Overview: One or a team of guest editors proposes a special issue to the Editor-in-Chief. If the editor accepts their proposal, then paper calls can begin. Special issues are thematic (NOT solely in honor of a person), and are limited realistically (by budget constraints) to less then 21 manuscripts. At least six publishable manuscripts are needed. Guest editors should be prepared to call for papers, find reviewers, provide authors with revision instructions based on reviewer's opinions, edit the revised versions, and perhaps even demand additional reviews, all on a predetermined timeline. It is likely that not every proposal can be accepted.

1. Call for papers
2. Find reviewers and get reviews in
3. Provide authors with revision instructions
4. Edit revised manuscripts
5. Recommend accept/rejection to the editor-in-chief of the journal
6. Maintain deadlines and page budget
7. Use the web submission system
8. Handle the unexpected

Copy to Word, use as much space as you would like to answer the questions, and email to the editor-in-chief of Geosciences Journal.

1. Name of guest editor(s):
2. E-mail/mail/phone/fax contact for guest editor(s):
3. Word or Phrase to describe topic (required):
4. If topic is from a short course or symposia, tell us about it:
5. What is new/updated/special about this topic, especially to readers outside the field? (required)
6. How many papers do you expect to have? - small (between 6-10 papers), - medium (11-15 papers), - large (16-20 papers)?
7. What size papers in general do you expect - small (between 1-5 pages), - medium (6-10 pages), - large (over 11 pages)?
8. Will you be writing or recruiting a preface and/or introduction? (Generally this does not get uploaded to the web system or formerly peer reviewed, but it does get edited/reviewed by the editors.)
9. Do you understand that falling behind the deadlines means that the publication date falls back to another issue?

Guest Editor(s) Sign・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・...・・.. Date ・・・・・・・.・・・・.

1. Each paper must be reviewed by at least two specialists (three in case of doubt). It is highly recommended to include at least one native English speaker.
2. If major revision is asked for by one of the referees it might be reviewed again by at least one referee.
3. The referees are the choice of the Guest Editors.
4. Guest Editors should NOT be involved as (first) author for multiple manuscripts included in the special issue.
5. The number of contributing authors who are also used as reviewers should be severely limited.
6. In order for the responsible Editor-in-Chief to make informed decisions, he MUST see ALL relevant correspondence made between the Guest Editor and the author.
7. Invitation to publish as part of a thematic set is not a guarantee of publication. Strict peer review standards will apply and the Editor-in-Chief will arbitrate if necessary.

1. date of receipt of original manuscript, date of receipt of revised version and date of recommendation for publication
2. sequence of papers
3. names, complete address, fax, and e-mail numbers of all (corresponding) authors and Guest Editors
4. hard copy of FINAL manuscripts and original figures, and disk with electronic version
5. logo or sponsorship information (if necessary)
6. name, date, and place of conference where papers were presented (if necessary)
7. all relevant reviewers' comments (+ additional comments by the Guest Editors and authors) including list of reviewers per manuscript.
8. Guest editorial/Introduction to the thematic set.