About the Journal

Tidskrift för litteraturvetenskap welcomes literary studies articles of high scholarly quality, interdisciplinary contributions from adjacent fields, and critical reviews. Submissions are accepted in the Scandinavian languages as well as in English. In addition to providing a platform for the dissemination of research findings, the journal serves as the principal forum for the ongoing self-reflection of the discipline—an activity essential to both research and teaching. Historically, the journal has hosted and initiated recurring disciplinary debates, which have consistently attracted considerable attention and engagement.

In the coming years, TfL will work to strengthen its relationships with international research environments in Scandinavian studies. The dual aim is, on the one hand, to publish more research on Swedish literature produced outside Scandinavia for a Scandinavian readership, and, on the other, to make Swedish literary scholarship more accessible to international researchers. Through the collaborations with Scandinavian studies institutions abroad that TfL is currently developing, the journal also intends, in the near future, to expand its already active review section to include coverage of international scholarly publications on Swedish literature.

Aims

The overall aims of the journal’s activities can be summarised as follows:
• To encourage the publication of excellent literary scholarship in Sweden.
• To support the preservation and development of the Scandinavian languages as scholarly languages by offering a competitive and well-regarded publication venue for literary studies in these languages.
• To continue publishing free of charge for both authors and readers, while maintaining the high standards of publication and research ethics expected of an academic journal.
• To publish the journal in accordance with a full open access model (diamond).
• To continually highlight the specific epistemologies of the humanities and their relevance in modern society.
• To improve the journal’s international reach by developing contacts with Scandinavian studies institutions outside Sweden, publishing more international research on Swedish literature, and reviewing international scholarship on Swedish literature.
• To progressively enhance the journal’s reputation by continuously evaluating and developing its processes, expertise, and infrastructure.

To achieve these aims, it has become necessary for TfL to improve its digital presence. In 2021, the journal therefore transitioned to a fully digital, open access (diamond) format. The goals of—and expected outcomes from—this transition include, progressively:
• A broader readership, nationally and internationally;
• An improved ability to reach the “right” readers, i.e. specialists in the field addressed by a given article;
• Higher citation rates for both the journal and its authors;
• An increased number of submitted manuscripts;
• A higher rejection rate;
• Improved scholarly quality of published material;
• Better indexing.

Taken together, these developments are expected to make TfL more attractive to both authors and readers and to further improve the journal’s ranking.

Target audience

The journal is primarily aimed at an academic readership of scholars in the field of literary studies. At the same time, interdisciplinary research involving literary perspectives is a welcome feature of TfL, meaning that the journal also addresses a broader academic audience. The main language of publication is Swedish, but submissions in the other Scandinavian languages and in English are also welcomed.

The majority of the journal’s readers are based in Scandinavia. However, there is also a significant global community of scholars in Scandinavian studies who take a strong interest in TfL and are able to read Scandinavian languages. The journal is therefore working more actively than before to engage this group both as readers and as contributors.

Finally, it is important to emphasise that from its inception the journal has aimed to create a point of contact between researchers and other groups interested in literature. While today the journal primarily addresses the relatively small community of literary scholars, its subscriber base in 2020 (i.e. prior to the transition to digital open access publishing) included a not insignificant number of general readers with an interest in literature. It can thus be concluded that the journal, in line with its original ambition, also has a broader public impact.

Published with the support of

The Swedish Research Council (VR)