a prize entry, thesis description, related project, etc. (for example, if you are writing this paper as the result of winning a LIRG prize). Otherwise do not use this heading.

Acknowledgements When applicable, please acknowledge your research funding body and/or colleagues or other organisations that have contributed to the research using no more than 50 words.

Copyright Notice

Acceptance of the following terms is a precondition of publication in Library and Information Research.

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work. The work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal. 

Authors are able to distribute the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.

Privacy Statement

The names and email addresses entered in this journal site will be used exclusively for communicating with authors, reviewers and editors during the processing of submissions, notifying readers of new publications or announcements and will not be made available for any other purpose or to any other party.