Visible Language

Visible Language, the journal of visible communication research | Special Student Issue

Volume 59 | Issue 3
Word | Image | Space | Materiality | Experience

Visible Language is looking for submissions for an issue to include student articles on research into digital, graphic and typographic design. In particular, we welcome submissions and using methods that can be broadly categorised as either collections-based approaches or participant studies. The objective of the special issue is to allow students to experience the publication process. The research might be on a smaller scale than would normally be published. Accordingly, studies may involve smaller numbers of artefacts or participants, as appropriate to an exploratory study. The research would need to meet the criteria for a rigorous study including:

• A clearly stated research question

• Well-articulated scholarly foundations

• Appropriate research design or framework for analysis

• Valid interpretation of findings

• Relevance to design practitioners and future practice

• Ethical approval for the study and/or copyright permissions to reproduce relevant images, as relevant to the research

Visual essays are welcome, provided a robust, scholarly and reflective approach is demonstrated and the copyright permissions are in place.

In line with the aims of the journal, we wish to actively support emerging scholars and therefore encourage supervisors/tutors to be involved in the publication process with joint authorship where appropriate. Following the practices of the journal, we are willing to liaise with authors to advise on what is suitable for submission, make suggestions, and provide feedback. Please contact Associate editor, Jeanne-Louise Moys (j.l.moys@leeds.ac.uk) or Editorial manager, Matthew Baxter (m.g.baxter@leeds.ac.uk) well in advance of the submission deadline with any questions about the submission criteria or process and for advice.

Submission requirements

A student for the purpose of this special issue is someone who, at the time of submission, is enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate programme or who has graduated within the last five years. If graduated, the study being reported must have been done while a student.

Criteria for acceptance

Criteria for acceptance of a submission to the special issue are:

• The submission was received on or before the date specified in the call for submissions (3 September 2025)

• The submission must fall within the scope of the Call for Papers

• The submission must not be under review or have been published elsewhere

• The contextual foundations, limited to 1500–1800 words, must be scholarly, relevant to the objectives of the study and cite the most relevant literature

• Polished academic writing.

• While the special student issue editors will be looking for quality work, the standard against which the papers will be judged may not be the same as manuscripts by more experienced researchers

• Any revisions requested are carried out to a level accepted by the editors and within the specified timescale

For participant studies, it is also expected that:

• The method(s) used to collect any data included must meet standards for ethical research, validity and reliability

• Any statistical procedures used and interpretation of results must be appropriate

• The conclusions drawn from the results of the study must follow from the method and any statistics used in the study

Submission length and structure

The submission should be no longer than 7000 words for a research paper and no longer than 4000 words for a visual essay.

For research papers, structure should include (as appropriate):

• Abstract

• Introduction

• Contextual foundations (including literature review, rationale and objectives)

• Method (including examples of visual material, as appropriate)

• Findings

• Discussion (including interpretation of results and Implications)

• References in appropriate form (submission guidelines of Visible Language [+])

If you are submitting a visual essay, please contact Associate editor, Jeanne-Louise Moys (j.l.moys@leeds.ac.uk) for further discussion about the appropriate structure.

Submission schedule

The closing submission deadline is 3 September 2025 with projected publication in Visible Language Volume 59 Issue 3 (December 2025) issue. Submissions will be blind-reviewed by two people and feedback provided by 25 September 2025. Any revisions to the manuscript will be required by 9 October 2025. Final acceptance will be notified by 31 October 2025. The acceptance of a submission will be determined by the Visible Language Managing Editor, Maria Lonsdale and Associate editor, Jeanne-Louise Moys.

How to submit a manuscript

Manuscripts should follow the submission guidelines of Visible Language [+] and should be submitted online by 3 September 2025.

Dr Jeanne-Louise Moys
Associate editor
Visible Language
School of Design
University of Leeds, UK