Submissions

Author Guidelines

Submission Guidelines

Vietnamese and Global Buddhist Studies (VGBS) accepts only high-quality, previously unpublished manuscripts that fit within its aim and scope. If you have questions concerning the appropriateness of your topic, please email an abstract of up to 300 words to Christopher Proctor, Managing Editor, at clprocto@iu.edu. Our editorial team will read over your abstract and determine if its topic aligns with the aim and scope of VGBS.

Please adhere to the formatting guidelines below when submitting manuscripts. If you have specific questions, please do not hesitate to contact Hang Thich Dat (hthich@ius.edu), Executive Editor, or Christopher Proctor (clprocto@iu.edu), Managing Editor. The editors of VGBS strive to respond promptly and answer most inquiries within three business days.

To submit a manuscript to VGBS, please create a free account for IUScholarWorks (link in top right-hand corner) and upload your document by following the prompts. 

General Manuscript Formatting

All manuscripts should:

• Be written using Standard English;
• Be formatted as a Microsoft Word file (.docx);
• Use double spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font with one inch margins on all sides;
• Adhere to the Author-Date guidelines of The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition (https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html);
• Prepared for double-blind peer review by having all identifying information removed, including personal information within the Microsoft Word file's properties;
• Include title, up to 300 word abstract, and keywords on the first page;
• Use footnotes to enhance the understanding of the main text and not as references;
• Use standard indentation for the first line of each new paragraph;
• Provide images, tables, graphs, and captions when appropriate;
• Use block quoting with 0.5-inch indentations on both the left and right sides when quoting material longer than 100 words or five lines of text.
• Use gender inclusive language when appropriate.

Specific Manuscript Formatting

All manuscripts should:

• Write out names as they appear in their original source materials;
• When the surname follows the first, as in the Western convention, use the surname only in subsequent references;
• When the surname precedes the first, as in many Eastern conventions, use the entire name throughout the manuscript and in the bibliography (e.g. Nguyen Xuan Bao);
• When non-translated honorary titles are included as part of the name, include the title as part of the name and use the entire name throughout the manuscript and in the bibliography (e.g. Thich Nhat Hanh);
• When names contain diacritic marks in their original source materials, authors may use them (e.g. or Thich Nhat Hanh);
• Foreign-language words likely to be unfamiliar to readers should be italicized. If translations are included, they typically follow the word using parentheses or quotation marks: e.g. sangha (community) or sangha, "community";

For additional formatting guidelines, please refer to The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, or email the editorial team.

References

For all in-text and bibliographic references, please use the Author-Date guidelines of The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/home.html

Statement on Plagiarism and Research Misconduct

Based on the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) for transparency and best practices: The editors of VGBS “will take reasonable steps to identify and prevent the publication of papers where research misconduct has occurred, including plagiarism, citation manipulation, and data falsification/fabrication, among others… In the event that the journal’s publisher or editor are made aware of any allegation of research misconduct relating to a published article in their journal, the publisher or editor shall follow COPE’s guidelines (or equivalent) in dealing with allegations.”

Plagiarism and research misconduct are serious ethical offenses that will result in: 1. Articles being removed from consideration from publication; 2. Articles being removed from the journal, if already published; and 3. Authors being banned from submitting future content to VGBS. Please ensure that all submissions adhere to the highest codes of ethical conduct.

Original Manuscripts

VGBS only accepts original manuscripts that have not been previously published and that are not currently being considered for publication by another entity.