Author Services

Cambridge recommends that authors have their manuscripts checked by an English language native speaker before submission; this will ensure that submissions are judged at peer review exclusively on academic merit. We list a number of third-party services specializing in language editing and/or translation, and suggest that authors contact as appropriate. Use of any of these services is voluntary, and at the author's own expense.

Text and Manuscript Preparation

Authors' names must be left off of the manuscript, as TRaNS engages in double-blind reviews.

From the Volume 5/ Issue 2 (July 2017), TRaNS changes its referencing style by using parenthetical in-text citation, and author-date formatting for references per section 15 of the Chicago Manual of Style, 16th edition (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010).

Wordprocessing software: • Manuscripts should be prepared in MS Word-compatible software. • The text should be in single-column format. • Please use A4 page size. • Times New Roman; font size 12; line spacing 1.5.

Language, spelling and punctuation: • TRaNS uses UK English spelling. • Use capitals sparingly: initials and proper names only, e.g. Southeast Asia, but eastern Indonesia. • Initials in personal names should be separated with full-stops with no spaces, e.g. A.H. Roberts. • Per cent is two words, but authors may use the symbol (%) if it appears frequently. • Quotes should be in normal text and within double quotation marks. • Short quotes should be placed within the text. • Terms of reference should be placed inside single quotation marks.

Footnotes / Endnotes: • Footnotes may be used sparingly for important additional information and non-standard sources of data referred to in the article. • Please do not use endnotes, either for additional information or references. Abbreviations: • The first use of abbreviations must be placed in brackets following the first use of the full name of the organization or term. Ensure consistency of abbreviations throughout the article. • Standard abbreviations should end in full-stop, e.g. No. (number), Fig. (Figure), etc. • Contractions do not require a full-stop, e.g. Mrs, Dr, Prof, • No full-stops should be used between upper-case abbreviations, e.g. ASEAN, USA.

Latin abbreviations and terms • Commonly used latin words and abbreviations are not italicised: cf., e.g., etc., i.e., N.B. • Less common words and abbreviations should be italicised: circa = c., et al., in situ, per se, a priori.

Units: TRaNS uses the international system of units (SI). If other units are mentioned, please give their equivalent in SI in brackets. • Measurements should be abbreviated with a space between the number and the unit, e.g. 24 km, 33 mm, etc.

Numbers: • Numbers one to nineteen are written with words, unless they are part of a series of numbers in the same sentence including numbers 20 or higher, in which use Arabic numeral for numbers 1 to 19 as well. • Numbers from 20 and above are written in Arabic numerals. • Thousands are written in numbers without the use of a comma, e.g. 6345, not 6,345. • The thousands above 10,000 are separated by a comma, e.g. 62,987, not 62987.

Dates and calendar years: • Dates are written as, day month year; "29 September 2012" • TRaNS uses the BC / AD calendar system. • Centuries are written in words in lower case; "the early nineteenth century". Online Submission and Manuscript Structure

Please follow a recently published TRaNS issue for article structure and referencing style. Information inputted directly on the submission website includes the following:

Title: • Maximum 50 words • This should be concise and informative. • Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulae where possible

Running head: • Maximum 50 characters. • An abbreviated title to appear in the header of each page of the article.

Abstract: A concise abstract (c.250 words) is required on submission. The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separately from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. For this reason, citing references in the abstract should be avoided, but if essential write the author(s) names, year, and full title. Abbreviations should not be included.

Keywords: • Provide a maximum of six keywords, avoiding general and plural terms, and multiple concepts. Keywords will be used for indexing purposes.

Author names and affiliations: Provide the full names, affiliations, email and address of the author(s). Please use bold for the surnames (family names) of all authors.  Names and institutional affiliations, including country, of all contributing authors are required.

Cover letter:

• Please provide contact details (including both postal address and telephone number with country and area code) for the corresponding author; for joint authored papers clearly indicate who will handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing, publication, and also post-publication.

Competing interests: All authors must include a competing interest declaration in their cover letter. This declaration will be subject to editorial review and may be published in the article. Competing interests are situations that could be perceived to exert an undue influence on the content or publication of an author’s work. They may include, but are not limited to, financial, professional, contractual or personal relationships or situations. If the manuscript has multiple authors, the author submitting must include competing interest declarations relevant to all contributing authors. 

Example wording for a declaration is as follows: “Competing interests: Author A is employed at organisation B. Author C is on the Board of company E and is a member of organisation F. Author G has received grants from company H.” If no competing interests exist, the declaration should state “Competing interests: The author(s) declare none”. 

Manuscript information: • Number of tables, figures, including colour figures, and any supplementary data.

NB. For initial submission low resolution figures, and tables may be embedded in the text.

Referencing

You can use bibliographic software (e.g Endnote, Refworks, or Zotero) in preparing the manuscript. But do make sure that you remove all field codes of your choice of bibliographic software from the manuscript (a Word file) for online submission. All in-text citations and reference list entries must be saved  as normal text.

