editorships: Kairos CoverWeb
position
(2001–2006). Co-Editor, CoverWeb section. Kairos: Rhetoric, Technology, Pedagogy. http://english.ttu.edu/kairos//
description/scope
All of the webtexts published in Kairos use the affordances of the Web whenever possible to present scholarly arguments in nontraditional ways. As co-editor of the CoverWeb (themed) section from 2001 until 2006, I performed editorial processes ranging from submission to publication, including working with the editorial board to gather reviews and also copy- and design-editing the texts, many of which are technologically and theoretically cutting edge. In this role, I was able to initiate special issues on a range of topics including new media, wireless technologies, and online writing spaces.
Authors self-select into an issue due to its theme, and Kairos is known for mentoring authors through multiple revisions of a promising text in order to publish only the best work. The journal also encourages publications from graduate students and undergraduates, the editorial mentoring of which increases our acceptance rate in favor of including nontraditional scholars. This mentoring involves original, critical editorial work on my part, which contributes to the scholarship in digital writing studies.
stats
Until its merger with a non-themed section in 2006, the CoverWeb was the largest section of the journal and had decreased its acceptance rate from nearly 90% in 2001 (when we were more able to mentor authors through the publication process because we had less overall submissions) to between 40–50% in 2005, because we started to receive more submissions and so the mentoring process became more competitive.
accompanying materials
- to come: email exchanges with authors showing the editorial mentoring process
- sample webtext link, which I edited and which won the Best Webtext award in 2005
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