Submission Preflight (ci-submission)
The last check before pressing submit on Editorial Manager (editorialmanager.com/ci/). CI's most
common avoidable failures are a manuscript over the 9,500-word cap (because notes were not counted)
and images that are embedded, low-resolution, or uncleared. Verify volatile specifics on the official
page before relying on them.
When to trigger
- "Submitting tomorrow" — last pass before upload
- Unsure which files / format Editorial Manager expects
- Confirming the chosen format's cap is met and images are prepared correctly
Process facts (verify volatile items on the official page)
- Publisher: University of Chicago Press (journal founded 1974).
- Portal: Editorial Manager (
editorialmanager.com/ci/); special-issue proposals may go to
cisubmissions[at]gmail.com.
- Review model: peer-reviewed; reviewed by the editors-in-chief in consultation with the
editorial team.
- Formats & caps: Article ≤ 9,500 words (includes discursive notes and all bibliographical
information); Critical Response ≤ 3,000 words; Review ≤ 500 words.
- Manuscript file: Microsoft Word.
- Citations: footnotes roughly following The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed., numbered
consecutively; no works-cited list.
- Images: separate 300 ppi JPEG/TIFF files, not embedded; author secures permissions before
publication.
- Multiple submission: not accepted — not under consideration elsewhere.
- Fee: no separate submission fee listed in the checked submissions instructions; optional Gold
open access fee $2,500 (confirmed on the CI submissions page 2026-06-22), requested at
submission or no later than acceptance when relevant. Re-verify the fee before submission.
- Abstract: no separate abstract requirement is listed in the checked submissions instructions.
Preflight checklist
Format & length
Citations & apparatus
Images & permissions
Policy & files
Anti-patterns
- Forgetting that notes count — a body-only count under 9,500 but a total over it
- Embedding images, supplying low-resolution files, or leaving permissions uncleared
- Adding a works-cited list or using author-date instead of footnotes
- Submitting to CI and another journal at once
- Budgeting for a submission fee that is not charged
Submission readiness pass for Critical Inquiry
Use this as a second-pass capability check. First lock the object, theoretical stakes, interpretive turn, and permission/citation discipline; then test whether the manuscript addresses humanities reviewers who expect a strong interpretive intervention rather than an empirical-results narrative.
- Primary move: Verify portal, article type, anonymity, declarations, files, data/code, and current source-map facts; return blockers before formatting advice.
- Decision ledger: return
claim / evidence / blocker / next edit rows so the next pass can patch the manuscript directly.
- Neighbor test: compare against PMLA for literary-field reach, New Literary History for theory/history, Representations for historically grounded cultural analysis; if the neighboring outlet has the stronger audience claim, recommend re-routing before polishing.
- Verification floor: before submission-ready advice, re-open
resources/official-source-map.md for volatile rules and name any live-check fact that could change the recommendation.
Output format
【Format】Article / Response / Review (cap met incl. notes? Y/N)
【Word count】total incl. notes + all bibliographical info
【Citations】Chicago 17th footnotes, no works-cited list? [Y/N]
【Manuscript file】Microsoft Word? [Y/N]
【Images】separate 300 ppi JPEG/TIFF + permissions? [Y/N]
【Single submission】not elsewhere? [Y/N]
【Next】await decision → ci-revision-and-response
Supplementary resources
Source: brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills → Critical-Inquiry-Skills/skills/ci-submission/SKILL.md
1---2name: ci-submission3description: Use when running the final pre-submission preflight for Critical Inquiry (CI) via Editorial Manager — format selection, the 9,500-word limit (including discursive notes and all bibliographical information), Microsoft Word manuscript, Chicago (17th ed.) footnotes with no works-cited list, separate 300 ppi JPEG/TIFF images with author-secured permissions, and the no-simultaneous-submission rule. Final checks; it does not draft content.4---5
6
7# Submission Preflight (ci-submission)
8
9The last check before pressing submit on **Editorial Manager** (`editorialmanager.com/ci/`). CI's most
10common avoidable failures are a manuscript over the **9,500-word** cap (because notes were not counted)
11and images that are embedded, low-resolution, or uncleared. Verify volatile specifics on the official
12page before relying on them.
13
14## When to trigger
15
16- "Submitting tomorrow" — last pass before upload
17- Unsure which files / format Editorial Manager expects
18- Confirming the chosen format's cap is met and images are prepared correctly
19
20## Process facts (verify volatile items on the official page)
21
22- **Publisher:** University of Chicago Press (journal founded 1974).