In-text citations: • TRaNS uses parenthetical in-text citation, and author-date formatting for references per section 15 of the Chicago Manual of Style, 16th edition (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010).

• Do not use passim, op. Cit, ibid. • Page numbers in full should be provided for reference to facts, ideas or direct quotations.

Thai and Laos names: For Thai and Laos names, TRaNS cites these in-text and in the reference list by their first names. For example, Pasuk Pongphaichitl will be referred to in the text as,

".... in her book, Pasuk (2009) states...." Or, in-text citation as (Pasuk Pongphaichitl 2009) In the bibliography this reference is written as: "Pasuk Pongphaichit. 2009. Thaksin. Bangkok: Etcetera Press." Note that no comma is placed between the two names.

Examples of in-text citations:

Reference list:

• First and surnames (family names) of all authors are required in the reference list at the end of the article. • List references in alphabetic order (A-Z) following the authors surnames. • Do not format or indent the second line of references in the reference list, but leave a line between each entry. • Multiple references of the same author should be listed in the bibliography in chronological order, oldest first. • Follow use of capitals, italics, and quotation marks as in the examples below:

Examples of referencing style:

For materials with more than one author, only the first-listed name is inverted in the reference list.

Tables, Charts, Graphs

• Tables, charts, and graphs may be prepared using the wordprocessor's software facilities.

• Where ever possible use black and white or grey-scale charts, illustrations, and figures; the inclusion of colour images will be charged to the author.

• Avoid vertical divisions (column lines) in tables.

• If using a table grid, use only one grid for each individual table and not a grid for each row. If no grid is used, use tabs, not spaces, to align columns.

• Tables are given individual Table numbers, consecutively in accordance with their appearance in the text (Table 1, 2, 3, etc)

• Charts and graphs produced using the wordprocessor's facilities are given the next Figure number (Figure 1, 2, etc.) in the series (see Figures and Images)

• For initial submission for the peer review, tables, charts and graphs may be inserted within the body of the text, or placed on separate pages at the end of the document.

• For revised papers after peer review, table, charts, and graphs should be placed at the end of the manuscript, one on each page, and following a complete 'Captions to Figures' list, charts and graphs with figure numbers should then be presented, one on a page with their respective captions repeated underneath; followed by the tables and respective captions underneath.

• Explanations to table headings or abbreviations used in the table should be placed in parentheses at the end of the caption describing the table. Additional notes in tables should be indicated with superscript lowercase letters, and also explained in parentheses in the caption.

• A note in square brackets should be placed on a separate line after the paragraph the table (Table 1), a chart, graph or figure (Figure 1) is first mentioned in the text, e.g. [Table 1 about here] [Figure 1 about here]

The first line of the following paragraph is indented.

Figures and Images

Captions to Figures: 

• Number illustrations (Figure 1, 2, 3, etc.) according to their sequence in the text. 
• Ensure that each illustration (e.g. map, drawing, photograph, charts and graphs) has a separate text caption. 
• Captions should not be part of the artwork, but listed separately as normal text. 
• A caption should comprise a brief title (not on the figure itself) and a description. 
• A 'Captions to Figures' list should be placed at the end of the manuscript, after the 'References'. 
• Keep text in the illustrations themselves to a minimum, and explain – in the caption – all symbols and abbreviations used in the figure.

Digital artwork - General points: 

•  Make sure you use uniform lettering and sizing of your original artwork. 
• Only use the following fonts in your illustrations: Arial, Courier, Times, Symbol. 
• Use a logical naming convention for your artwork files. 
• Provide captions to illustrations separately. 
• Produce images near to the desired size of the printed version. 
• Submit each figure as a separate file.

Authors who wish to include figures should read and follow the Cambridge Artwork Guide, available at https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/authors/journals/journals-artwork-guide

Black and white, grey-scale and colour artwork: 

• Wherever possible use black and white or grey-scale charts, illustrations, and figures. 
• Charges apply for all color figures that appear in the print version of the journal. At the time of submission, contributors should clearly state whether their figures should appear in color in the online version only, or whether they should appear in color online and in the print version. There is no charge for including color figures in the online version of the Journal but it must be clear that color is needed to enhance the meaning of the figure, rather than simply being for aesthetic purposes. If you request color figures in the printed version, you will be contacted by CCC-Rightslink who are acting on our behalf to collect Author Charges. Please follow their instructions in order to avoid any delay in the publication of your article.

Acknowledgements • Once your manuscript is accepted for publication, please collate acknowledgements in a separate section at the end of the article before the 'References'. Do not, therefore, include them on the title page of the manuscript, as a footnote to the title or otherwise. List here sources of research funding received to carry out the work, as well as those individuals who provided help during the research (e.g. providing language help, writing assistance or proof reading the article, etc.).

Peer-Review Process • TRaNS adheres to a double-blind peer review process. • Please ensure your submission is fully anonymised.