Deadline: March 20, 2026
Dear list members,
‘Living Books about History’ is a collection of digital anthologies on current research topics. Each volume will feature an essay written by the editors as well as a selection of annotated texts and research resources. These contributions may include online resources such as open source articles, images, films, websites, or sound recordings.
The project offers an innovative form of scientific publication that experiments with the possibilities offered by digital media. It revives the anthology format by virtually compiling scientific papers alongside their sources and resources. Readers can participate in ‘Living Books about History’ by suggesting further contributions, which will be added to the table of contents after approval by the editors.
‘Living Books about History’ showcases noteworthy and hitherto neglected scientific publications and sources on current topics. The selection made by the editors serves as a filter that distinguishes remarkable contributions from the mass of information available online. The project aims to reinforce the principles of ‘Open Science’.
The 12 volumes published to date are available online, in both English and a second language.
Types of Proposals Expected:
infoclio.ch is launching a new series of ‘Living Books about History’ in 2026. The collection publishes research primarily in the field of historical sciences but welcomes diverse perspectives from other disciplinary fields. Proposals may address a variety of topics, without chronological, or geographical restrictions. The selected sources and scientific papers shed light on the respective research topics from different perspectives.
‘Living Books about History’ can have different objectives, such as providing a historiographical overview of a research trend, defining the contours of a new area of study, offering an introduction to a topic, illustrating different ways of interpreting a specific corpus of sources, or analyzing the challenges of a paradigm shift.
Format of ‘Living Books about History’:
Each volume consists of an original introduction of 20,000 to 40,000 characters and a selection of 20 to 30 resources already available online, accompanied by a brief commentary. Each volume is assigned a DOI and an ISBN.
Submission of Proposals:
This call for proposals is open to advanced researchers.
We welcome proposals for volumes in the form of an abstract of no more than 4,000 characters outlining the theme and focus of the project, 2-3 examples of online resources to be included in the anthology, and a short CV of the editors. Proposals may be submitted in English, French, or German.
The deadline for submitting proposals is March 20, 2026.
Notification of accepted proposals will be sent on April 2, 2026.
Please send proposals by email to: livingbooks@infoclio.ch
Accepted anthologies will be published during the summer and fall of 2026.
The costs of editing and online publication will be covered in full by infoclio.ch (Diamond Open Access). If the text is written in a language other than English, editors are invited to participate in fundraising for translation.
Contact:
‘Living Books about History’ is a publishing project of infoclio.ch, the Swiss professional portal for historical sciences. infoclio.ch is an institute of the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences (SAGW).
Questions can be addressed to Enrico Natale: enrico.natale@infoclio.ch
