Editorial Policy
The Capilano Review Editorial Policy and Guidelines
Editorial Vision and Values
The vision of the Capilano Review Contemporary Arts Society is to support a thriving, diverse literary and arts community. We believe the content of our publishing platform The Capilano Review (TCR) and its affiliated programming plays a vital role in shaping our readership and its values. Since 2020, we have been undertaking organizational changes to better support and involve members of communities historically excluded in the publishing sector including Indigenous, Black, genderqueer writers and artists, disabled writers and artists, and writers and artists of colour.¹
Our publication and its members respectfully acknowledge that our organization is situated on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. We strive to reduce barriers for Indigenous artists and writers to participate in our platforms and respect the unique cultural contexts within which Indigenous art is made.
Editorial Process
Collaboration, mutual learning, and respect guide us in our editorial work.
Our editorial process seeks to include writers and artists in the presentation of their own work, to compensate and credit contributors appropriately, and to strive for the highest publication standards. A significant portion of the editorial process is dedicated to ensuring consistency with our style guide, which follows the Chicago Manual of Style. Essays, interviews, reviews, and other long-form writing typically require several rounds of revision. We aim to allow for a two-week turnaround time for revisions as much as our production timelines permit. Deadlines for work submitted and work returned will be communicated with each contributor.
We view each submission as a unique expression of language and form within a larger cultural and historical conversation. Indigenous scholarship such as Gregory Younging’s Elements of Indigenous Style and Jo-Ann Archibald’s Indigenous Storywork informs our approach to the presentation of Indigenous content. We respect that writers may use culturally-specific vernacular or formal systems that depart from our magazine’s style. Citation use and formatting, capitalizations, and other stylistic elements may deviate from our magazine’s style in these instances.
Editors of The Capilano Review recognize that we bring our personal cultural contexts and frameworks, including biases, to our work. At times, an Editor may assign a piece to another member of the Editorial Board, who may bring specific lived experience or formal, aesthetic, or cultural expertise to the editorial process. A contributor may also request to work with another Editor. Such decisions will always be made with prior communication and consent from the contributor.
Statement of Responsible Publishing
The Capilano Review supports experimentation and risk-taking that contributes to our vision of a diverse, thriving, and engaged literary and artistic community. We aim to cultivate a space of creative experimentation inclusive to all. We do not publish:
- Any content that has the potential to cause harm, regardless of intentions; this includes the publication of any culturally appropriative, racist, or misogynist language
- Harmful speech including speech that contributes to negative stereotypes about any community or group, especially communities made marginalized by overlapping systems of oppression, including racism, ableism, classism, homophobia, white supremacy, and patriarchy
We are an evolving community, in an evolving publishing industry. TCR Editors may consult with a sensitivity reader from a specific nation or community that the author is writing about to determine whether specific language in a piece may be read as harmful to that community or group. Any recommendations for revision will be communicated to the author/artist with the opportunity to work out specific issues productively.
Publishing Agreement
All work published by The Capilano Review under our magazine’s publishing agreement is subject to our Editorial Policy. Both contributor and editor have the right to revoke the agreement if the editorial process has not met expectations. If a TCR Editor determines that the magazine cannot go ahead with publication, a $100 “cancellation fee” signalling the end of the publishing agreement will be paid to the contributor.
Errors of Judgement and Erratums
In the case of an error of judgement made by our editorial team, a plan for resolution will be carried out with input from the parties affected.
In the case of significant typographical errors, incorrect attribution, or other publication errors, a publishing erratum will be published by TCR in print and online to acknowledge the mistake.
If a resolution to an error of judgement or editorial dispute cannot be productively resolved with TCR Editors, a member of the Board of Directors may be called upon to provide counsel or professional counsel from a mediator or lawyer may be sought.²
Acknowledgements
This Editorial policy and guidelines was created in collaboration with a strategist from Bakau Consulting on February 4th, 2022 for The Capilano Review.
All policy — whether created by Bakau or another consultancy, company, or organization — is reflective of the time in which it was created. Standards and language change, and knowledge is acquired over the course of time, meaning that any substantial and impactful policy must be living and fluid and amenable to change. To that end, The Capilano Review commits to reviewing this document annually to ensure the most up-to-date language, knowledge, and best practices are reflected.
If you have feedback on this policy or suggestions for improvement, please email us at contact@thecapilanoreview.com.
¹ We recognize the imperfect nature of the above-listed terms. Genderqueer is an umbrella term that may include individuals who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+; writers and artists with disabilities may include individuals with neurological and other impairments. We recognize that these are not homogeneous groups and individuals may self-identify in various ways.
² We are working on linking a formal dispute resolution process and will update this policy when we have one in place
