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Writing Center Journal

Submission Guidelines

Contents

Who Can Submit?

Anyone may submit an original article to be considered for publication in Writing Center Journal provided they own the copyright to the work being submitted or is authorized by the copyright owner or owners to submit the article. Authors are the initial owners of the copyrights to their works (an exception in the non-academic world to this might exist if the authors have, as a condition of employment, agreed to transfer copyright to their employer).

General Submission Rules

By submitting an article for consideration to Writing Center Journal, the author stipulates that the material is not currently under review at another journal (electronic or print) and that they will not submit the material to another journal (electronic or print) until the completion of the editorial decision process at Writing Center Journal. In addition, submitted articles cannot have been previously published nor be forthcoming in an archival journal or book (print or electronic). In addition, please note that "publication" in a working-paper series does not constitute prior publication. If you have concerns about the submission terms for Writing Center Journal, please contact the editors.

Formatting Guidelines

Please adhere to the following guidelines for submission of your manuscript:

  • Manuscripts must be submitted in one of the following formats: Microsoft Word, PDF, or RTF.
  • Submissions must be scrubbed of authors’ names, institutions, metadata, and other identifying information. This requirement applies to any identifying information in the appendices.
  • Submissions must conform to the current style APA guidelines. Guidance on APA can be found at APA Style or the the Purdue OWL.
  • All manuscripts should follow NCTE's Guidelines for Gender Fair Use of Language.
  • Following the 7th edition of the APA Style manual, WCJ adopts the singular “they” as a gender-neutral term. For more information, see APA guidance on the Singular “They”.
  • Authors should include dates of the most recent versions of their article in the file names.

Submission Instructions

To submit an article, click the “Submit Article” link on the site’s sidebar, log on to or create a WCJ account, and follow the instructions. Before you begin submission of your manuscript, please be sure you also have the following items:

  • An article title
  • A cover letter that clearly states the purpose of the paper and its expected contribution.
  • An abstract that is separate from the article body
  • Keywords for your article

Rights for Authors and Purdue e-Pubs

As further described in our submission agreement (the Submission Agreement), in consideration for publication of the article, the authors assign to Purdue e-Pubs all copyright in the article, subject to the expansive personal--use exceptions described below.

Attribution and Usage Policies

Reproduction, posting, transmission or other distribution or use of the article or any material therein, in any medium as permitted by a personal-use exemption or by written agreement of Purdue e-Pubs, requires credit to Purdue e-Pubs as copyright holder (e.g., Purdue e-Pubs © 2025).

Personal-use Exceptions

The following uses are always permitted to the author(s) and do not require further permission from Purdue e-Pubs provided the author does not alter the format or content of the articles, including the copyright notification:

  • Storage and back-up of the article on the author's computer(s) and digital media (e.g., diskettes, back-up servers, Zip disks, etc.), provided that the article stored on these computers and media is not readily accessible by persons other than the author(s);
  • Posting of the article on the author(s) personal website, provided that the website is non-commercial;
  • Posting of the article on the internet as part of a non-commercial open access institutional repository or other non-commercial open access publication site affiliated with the author(s)'s place of employment (e.g., a Phrenology professor at the University of Southern North Dakota can have her article appear in the University of Southern North Dakota's Department of Phrenology online publication series); and
  • Posting of the article on a non-commercial course website for a course being taught by the author at the university or college employing the author.

People seeking an exception, or who have questions about use, should contact the editors.

General Terms and Conditions of Use

Users of the Purdue e-Pubs website and/or software agree not to misuse the Purdue e-Pubs service or software in any way.

The failure of Purdue e-Pubs to exercise or enforce any right or provision in the policies or the Submission Agreement does not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any term of the Submission Agreement or these policies is found to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties' intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of the Submission Agreement and these policies remain in full force and effect. These policies and the Submission Agreement constitute the entire agreement between Purdue e-Pubs and the Author(s) regarding submission of the Article.

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