Publication Guidelines
The Editorial Board of the student journal Obscura accepts submissions on historical topics in Czech, Slovak, and English, but only during the period when a publication call (Call for Articles) is announced. Texts are accepted in the sections Scholarly Studies, Reflections, Insights, Reviews, Interviews, Kunst, and Reportages. Texts in the Academic Studies and Reflections sections undergo an anonymous peer-review process. The editorial board decides on the publication of contributions from the other sections. Go to the Calls for Articles…
Basic Guidelines
Authors may submit their texts in Microsoft Word (version 1997 and newer), OpenOffice, or RTF formats. Contributions must include the title, and if applicable, the subtitle of the text in its full version, the author’s name (including titles), the author’s affiliation (e.g., Institute of World History, Faculty of Arts, Charles University), and a brief description of the author’s field of focus (max. 2 sentences). For texts undergoing anonymous peer review, the details of which can be found here, the author must also provide a valid email address and the English version of the title and subtitle. The contribution must also specify whether it is an edited or revised version of an already defended seminar, bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral thesis, or if it is published within the framework of a grant. Authors are asked to follow the guidelines for each section, the journal’s citation style, and the formatting instructions found below. Contributions must also not exceed the maximum length defined by their section, with 1 standard page = 1,800 characters, including spaces.
Sections
Peer-reviewed texts:
Scholarly Studies
Academic texts, including a complex analysis of a specific topic or issue, based on the author’s own interpretation and analysis of sources and scholarly literature. Texts are accepted in the range of 10 to 25 standard pages, including footnotes and bibliography (18,000 to 45,000 characters, including spaces). A brief abstract (max. 500 characters), an English résumé (900 to 1,800 characters), and keywords in both Czech and English must also be provided. The expertise and relevance of the text are assessed by two anonymous expert reviewers—one from among students of master’s or doctoral historical programs, and the other from among academic professionals.
Reflections
Shorter analyses and critical discussions of a specific topic or issue with the author’s own evidence-based argumentation; scholarly essays, discussions, and reflections. Texts are accepted in the range of 5 to 15 standard pages, including footnotes and bibliography, and must be accompanied by a brief abstract (max. 500 characters), an English résumé (600 to 1,200 characters), and keywords in both Czech and English. The expertise and relevance of the text are assessed by one anonymous expert reviewer, either from among students of master’s or doctoral historical programs or from among academic professionals.
Texts reviewed by Editorial Board:
Insights
Texts of a reflective, subjective, or popularizing nature, shorter thematic essays, reflections on aspects of the author’s own studies or research, on issues in historical science, or on socially relevant problems with a historical theme. Texts are accepted in the range of 5 to 15 standard pages, including bibliography. These texts do not undergo a review process; their relevance is assessed by the Editorial Board itself. Submissions are accepted without an abstract, English résumé, or keywords.
Kunst
Popularizing texts focusing on recent trends in contemporary and popular culture, with relevance to historical research – including reviews of films, TV series, or exhibitions, as well as analyses of printed, visual, or musical works with historical themes. Contributions are accepted up to 8 standard pages in length.
Reportages
Texts addressing important events in the field of historical sciences, recent results of historical research, developments in the academic sphere, reports from field trips, internships, international stays, conferences, etc. Contributions are accepted up to 5 standard pages in length.
Reviews
Texts critically reflecting on current and relevant historical literature, with a length of up to 5 standard pages. The editorial team does not accept review texts from authors who have a conflict of interest with the author of the reviewed work. The editorial team also does not accept texts that are merely a summary of the book’s content without the author’s own critical evaluation.
Interviews
A structured dialogue with an interesting or otherwise relevant figure from Czech or international historical science, with a length of up to 5 standard pages.
Formatting Guidelines
Basic Formatting Guidelines
Authors may submit texts in editable formats such as Microsoft Word, OpenOffice, or RTF. Please ensure that the submitted text meets the following criteria:
Main text: Times New Roman, size 12, line spacing 1.5
Headings: Bold, no additional formatting, size 12
Footnotes: Times New Roman, size 10, line spacing 1
Attachments (photos, illustrations, maps, tables, graphs, etc.) should be submitted in a separate file with references to their corresponding locations in the main text.
Selection of Principles for Formatting and Typography
Please adhere to the applicable spelling and grammar rules for the English language. You can find the relevant guidelines for English orthography and typography in various resources online, including authoritative guides such as the Chicago Manual of Style or The Oxford Style Manual.
Instructions for attachments
Maps should have a print resolution of 300 dpi and be in JPG, PNG, or TIF format. For graphs, a resolution of 600 dpi is required. For other image materials in JPG, PNG, or TIF format, we request high-quality images exceeding 500 kB in size. When submitting image materials, we also ask authors to ensure compliance with copyright laws for all provided attachments and secure the rights for publication, both in the printed and electronic versions of the journal.
How to cite
As of February 2024, the journal Obscura adheres to the citation style used by the journal Historie – Otázky – Problémy, published by the Institute of History, Faculty of Arts, Charles University. The full version of the citation guidelines can be found at the following link: https://historieotazkyproblemy.ff.cuni.cz/pro-autory/.
Footnotes must be placed at the bottom of the relevant page, not compiled at the end of the text. Footnote references in the main text should appear after the punctuation mark. If the submitted manuscript is a review, references to pages in the reviewed publication may be placed in parentheses following the relevant passage. When citing multiple publications in a single footnote, separate each reference with a semicolon. Titles of foreign sources should not be translated; present them in their original language. Non-Latin characters must be transliterated. Titles of sources and their components should be written out in full. If the cited source has a subtitle, it must also be included. Do not use abbreviations, except for commonly used ones. Surnames of cited authors should be written in CAPITAL LETTERS for clarity.
When citing a source for the first time, provide the full citation (see below: First reference). For subsequent references to the same source, use a shortened citation (Repeated reference), continuing up to the first noun that precisely characterizes the title. If referencing the same source in successive notes, the first citation must be complete; thereafter, use the format Ibid., p. X.
Book monographs
First Reference
Format: First name LAST NAME, Title of the monograph, Place and year of publication, page.
Example: Petr MAŤA, Svět české aristokracie (1500–1700), Prague 2004, pp. 17–22.
Repeated Reference
Format: Initial(s) LAST NAME, shortened title of the monograph, page (always specify precisely).
Example: P. MAŤA, Svět, pp. 67–76.
Journal Articles
First Reference
Format: First name LAST NAME, Title of the article, Title of the journal volume, year, page(s).
Example: Josef MACEK, Historická sémantika, Český časopis historický 89, 1991, pp. 1–30, here p. 9.
Repeated Reference
Format: Initial(s) LAST NAME, Title of the article, page.
Example: J. MACEK, Historická sémantika, p. 27.
For the full list of examples, visit the following link: Guidelines in English.
How not to plagiarize
We kindly ask authors to adhere to the ethical standards of academic work and to avoid any form of plagiarism. It is also unacceptable to submit texts that have already been published in another journal or are currently under review elsewhere.
You can learn more about our principles and guidelines in the Code of Ethics section.
The editorial board reserves the right to decide whether or not to accept a submitted text for the peer-review process. If accepted, the board also reserves the right to make technical and language edits. The full rights and responsibilities of the editorial team, authors, and reviewers are outlined in our Code of Ethics. By accepting and publishing a text, the editorial board does not neccessarily endorse the political, methodological, or other views and approaches expressed by the author in the text.
These rules apply to all issues of the journal whose Calls for Articles were announced in 2024 or later.