Search for the next editor of HIMALAYA

The Executive Council of the Association for Nepal and Himalayan Studies (ANHS) is seeking an editor for its biannual, open access, peer-reviewed journal, HIMALAYA.

Interdisciplinary and trans-regional in scope, HIMALAYA covers all aspects of Himalayan studies, including the humanities and creative arts. HIMALAYA publishes original research articles, short field reports, book and film reviews, reports on meetings and conferences, alongside literature and photo essays from the region. HIMALAYA is the continuation of the Himalayan Research Bulletin (1981–2003) and the Nepal Studies Association Newsletter (1972–1980). The Association welcomes applications from potential editors from all regions of the world and all disciplinary and regional diversity addressed by HIMALAYA.

The editorship is a five-year term beginning Fall 2017. The chosen candidate is expected to shadow the current editors from early 2017 onwards. Candidates for this position will likely be mid- to senior-career scholars with a strong research record and tenure at their institution. Some editorial experience, relevant expertise, and an ability to bridge different disciplinary approaches to research are required. In recognition of the journal’s successful history of co-editorship, the committee welcomes joint applications from co-editors.

Interested candidates are requested to submit a cover letter outlining their reasons for seeking the position, their vision for the future of the journal, and the role that they would like to play in achieving that vision, alongside a curriculum vitae including names of two referees to Heather Hindman mailto:[email protected] by January 1, 2017.

At present, the journal has two co-editors, a reviews editor, one editorial associate at Macalester College, a small collective of editorial assistants at the editors’ home institutions (undergraduate and graduate students). It is supported by an active international editorial board. HIMALAYA is published twice a year—in the late Spring and late Fall—simultaneously online and in print. Each issues contains between 7-10 peer-reviewed articles, 1-2 shorter ‘perspectives’ articles, original literature from or about the Himalayan region, contemporary artwork and a series of reviews of conferences, exhibits and recent publications.

Job Description

Candidates should consider what administrative and financial support might be available from their home institution to support their editorship of the journal. Ideally, this would take the form of an annual publishing subvention towards operating costs, paid student assistance in support of the journal, and possibly a course release in recognition of the time commitment.

HIMALAYA uses BE Press as its digital platform for workflow management and review. The user-friendly digital archive is housed and maintained at Macalester College and the new editor would be expected to continue using it.

The job of Editor involves coordinating and overseeing all journal-related work from soliciting papers and sourcing reviewers to managing / participating in copyediting and proofing the full PDFs of the journal prior to publication online and in print, in order to ensure the regular, on time production of a high-quality open-access and multi-disciplinary publication.

Specific tasks for which the editor is responsible include:

Manuscript Processing and Evaluation: Maintaining Quality and Timeline

• recruit and select special (thematic) issues with guest editors, aiming for one such issue per year
• screen and evaluate submissions for their suitability and quality (some may be rejected without review; others may be returned to authors for revisions before initial review)
• manage the peer-review process: requesting reviews from scholars with relevant expertise, tracking responses and timely return of reviews
• re-assess the submission in light of both the reviews and own reading
• correspond with each author through a pre-formatted digital decision letter explaining the decision and, in the case of revisions, providing clear directions for what revisions must be made
• review and evaluate revisions to make sure that directions provided in the editorial letter have been addressed and implemented
• coordinate book, film, exhibit and conference reviews in consultation with the reviews editor
• solicit photo essays for the website on contemporary social and cultural issues
• write a brief editorial introduction to each issue

The Production Process

• source original art and literature for each issue through scholarly networks and editorial board
• coordinate with production unit (currently the University Press of New England) and designer (currently AH Design in New Haven) to ensure that art and image files meet requirements, and decide upon placement and sizing in the issue
• work closely with authors and, when available, copyediting assistants, to produce copyedited versions of accepted articles
• work closely with the editorial support staff at Macalester College to deliver these final, accepted, and copyedited articles on an clear and agreed schedule
• ensure that articles forwarded for publication meet all formatting requirements
• proofread typeset articles and final complete tissue mock-up
• manage any typesetting/formatting issues between the author and Macalester College
• maintain and update journal Style Guide in coordination with editorial team
• generate a finalized mailing list, properly formatted, for each issue, in coordination with the ANHS bookkeeper and printer (via UPNE)

Communications and Finances:

• locate and apply for grants and subventions from research councils, foundations, philanthropic organizations and individuals to support, enrich and sustain the journal
• maintain and update the HIMALAYA journal website https://himalayajournal.org with information about current issues, news items, longer book reviews and photo essays
• maintain and post to the journal’s social media accounts on Facebook and Twitter
• act as an ambassador for the journal and be its public voice by actively promoting the journal in person, online and through fliers at academic conventions, conferences, seminars and workshops
• recruit, select and appoint a diverse Editorial Board for a fixed term
• manage journal finances in coordination with the Association President, Treasurer and book-keeper, including maintaining a spreadsheet of journal income and expenses, preparing annual report of activities, expenditures and any subventions received, and managing library subscriptions as well as print copy subscriptions for individual ANHS members
• attend the annual South Asia conference at Madison in October of each year to report on journal activities and participate (as an ex-officio member) in ANHS Executive Council and General Member meetings