What is Early Georgia?
The Society for Georgia Archaeology’s flagship publication is the journal Early Georgia, which has been published for decades. The annual journal is a benefit of SGA membership and publishes archaeological research, methods, and theory from throughout Georgia and the surrounding region.
Each year the journal has a single volume, published in the Fall. Submission deadlines for publication are:
ARTICLES: March 1
REPORTS: July 31
BOOK REVIEWS: September 1
Although most contributors and reviewers are members of the society, membership is not required to submit manuscripts for publication in Early Georgia. Scholarship and pertinence are the determining factors in selecting contributions for publication in SGA’s journal.
Submission Guidelines
ARTICLES are usually longer than REPORTS and address topics of major importance in a way that reaches out to a broad audience of professional archaeologists and the informed public. REPORTS, on the other hand, may be more technical, address a specific topic, and be of primary interest to relatively fewer readers. REPORTS can include project summaries, updates on ongoing field research, or preliminary findings.
Word limits for submissions are not fixed, but the recommended limit for ARTICLES is 7,500 words (30 pages double spaced), inclusive of abstracts, text, notes, and references cited. REPORTS should be under 2,500 words (7-8 pages double spaced), inclusive. ARTICLES will undergo a full peer review process, while an Associate Editor will review the REPORTS. The categorization of a manuscript as an ARTICLE or a REPORT is left to the authors’ discretion.
ARTICLES will be read by the Journal Editor to determine if they are ready for review. To be accepted for review, the manuscript must follow the SAA Style Guide, must address archaeological subjects of interest to SGA members and be reasonably well written. If an article is considered ready for review, the Journal Editor will notify the author or lead author (for multi-authored papers) of each manuscript and request the names of four potential peer reviewers who have sufficient knowledge to evaluate the scholarship of the ARTICLE. The Journal Editor will then secure two peer reviewers for each ARTICLE who are willing to read and comment on the manuscript.
Reviewers are asked to evaluate the ARTICLES and comment on the methodological and theoretical strengths and weaknesses, the organization, and the suitability of the manuscript for publication. Reviews result in one of three recommended outcomes: 1) Recommend publication in current form or with minor revisions, 2) Complete major revisions and resubmit, or 3) Should not be published. Once the reviews are received, the Journal Editor will determine if the manuscript is suitable for publication. Authors should recognize that while strenuous, this review process produces stronger publications.
Manuscripts submitted for publication should be sent to the editor at [email protected] as a Microsoft Word or PDF document. Citation and reference style should follow the Society for American Archaeology Style Guide. Articles for peer review should be sent initially with graphics included in the document to allow easier distribution to reviewers. Final draft illustrations should consist of either high quality prints or scans with a minimum resolution of 300 dpi. Technical comments for submittal of graphics: send text and graphics in separate files; do not shrink or compress photos in any way before submitting; convert color photos to grayscale before submitting; diagrams (but not photos) should be saved in formats like PDF or EPS. In addition, graphics should be sent in jpg or tif format and not embedded in the Word document.
Early Georgia also has a book review section to review professional archaeology, history and architectural history books of the Southeast as well as online CRM reports of interest to Early Georgia readers.
If you are interested in reviewing any books, or would like to suggest books for review, please contact Book Review Editor [email protected]. Book reviews are due on August 15.
Although most contributors and reviewers are members of the society, membership is not required to submit manuscripts for publication in Early Georgia. Scholarship and pertinence are the determining factors in selecting contributions for publication in SGA’s journal.