Lately, I've had a number of queries from folks in the English Department regarding publication information (mainly acceptance rates) of academic journals in Literary Studies, Linguistics, Rhetoric, etc. This information has always been available, but for some time it's been pretty hard to access. No more!

The MLA International Bibliography had always published a volume called Directory of Periodicals alongside each year's set of bibliography volumes, and this directory contained all the information that each journal's editorial staff decided to supply. When we started getting online access to the MLAIB, this information became buried. Now, however, the Directory of Periodicals is accessible electronically within the online version of MLAIB. Well, one of the online versions.

We now have online access to the MLAIB two ways: by itself (under M in the e-Library's "Indexes and Abstracts" directory), and as part of the Literature Resource Center (same as above, but under L). If you access the MLAIB via the latter method, you'll see on the default page a link to "MLA International Bibliography with Directory of Periodicals."  Once you click on that, you'll see a link to "MLA Directory of Periodicals Search."  That page will allow you to easily search for the journal of your choice -- and please keep in mind that MLA now covers many titles in the area of rhetoric/professional communication and the teaching of English, as well as linguistics -- and find pertinent information specific to that journal (acceptance rates, length of articles, time before publication decision, time between decision and publication, etc. Not all journals are equally forthcoming with information, but most provide these figures.