Editorial Policies

Editorial Policies

Focus and Scope
Peer-Review Process
Publication and Open-Access Policy
Copyright Notice

Focus and Scope

Fafnir – Nordic Journal of Science Fiction and Fantasy Researchis a Gold Open Access international peer-reviewed journal published by The Finnish Society for Science Fiction and Fantasy Research (FINFAR).

We publish academic work on science-fiction and fantasy (SFF) literature, audiovisual art, games, and fan culture. Interdisciplinary perspectives are encouraged. In addition to peer-reviewed academic articles, Fafnir invites texts ranging from short overviews, essays, interviews, conference reports, and opinion pieces as well as academic reviews for books and dissertations on any suitable SFF subject. Our journal provides an international forum for scholarly discussions on science fiction and fantasy, including current debates within the field.

Peer-Review Process

Contributions to Fafnir are first scanned by the editors-in-chief to ensure that the submission fits our scope and guidelines. If a manuscript passes this initial phase, they will be sent through double-blind peer review. Most manuscripts require revision before acceptance.

External reviewers will be scholars active in SFF research and related fields. They are asked to examine a manuscript for appropriateness of theoretical application, thoroughness of research, and the scholarly importance of the subject. Suggestions to aid in revision should also be offered.

Publication and Open-Access Policy

Fafnir publishes twice per year. Issues only appear online but are also available in PDF format.

All content for Fafnir is immediately available through open access. Fafnir endorses the definition of open access laid out in Bethesda Meeting on Open Access Publishing:

  1. The author(s) and copyright holder(s) grant(s) to all users a free, irrevocable, worldwide, perpetual right of access to, and a license to copy, use, distribute, transmit and display the work publicly and to make and distribute derivative works, in any digital medium for any responsible purpose, subject to proper attribution of authorship,1 as well as the right to make small numbers of printed copies for their personal use.
  2. A complete version of the work and all supplemental materials, including a copy of the permission as stated above, in a suitable standard electronic format is deposited immediately upon initial publication in at least one online repository that is supported by an academic institution, scholarly society, government agency, or other well-established organization that seeks to enable open access, unrestricted distribution, interoperability, and long-term archiving.

Note: 1 Community standards, rather than copyright law, will continue to provide the mechanism for enforcement of proper attribution and responsible use of the published work, as they do now.

Content in Fafnir is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial 3.0 Unported License (CC BY-NC 3.0).

Beginning in November 2019, authors retain full copyright without restrictions. By publishing with Fafnir, authors grant a non-exclusive license to Fafnir to distribute the publisher’s version of the work, and give Fafnir permission to grant reprint and/or translation requests in accordance with our open-access policy and our Creative Commons license.

Prior to November 2019, copyright for all published material is held by Fafnir, but authors have full permission to use their work as they wish (i.e., self-archiving, reprint requests, using for other projects, etc.).

In both cases, re-use or re-posting of material published in Fafnir must acknowledge original publication and include a link to the publisher version.

Fafnir‘s copyright policies can also be found under our SHERPA/RoMEO listing.