Basic guidelines for paper submissions

The following list of guidelines is meant as a quick reference guide for contributors to the OnCUE Journal. In the event the information below conflicts with that in the APA reference books, the OCJ Basic Guidelines take precedence.

Typefaces

1. Use Times New Roman, 12-point size, double spacing for the text of the document.

2. Use bold-face for all headings.

3. Avoid the use of italics, except for journal and book names.

4. Avoid the use of all capital-letters words or names.

5. Use Arial or Helvetica, 10-point size, for text inside tables.

Overall Guidelines

1. Indent all paragraphs using the "tab" key or by using the indent tabs (these appear as small blue triangles on the ruler at the top of the MS Word file). Do not use the space bar for indents.

2. All paragraphs, other than the abstract, should be ragged right. Do not use force justification for main text in the document.

3. Do not insert blank lines between each paragraph. Start each paragraph on the line following the preceding one.

4. Do not number paragraphs or sections of the document.

5. Do not include "running heads" in the document.

6. Do not use footnotes at the bottom of separate pages. If there are notes, please include them in a separate section at the end of the document, before the references.

7. All references must be cited in the text.

8. Do not use "Ibid" in either notes or references.

9. Include page numbers at the bottom center or right of each page.

10. Do not insert "Total Pages: XXX" at the beginning or at the end of the document.

Punctuation

1. Use two quotation marks (") rather than one (').

2. Place the ending sentence period (.) inside, not outside, the quotation marks (e.g., "...he said.")

3. Avoid the use of the em-dash (—). Use a semi-colon (;) where possible.

4. Avoid run-on sentences; use a semicolon to connect ideas that comprise two separate S-V-O sentences (e.g., "Avoid run-on sentences, use a semicolon..." is a run-on sentence.)

5. Insert a single space, rather than a double space, after a sentence-ending period.

Tables and Figures

1. All tables and figures should be referred to in the text as (Table 1) or (Figure 1). Do not use "See Table 1" or "Refer to Table 1."

2. Use the table function of MS Word. Do not copy and paste link files from Excel.

3. All tables should be inserted as separate pages at the end of the document.

4. All figures should be in .jpg or .tif format and should be included as separate attached files to the email.

5. Figure captions should be inserted at the desired location of the figures in the document. Do not include figure captions as part of the .jpg or .tif file, as they may become unreadable.

(Please refer to the OnCUE Journal Author Template for more information on tables and figures.)

APA Reference Books

When preparing your prospective OCJ manuscript, please refer to the following reference books to format your paper:

1. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th Edition)

Please note that the 7th Edition of the APA Manual was published in October 2019. Please use this edition to format your writing.

APA 7th Ed. English version

The following resources are based on the 6th edition of the APA manual, but they may still be useful when formatting your documents.

2. Presenting your findings: A practical guide for creating tables

3. Displaying your findings: A practical guide for creating figures, posters, and presentations

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It is highly recommended that prospective authors have their papers proofread by a trusted colleague prior to submission. Please be advised that although the editors are happy to offer advice about writing style, they are not responsible for grammar and vocabulary correction concerns. The JALT Publications Writers Peer Support Group provides free advice to all interested authors.

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Click here for OCJ Section Descriptions and Contact Information and Criteria