Below is a step-by-step playbook for launching a legitimate, peer-reviewed academic journal under the Illuminati Press banner—one that can stand alongside established titles in Scopus, DOAJ, and Web of Science. I’ve included practical resources (most of them free or low-cost), common pitfalls, and the milestones that indexers and tenure committees look for.
1 Define Your Niche and Mission
Task Why It Matters Action Tips Identify a Gap Indexers and funders ask: “Why does the world need one more journal?” Search Scopus / DOAJ for recent launches in your area. Note underserved sub-topics (e.g., “AI-driven textual forensics” within Digital Humanities). Draft a Mission Statement Signals seriousness to potential editors and authors. Keep it concise: “Illuminati Press Journal of Esoteric Media Studies publishes peer-reviewed research on hidden histories of publishing technology and digital text analysis.” Audience Profile Clarifies tone, length limits, methods expectations. Define primary readers (scholars of media history & DH) and secondary (librarians, advanced PhD students).
2 Build Governance and Editorial Infrastructure
Element Best Practice Practical Steps / Tools Editorial Board 10–15 respected scholars; diversity of geography, discipline, career stage. Leverage your PhD network; invite with a formal letter outlining duties (2–3 reviews/yr + occasional guest editor work). Advisory Board Adds prestige, less day-to-day work. Recruit senior figures willing to lend their names and periodic advice. Editor-in-Chief & Managing Editor Clear division: EiC handles academic vision; ME runs workflows. If solo, appoint an assistant editor or hire grad assistants (stipend or course credit). Peer Review Policy COPE-aligned, double-blind by default, option for open reports. Draft policy docs using templates from COPE or Elsevier’s “Publishing Campus.” Reviewer Database Track expertise, turnaround, quality. Free: Google Sheets + ORCID IDs; scalable: Open Journal Systems (OJS) reviewer module.
3 Choose Publishing Software & Workflows
Need Open-Source Solution Why Submission & Peer Review OJS 3 (pkp.sfu.ca)Industry-standard, free, supports DOIs, CrossRef, JATS XML, multilingual UI. Production (XML → PDF/HTML/EPUB) Texture editor + JATS-Parser Produces machine-readable XML required by PubMed, Scopus. Layout & Design Pandoc-to-PDF templates or LaTeX classProfessional look without InDesign license. Archiving & Preservation OJS + LOCKSS/PKP PN plug-in Ensures long-term preservation—required by DOAJ.
4 Obtain Identifiers & Indexing Prerequisites
Identifier How Timeline Cost ISSN / e-ISSN Apply via your national ISSN centre (issn.org) 1–4 weeks Usually free or <$100 Crossref Membership crossref.org 1 week $275 setup + $1 per article DOI DOI Prefix Via Crossref same included Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ) Apply after 2 published issues / 5+ peer-reviewed papers 3–6 months review Free Creative Commons License CC-BY 4.0 (Plan S–compliant) instant free
5 Funding & Sustainability Models
Model Pros Cons Diamond OA (no APCs) Author-friendly, aligns with UNESCO OA roadmap. Needs grants, institutional backing, or volunteer labour. Moderate APC ($300-$900) Covers Crossref, copy-editing, DOI, hosting. Must justify value; risk pricing out unfunded scholars. Library Consortium Sponsorship Multiple university libraries chip in small amounts. Requires outreach but builds stable base. Print-on-Demand Anthology Annual “best of” volume sold at cost. Extra layout work but doubles as marketing.
Tip: Apply for SEER (Springer Nature’s funding tracker) or SPARC grants for new OA journals.
6 Editorial & Production Timeline (Issue #1)
Week Milestone 0–4 Call for Papers drafted, CFP posted on H-Net, Humanities Commons, Twitter. 5–12 Submissions window open; recruit reviewers. 13–18 Double-blind peer review → accept / revise decisions. 19–22 Copy-editing, layout, metadata tagging (ORCID, Crossref). 23–24 Proofs to authors; final corrections. 25 Publish online first; deposit XML with Crossref for DOI registration. 26 Announce Issue #1 via press release, mailing lists, social media.
7 Ethics & Transparency Checklist
COPE Membership (applications free for OA journals <25 articles/yr).Data Availability Statement for empirical papers.Author Contribution Statements (CRediT taxonomy).Conflicts of Interest Form —simple Google Form works.Plagiarism Check —run every accepted article through iThenticate (offers small-publisher discount).
8 Marketing & Community
Launch Webinar —panel with board members, streamed on YouTube.Blog Series —behind-the-scenes on peer review, open data, etc.Social Scholar Network —Twitter/Mastodon threads summarizing each article with shareable graphics.Cross-Journal Collaborations —guest editorials with allied OA journals to share readership.
Red Flags to Avoid
Pitfall Avoid by… Predatory-Publisher Look Transparent fees, editorial board bios with ORCID links, clear peer-review description. “Stale Website” Publish rolling articles (“online first”) even if full issue is quarterly. One-Geography Board Recruit globally; indexers scrutinize diversity.
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