On Corpses

Guidelines for Submissions

Janus Head follows APA guidelines for its review process (peer review).

In general, Janus Head editors and reviewers look for works which speak to the Janus Head attitude of "respect and openness to the various manifestations of truth in human experience and the fostering of understanding through meditative thinking, narrative structure, and poetic imagination." Janus Head is an interdisciplinary journal that places emphasis on the intersections among literature, continental philosophy, phenomenological psychology, and the arts. Our board welcomes the submission of innovative work from authors and artists who take risks to create fruitful dialogue among the disciplines of the academy.

CALL FOR PAPERS

Special Issue: On Corpses

Guest Editors: Natalie Alvarez, Athena Colman, Rajiv Kaushik

The body has become a site of active critical inquiry in a variety of disciplines.  For some thinkers, the body is a discursively inscribed locus of materialities. For others, however, the body has an originary presence that exceeds its discursivity. For this special issue of Janus Head, we wish to investigate the ways in which the corpse articulates, challenges, or limits current theories of embodiment. We are looking for papers that investigate such questions as:  Is a corpse still implicated in the same nexus as a material body or has it in some way slipped outside of its everydayness? What does the corpse show or reveal anew to us? How do we encounter the corpse?  Does the encounter with the corpse present to me the death of an-other or, acting as a memento mori, does it force my own death upon me? What is the body's relationship to its own death? What is the status of scientific and medical discourses in relation to the corpse?  We are particularly interested in the following themes as they relate to the corpse: performativity, the uncanny, in-visibility, anxiety, disgust, the abject, decay, decrepitude, temporality, narrative, metaphor, etc. We welcome papers that investigate these themes from the perspective of various backgrounds: critical theory, psychoanalysis, comparative literature, medical sciences, performance theory, phenomenology, art history, etc.

Deadline for submissions is June 1, 2009.  Articles can be sent by email to Rajiv Kaushik at rkaushik@brocku.ca or mailed to:

Rajiv Kaushik

Department of Philosophy

Brock University

500 Glenridge Avenue

St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada

L2S 3A1

We are also soliciting poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, and visual art that, in some way or other, address the topic of the special issue. We especially welcome work that explores issues regarding the historical and cultural construction of perception.

CRITERIA FOR ESSAYS: Submissions should be no longer than 10,000 words. Works should be typed and double-spaced. Format requirements: APA or MLA styles (footnotes should be placed at the end of paper). Submit one disk or CD and two (2) copies to the address below. Your essay should include a brief abstract (120 words or less). Also include a brief biography for the contributors page, should your paper be accepted. Make sure to include all relevant contact information, including a permanent e-mail address. Email submissions will not be accepted!

CRITERIA FOR SHORT FICTION, CREATIVE NON-FICTION, & POETRY:   Please include a cover letter, a short biography, and correspondence information.  Short fiction should be typed and double-spaced and should be no longer than 9000 words (about 36 pages or shorter). Poetry should be typed in the format in which it is intended to be printed.  Three to five poems are the suggested number for poetry submissions.  Submit one disk or CD and two (2) copies to the address below. Please note: We are no longer accepting poetry submissions via email. If you submit your poetry via email, please do not expect it to be reviewed. 

If your submission does not follow these guidelines, it will not be reviewed.

CRITERIA FOR ARTWORK: We are seeking artists for submissions of portfolios to feature in the journal. Electronic images are the preferred formats. TIFF images of at least 300 dpi are required for print. Please email the editors if you have any questions.

NOTE:
1. Essay and poetry submission materials will not be returned. However, art, photography and other materials will be returned if you include a self-addressed, stamped envelope.
2. Upon the acceptance of your paper, Janus Head reserves the right to use your work for promotional purposes, anthologies, etc. However, you are welcome to publish your work elsewhere as you see fit.
3. Contributors will get a complimentary hard copy of the issue in which their work appears, as well as access to an electronic PDF file of their article for distribution.

Please send essays and art submissions to:

Editors
Janus Head
P.O. Box 8010
Pittsburgh, PA 15216

Please send all poetry and fiction submissions to:

Robert Gibbons
Poetry & Fiction Editor
P.O. Box 4277
Portland, ME 04101

Authors should include their e-mail address. Allow at least 3-6 months for the review process and editorial decisions. Notice of receipt of materials can be obtained by email.

REVIEW PROCESS:
Janus Head uses a peer-review process. Typically, these reviews are "blind," which means the reviewers are not aware of the identity of the authors. However, in the case of special issues, guest editors (who are aware of the identities of the authors) do make final decisions about the acceptance of papers. In the first stage of the review process, the author is notified of the receipt of his or her submission. Typically, the author should receive notification of receipt within a month of his or her submission. If you do not receive notice, you are welcome to inquire with the editors via email. Once you receive notice, the work is submitted to two or more reviewers for blind review. When the review process is complete, the editors will send an email to the author about the status of the submission. Based on the comments of the reviewers, the editors determine whether the submission is appriopriate for the journal and/or special issue and whether the work is of the quality necessary for publication. If the work is deemed inappropriate for the journal and/or issue, editors typically make recommendations for more appropriate venues. If the work is deemed to require further work prior to publication, the editors will provide the author with recommendations for revising the submission for future publication. Work that is accepted for publication will receive notice as soon as possible. Upon acceptance, work enters the copyediting phase of the process. Authors of accepted work receive a galley proof of their work before it goes to print, and they are given an opportunity to make any last minute corrections.

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