Focus and Scope

New Directions in Folklore (NDiF) is the refereed, open access e-journal of NewFolk(@AFS), a community of over one hundred scholars, professionals, and graduate students dedicated to pushing the envelope of scholarship in the exploration of contemporary culture. NDiF is dedicated to providing vital, up to the minute and rigorous scholarship to an informed scholarly audience of non-specialists. We invite a wide range of articles, written in an accessible style, that examine contemporary culture through the humanities or social sciences.Additionally, we invite scholars who wish to utilize the unique opportunities presented by an exclusively online journal, which includes the experimentation of unorthodox figures and graphics, such as embedded videos, active URL links, and animated pictures, in addition to more traditional article embellishments.

Publication History

New Directions in Folklore was first published online as the Impromptu Journal in July of 1997.  In 2000, the name was changed to New Directions in Folklore, as it remains today. In 2010, after a nearly seven-year hiatus, the journal resurfaced online in partnership with Indiana University Libraries, IUScholarWorks, and the American Folklore Society.

Peer Review Process

NDiF publishes two kinds of articles: reviewed scholarship, in the section of the journal labeled “Articles” and informal submissions for the “Notes” or “Letters” sections which are not refereed. All submissions will receive an initial response from the editor based on relevance to the mission of the journal, and on the clarity and completeness of presentation.When received, articles are reviewed for scholarly rigor as well as for relevance, clarity, and completeness. When an article has met the minimum standards for consideration, it is matched to resident experts in the topic or area of specialization for review. The review process at NDiF is designed not to eliminate articles from consideration but to assist scholars to meet the journal’s high standards for rigor and accessibility. Reviewers therefore have the option to remain anonymous or to make themselves available to their authors in a relationship of ongoing constructive criticism through to satisfactory conclusion of the project.  The initial review of submissions will yield a response in 5-8 weeks, and authors will be notified and kept informed by the editor about their manuscript's status and the ongoing process of review.  Upon the publication of an accepted article submission, all copyrights and reprinting permissions shall be retained by the submitting author(s); New Directions in Folklore requests (but does not strictly require) one year of exclusive publication rights.

Publication Frequency

At this time, New Directions in Folklore will be published bi-annually.  Should a greater influx of submissions abound, we intend to expand to a quarterly journal as demand arises.

Open Access Policy

This journal provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge.

Archiving

This journal utilizes the LOCKSS system to create a distributed archiving system among participating libraries and permits those libraries to create permanent archives of the journal for purposes of preservation and restoration. More...

CLOCKSS system has permission to ingest, preserve, and serve this Archival Unit.

Sponsors

New Directions in Folklore would like to thank the following organizations for their support:

Sources of Support

New Directions in Folklore is the official organ of the New Directions in Folklore section of the American Folklore Society.