Submissions

Author Guidelines

Aims, scope and audience

Field Mycology is produced by field mycologists, for field mycologists. Our aim is to advance collective knowledge of the wild fungal diversity of the British Isles and share information on the practice of field mycology. More information on the journal’s scope can be found on the About the Journal page.

The editorial team welcomes reports of interesting finds and articles on fungal identification, recording, scientific collecting and conservation. Authors are encouraged to look to the back issues of Field Mycology for inspiration and examples of typical article style and structure. The back issues can be accessed via the Archives and Elsevier Archives pages on this website.

Please consider that Field Mycology is published in printed magazine format (fixed at 36 pages of content per issue), as well as in the online journal format you see here, and aims to cater to all levels of expertise. It is important that articles are readable, suitably illustrated, and kept to a length that is appropriate for the subject matter and the audience.

Editorial guidelines

The editorial team invites submissions of various lengths, as this can help to give the publication broad appeal. Short news items from 350 words, two-page 'fungal portrait' articles of 500–1000 words and longer articles up to 3000 words are all welcome.

Detailed editorial guidelines, including publishing policies and information on the many different types of articles that can feature in Field Mycology, can be found here [link to PDF document will open in a new window].

Writing and formatting

Manuscripts should be submitted in an editable format, e.g. a Word document (.doc / .docx) or equivalent. A template for submissions can be found here [Word document download link].

More guidance on writing and formatting can be found in section 3 of the editorial guidelines.

Technical guidance

Supplementary guidelines for producing DNA-derived phylogenetic trees for publication in Field Mycology articles can be found here [PDF opens in new window].

If there are other technical matters that authors would like guidance on, which are not already covered in the editorial guidelines or the supplementary guidelines above, please feel free to raise this with the editorial team. 

Submissions

Authors are welcome to contact the editorial team with any pre-submission enquiries. In the case of articles dealing with taxa that are new to science or new to the British Isles, the editorial team requests that a pre-submission enquiry is made in advance of submitting the manuscript, so that consideration can be given to suitability for publication in Field Mycology and any necessary arrangements for scientific review.

Guidance on making a submission can be found in section 4 of  the editorial guidelines.

Submissions should be emailed to the Senior Editor, Clare Blencowe, at [email protected].

Review

All submissions will be assessed by the editorial team to determine whether they meet the aims and scope of this journal. Those considered to be a good fit will be sent for review by reviewers with relevant mycological expertise.

Field Mycology operates an open peer review process. An explanation of how this works can be found in section 1.3 of the editorial guidelines and a graphical summary can be accessed here [PDF opens in new window].

Following review, the editor will provide the author with feedback on whether the submission will be accepted, along with any suggested revisions or areas for improvement. The editor may reject a submission if it is not considered to be a good fit for Field Mycology, or if it does not meet the requirements set out in the editorial guidelines.

Thank you for your interest in making a submission to Field Mycology. We hope you will find the process clear and straightforward. Feedback and questions are welcome.