CEP welcomes proposals for special issues from prospective guest editors.
The journal will typically carry one or two special issues per volume. Proposals are considered at any time and should be sent to cep@sheffield.ac.uk in the first instance.

Queries in advance of the submission of a full proposal are also welcome, and these should be sent to the same address.

A proposal should consist of the following:

  1. A title for the special issue together with the name(s) and contact information of the prospective guest editor(s)
  2. No more than two pages outlining the significance of the topic, the intellectual questions that it will address, the distinctive contribution that the special issue seeks to make to the literature and how the special issue topic fits with the general remit of CEP.
  3. A list of the papers to be included in the special issue. For each paper this should include details of title, author(s) together with a 200 word abstract.
  4. A brief biography (to include position held and publication/research profile) of each contributor, including the guest editor(s).

When preparing a proposal, please bear in mind that the page budget for each issue of the journal is equivalent to 56,000 words inclusive of all references and endnotes. It is very important to prepare special issue proposals in a way that conforms to this limit.

Failure to do so may see the proposal rejected.

All proposals are considered by the editors, who may employ external referees to help in the evaluation of special issue proposals.

Upon acceptance of a special issue, one of CEP's editors will be assigned as contact editor for the special issue. All correspondence relating the preparation of the special issue should be copied to the contact editor.

Editorial control is delegated to the guest editor(s), but it is expected that all papers submitted for consideration for the special issue will be properly refereed in accordance with CEP's norms. The contact editor will be available to advise upon and oversee this process. Guest editor(s) will also be responsible for ensuring that the papers conform to the agreed word limit, are delivered in the standard house style of CEP and are delivered on time.

When a special issue is accepted, the contact editor will agree a schedule with the guest editor(s). The special issue will be provisionally assigned a publishing slot and the delivery of the special issue will need to conform to the publisher's production schedule.

Guest editors should be aware that the delivery of the final manuscript for copyediting and production is required a full six months in advance of the physical publication of the special issue.