Focus and Scope
The Mormon Studies Review tracks the vibrant, varied, and international academic engagement with Mormon institutions, lives, ideas, texts, and stories. It chronicles and assesses the developing field of Mormon studies with review essays, book reviews, and roundtable discussions related to the academic study of Mormonism. The Review offers scholars and interested non-specialists a one-stop source for discussions of current scholarship on Mormonism, ranging across disciplines and gathering voices from a broad cross-section of the academy, both LDS and non-LDS.
Section Policies
Articles
 Open Submissions |
 Indexed |
Peer Reviewed |
Forum essays
Forum essays typically appear at the beginning of the Mormon Studies Review. They are designed to offer different, and at times competing, perspectives on a broader scholarly question. Contributions should offer sophisticated, nuanced, and provocative analysis that is drawn from the author’s background, outlook, and expertise. Authors are encouraged to be brief in their assessment of past work and particular examples so that most space can be dedicated to the field’s future and possibilities. Because each volume’s Forum aims to cover a single theme and there is bound to be overlap, we request that each contributor remain fairly close to the subtopic agreed upon with the Review staff. Contributions should include a brief title.
Forum essays should be between 1,500 and 2,000 words; ideal contributions come to the point quickly and evolve their discussion efficiently. While critical thinking is expected, original research for Forum Essays is not mandatory.
| Open Submissions |
Indexed |
Peer Reviewed |
Review essays
Review essays are often, though not always, based on one or several related books that merit an in-depth discussion or that might serve as an entry point for broader analysis. Our criteria for choosing review essay topics—content, method, perspective, originality, and significance—are evolving and flexible. Most essays are solicited, though we are open, on a limited basis, to considering unsolicited submissions that match our intended quality and scope. Interested authors should contact the Mormon Studies Review staff to explore possible review topics.
Essays should offer both a thorough summary of the book or books in question, and a critical evaluation of them in the context of existing literature. Each essay should have a title that differs from the book(s) under review and that reflects the essay’s theme and approach. Because readers of the Review come from many disciplines and backgrounds, reviewers should make it a priority to clearly explain the review’s broader significance both inside and outside its subfield. In most cases, the book(s) under review should be used as a touchstone from which to engage broader issues or developments within the relevant discipline(s).
| Open Submissions |
Indexed |
Peer Reviewed |
Book review
Book reviews are typically focused on a single work, though at times it may be appropriate to include several books in a joint review. Our criteria for choosing books for review—content, method, perspective, originality, and significance—are evolving and flexible. Most reviews are solicited, though we are open, on a limited basis, to considering unsolicited submissions. Interested authors should contact the Mormon Studies Review staff to explore possible book reviews.
A book review should attempt a comprehensive analysis of the work (or works) in question. It should examine the strength of the work’s arguments, originality, and place within broader literature. Because Review readers come from many backgrounds and disciplines, authors should prioritize clear explanation of the strengths and significance of the books they review.
Book reviews should be between 1,500 and 2,000 words; reviews of a single monograph should tend toward the former limitation, and reviews of edited collections or multiple books should tend toward the latter. Because of space limitations, we expect authors to stay within their word allotment. Deviations from the suggested word count should be preauthorized by the Review editorial staff.
| Open Submissions |
Indexed |
Peer Reviewed |