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Author Instructions

Submit original, unpublished articles only. Do not submit manuscripts being considered for publication elsewhere. Manuscripts should be of timely and practical interest to those involved in a range of managerial roles in public, academic, and special libraries.

The following types of articles are actively sought:

• articles of 4,000 to 6,000 words dealing in depth with a management issue and having practical benefit to library administrators;
• articles of 1,000 to 1,500 words highlighting a methodology or technique that has been used successfully in one or several libraries;
• articles that solve a managerial problem (the editor will use her discretion concerning the article’s appropriateness for publication);
• interviews with prominent library administrators or others in related fields, such as vendors or publishers;
• general updates of no more than 750 words featuring LAMA committee section activities;
• columns of 500 to 750 words originating from LAMA sections; and
• brief announcements of future Annual Conference and Midwinter Meeting programs being sponsored by LAMA or its sections.

The following items are not published in LA&M:

• press releases describing products or services offered by vendors, unless such releases are part of a paid advertisement; or
• unsolicited book reviews (book reviews are assigned to writers by the editor or associate editor).

Write the article in a grammatically correct, simple, readable style. The author is responsible for the accuracy of all statements in the article. Authors shall provide complete and accurate bibliographic citations. All citations and any quotations should be carefully checked by the author.

Give the article or report a brief title. If necessary, add a brief subtitle. On a separate page, give the title, name(s) of author(s), and title and affiliation of each author. If the paper has been presented at a conference (the proceedings of which will not be published), identify the conference by name and date on the cover page.

Manuscripts should contain original material. Upon submission, the author should indicate previously published material or revised material that was published or presented elsewhere for a different audience. This will be noted by the editor upon publication. The author must supply the necessary rights and permissions to use previously published material.

Material previously prepared for use as a speech at a LAMA-sponsored meeting or program should be recast into an appropriate narrative format before submitting it to the editor. Writers are urged to consult with the editor as questions or concerns arise.

Authors of articles should submit their manuscripts in one of two ways. They may send them as Word attachments to e-mail messages. Or they may send print copies with an accompanying diskette. All copies should include the names, addresses, and phone numbers of authors. Print copies should be double-spaced on 8-1/2-by-11-inch paper. Microsoft Office-compatible file copies should be in Word format on 3-1/2-inch diskette. Please clearly mark the article file name. On a separate page, type the title and subtitle, followed by a brief abstract, typed double-spaced on 8-½-by-11-inch, non-erasable paper. Use fresh, bright computer printer ribbons. All quoted text should be typed double-spaced. Abstracts are required for lengthy articles only.

Consult the Random House Webster’s College Dictionary for spelling and usage. Use the first spelling. Verify the spelling and accuracy of names in an appropriate reference.

Consult The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th edition (Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Pr., 1993), for all grammatical rules.

In designing tables, regard previous issues for style in conjunction with the examples and suggestions in chapter 12 of The Chicago Manual of Style. Submit each table on a separate page at the end of the paper. Indicate the preferred placement in the text with instructions in brackets. Use tables sparingly, and provide each with a brief caption. Type tables double-spaced throughout.

Supply camera-ready copy for each illustration if your paper is accepted. Ensure that each illustration has a caption.

Submit all bibliographic citations on separate pages at the end of the article. Please type all references double spaced. In the references section, do not type the numbers as superscripts, and do not indent the first line. Use superscript numbers throughout the text, but do not use embedded footnotes in word-processed manuscripts. Use references to document the text, not to amplify it. Note that a shortened form (not op. cit., or loc. cit.) is used for subsequent references to a previously cited work. If no other reference intervenes, use Ibid. (not underlined) to replace the elements of the directly previous reference. A reference to another article for a previously cited collection can be shortened by means of a cross-reference. Verify each citation.

The fictitious examples below illustrate the preferred style:

1. James Mason and Julie Martin, “Using the Pears Technique to Assess Staff Performance in a Large Public Library,” Library Administration & Management 3 (Jan. 1988): 1–23.
2. Robert E. Jones et al., Senior Administrator Evaluation of Library Directors: Trends and Issues, Library Book House, vol. 4 (Dayton, Ohio: Univ. of Dayton Pr., 1987).
3. Ibid., 194.
4. Linda Keir, “Administration of an Off-Campus Library Program,” in Off-Campus Library Programs: Proceedings of the 1987 National Conference, ed. Edward J. Jones (Chicago: ALA, 1988), 87–98.
5. Mason and Martin, “Using the Pears Technique to Assess Staff Performance in a Large Public Library,” 2.
6. Mary Ann Walker, “Problems in Off-Campus Program Site Selection,” in Off-Campus Library Programs, 2.

All major manuscripts should be sent to Marta Deyrup, Seton Hall University Libraries, 400 South Orange Ave., South Orange, NJ 07079. Allow a minimum of one month for editorial review. Please include an addressed envelope, large enough and with sufficient postage for the return of your manuscript. The editor follows the Guidelines for Authors, Editors, and Publishers of Literature in the Library and Information Field, adopted by the American Library Association Council in 1983. It is available from the ALA Executive Office, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611.

Articles and news stories that have been initiated by the Associate Editor should be sent directly to the address given on the first page of the LAMA News Section.