23- **Portal:** **Editorial Manager** (`editorialmanager.com/ci/`); special-issue proposals may go to
24 `cisubmissions[at]gmail.com`.
25- **Review model:** peer-reviewed; reviewed by the **editors-in-chief in consultation with the
26 editorial team**.
27- **Formats & caps:** **Article ≤ 9,500 words** (**includes discursive notes and all bibliographical
28 information**); **Critical Response ≤ 3,000 words**; **Review ≤ 500 words**.
29- **Manuscript file:** **Microsoft Word**.
30- **Citations:** footnotes roughly following **The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th ed.**, numbered
31 consecutively; **no works-cited list**.
32- **Images:** **separate 300 ppi JPEG/TIFF** files, not embedded; **author secures permissions** before
33 publication.
34- **Multiple submission:** **not accepted** — not under consideration elsewhere.
35- **Fee:** no separate submission fee listed in the checked submissions instructions; optional **Gold
36 open access** fee **$2,500** (confirmed on the CI submissions page 2026-06-22), requested at
37 submission or no later than acceptance when relevant. Re-verify the fee before submission.
38- **Abstract:** no separate abstract requirement is listed in the checked submissions instructions.
39
40## Preflight checklist
41
42### Format & length
43- [ ] Format chosen and its cap met (Article ≤ 9,500 / Response ≤ 3,000 / Review ≤ 500)
44- [ ] Word count **includes discursive notes and all bibliographical information**
45- [ ] Manuscript is a **Microsoft Word** file
46
47### Citations & apparatus
48- [ ] Chicago (17th ed.) **footnotes**, numbered consecutively; **no works-cited list**
49- [ ] Notes are lean enough to stay within the word cap
50
51### Images & permissions
52- [ ] Images as **separate 300 ppi JPEG/TIFF** files (not embedded), with caption + **credit line**
53- [ ] **Permissions secured** by the author for all published images
54
55### Policy & files
56- [ ] **Not** submitted simultaneously elsewhere
57- [ ] Original work; manuscript appropriate to CI's interdisciplinary remit
58- [ ] Special-issue proposal routed correctly (if applicable)
59
60## Anti-patterns
61
62- Forgetting that notes count — a body-only count under 9,500 but a total over it
63- Embedding images, supplying low-resolution files, or leaving permissions uncleared
64- Adding a works-cited list or using author-date instead of footnotes
65- Submitting to CI and another journal at once
66- Budgeting for a submission fee that is not charged
67
68
69## Submission readiness pass for Critical Inquiry
70
71Use this as a second-pass capability check. First lock the object, theoretical stakes, interpretive turn, and permission/citation discipline; then test whether the manuscript addresses humanities reviewers who expect a strong interpretive intervention rather than an empirical-results narrative.
72
73- **Primary move:** Verify portal, article type, anonymity, declarations, files, data/code, and current source-map facts; return blockers before formatting advice.
74- **Decision ledger:** return `claim / evidence / blocker / next edit` rows so the next pass can patch the manuscript directly.
75- **Neighbor test:** compare against PMLA for literary-field reach, New Literary History for theory/history, Representations for historically grounded cultural analysis; if the neighboring outlet has the stronger audience claim, recommend re-routing before polishing.
76- **Verification floor:** before submission-ready advice, re-open `resources/official-source-map.md` for volatile rules and name any live-check fact that could change the recommendation.
77
78## Output format
79
80```
81【Format】Article / Response / Review (cap met incl. notes? Y/N)
82【Word count】total incl. notes + all bibliographical info
83【Citations】Chicago 17th footnotes, no works-cited list? [Y/N]
84【Manuscript file】Microsoft Word? [Y/N]
85【Images】separate 300 ppi JPEG/TIFF + permissions? [Y/N]
86【Single submission】not elsewhere? [Y/N]
87【Next】await decision → ci-revision-and-response
88```
89
90## Supplementary resources
91
92- [`../../resources/external_tools.md`](../../resources/external_tools.md) — portal, file formats, image specs, Chicago tooling
93- [`../../resources/official-source-map.md`](../../resources/official-source-map.md) — official CI URLs behind every fact in this pack
94
95---
96
97**Source:** [`brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills`](https://github.com/brycewang-stanford/Awesome-Journal-Skills) → `Critical-Inquiry-Skills/skills/ci-submission/SKILL.md`
thedixitjain