Guidelines for Authors: Formatting and Submission Requirements
Guidelines for Authors: Formatting and Submission Requirements
All manuscripts submitted to Astarte: The Mediterranean Journal on Gender and Sexualities must adhere to the following formatting, style, and ethical standards. Submissions that do not meet these requirements may be returned to the author for revision before review.
Manuscripts must conform to the APA (American Psychological Association) 7th edition referencing style.
Submissions must be written in British English or Maltese and submitted as a Microsoft Word (.docx)
Full papers: 5,000–8,000 words (including references)
Each submission must include the following components:
Title Page
Title of the manuscript
Full names and institutional affiliations of all author(s)
Complete contact information for the corresponding author (email and postal address)
Main Document (Anonymous File for Blind Review)
Begin with the title only; do not include author names to ensure anonymity during the blind review process.
Include:
Abstract (maximum 250 words)
Keywords (3–6 terms)
Main text (body of the article or essay)
Tables and/or figures, where applicable
Declarations of funding sources and/or conflicts of interest
Acknowledgements, if relevant
Font: Times New Roman, size 12-point
Spacing: Single-spaced throughout
Alignment: Left and right justified
Margins: 1 inch (2.54 cm) on all sides, including for tables and figures
Do not include page numbers.
Paragraphs: Indent all paragraphs; do not insert extra line breaks between them
Headings:
Major section headings: bold, no space before the following paragraph
Subheadings: italics
Insert one line space before each new heading or subheading.
Do not number headings.
Literature Review Sections When the literature review is not comprehensive, provide a descriptive section title, e.g., “Feminist Theories of Prostitution” or “Background to the Current Debate.”
Short quotations (fewer than 40 words): include in-text with inverted commas (“ ”).
Block quotations (40+ words): indent the entire block and insert one line space before and after.
Do not italicise
Non-English words or terms must appear in italics, with a parenthetical definition in English upon first use.
All tables, figures, and illustrations must be clearly labelled, captioned, and referenced in the text.
Place them near the relevant discussion in the manuscript.
Oversized tables or figures may be placed on separate pages.
Ensure all visual material fits within the 1-inch margins.
When reproducing copyrighted material, authors must obtain written permission in advance and acknowledge the source in the caption.
The References section should appear at the end of the manuscript, single-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman font.
Use footnotes sparingly (in 10-point font) for clarifying information; do not use endnotes.
Footnote numbers or symbols must appear after punctuation marks.
Manuscripts must be carefully proofread before submission.
Submissions requiring significant English or Maltese language editing will be returned to the authors for correction before review.
Grammar, punctuation, and spelling must conform to academic standards.
For empirical research involving human participants, authors must include documentation of ethical clearance from an appropriate university ethics board or an equivalent institutional body. Manuscripts that lack ethical approval for such studies will not be considered for review.
Upon acceptance, authors must provide:
A signed Disclaimer Form (to be provided by the journal administrators)
A Turnitin or comparable plagiarism-check report
A tracked-changes version of the manuscript showing revisions made in response to reviewer comments
A response table summarising how each reviewer’s comment has been addressed
All revised submissions must fully comply with these formatting requirements. Non-conforming submissions or resubmissions may be rejected without review.
