HELEN: The Journal of Human Exceptionality (HELEN Journal) seeks to extend its outreach far beyond the IDD community to serve a broader audience of individuals touched by special needs and to improve the quality of their healthcare across the lifespan. This includes everyone from the fetus, to the fragile child in the NICU born to new parent-advocates, to the child or young adult with learning disabilities; from individuals whose health has been compromised by physical or mental trauma, to senior citizens struggling with dementia and other ravages of aging.

Read our Writer’s Guidelines below as well as our AI Disclosure Statement.

Contributing Writer’s Guidelines

New— HELEN Journal:  The A.l. Disclosure Statement

HELEN: The Journal of Human Exceptionality (HELEN Journal) understands and recognizes the contribution of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in research, article preparation, and knowledge-sharing.

Our policy is in alignment with the best practices from leading journals: authors must disclose the use of generative Al and Al-assisted technologies in the writing process.  This includes specifying the tool used, the purpose of its use, and affirming that the authors have reviewed and edited the content to ensure accuracy and integrity.

Example Statement:

During the preparation of this work, the author(s) used (Name of Al Tool) to (describe purpose, e.g. enhance language clarity).  After using this tool, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take(s) full responsibility for the content of the publication.

This statement should be included in a section titled "Declaration of Generative Al and Al-assisted technologies" at the end of the manuscript, before the references. If no Al tools were used, this section is not required.

— HELEN Journal’s Editors

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HELEN: The Journal of Human Exceptionality publishes articles on a broad variety of social, psychological, legal, political, technological, financial, and educational concerns faced by individuals with disabilities and special healthcare needs and those who care for them. These articles appear in the monthly digital magazine, on www.helenjournal.org,, in other media, and in books and monographs.

For this reason, all materials submitted are with the understanding that HELEN Journal will have full rights to reproduce in any media. Other agreements regarding copyrights, reprinting or linking of contents to other information modalities require formal and prior approval by the Editor in Chief or his/her agents.

Readership

Our primary audiences are individuals with disabilities (and self-advocates), their caregivers, and professionals (healthcare, educational, governmental) who support them.

Who writes for HELEN?

A majority of the material appearing in our pages is contributed by authors who are:

• Individuals with disabilities

• Caregivers or family members of individuals with disabilities

• Healthcare professionals, educators, and other providers

HELEN reaches out to the professional audience in an effort to better prepare them to work with individuals with disabilities. For this reason, we are encouraging professional and advocacy organizations to provide material on a regular basis. Personal anecdotes, quotes or sidebars are encouraged.

Tone

As an overall objective, we strive to maintain respect and consideration for both the professional and the caregiver who want to collaborate in understanding and better treating the individual’s disability. Therefore, our focus is “how to work together.”

As writers, we examine ALL sides of controversial issues. Our tone is generally upbeat, but we also recognize that our audience is no stranger to difficulties and realities. HELEN advises and disseminates information.

We try as much as possible to avoid saying “You must” or “You should.” Rather, we suggest, “A good way of doing this is” or “You can.”

The approach our publication takes is:

1. Parents and/or caregivers are the best experts on their children. HELEN welcomes editorial contributions from them.

2. HELEN offers practical information and advice that readers can use to help improve quality of life issues of their loved one with a disability.

3. HELEN is a valuable resource for healthcare, educational, governmental professionals.

4. HELEN welcomes contributions from health professionals. These submissions will be reviewed by our Editor in Chief, Senior Managing Editor and Advisory Board. HELEN does not present itself as a peer-review publication, rather, one of information dissemination and exchange.

Style

We use language familiar to the reader who has a high-school diploma as opposed to professional, medical or business journals (e.g., JAMA , New England Journal of Medicine). Professional journal style with reference to studies and imbedded footnotes is generally not required. Therefore, professional jargon and specialized terminology is discouraged. If there is a term parents will be coming across on a regular basis in an article (such as “intervention,” “aspirate,” “OBRA Trust”), it should be translated into everyday or ordinary terms at the time of the word’s first use in the article. See our style guide for additional information on HELEN’s particular style.

Sensitivity

HELEN Journal recognizes the growing use of identity-first language. It is the policy of HELEN, to the extent possible, to ask the individual with a disability which language style they prefer and honor that preference.

Article Development

After an article idea has been accepted by HELEN, its development will encompass the following:

• HELEN would prefer that an article be summarized within the first two paragraphs. It must provide a summation of the information or point of view in the lead sentences. This will enable the reader to quickly decide if the content is pertinent to his or her interests. We have found this also helps focus the writer and brings a tighter edge to the writing.

• Word Count: For human interest and other feature articles, 750-800 words. For healthcare articles, 1,200 and up, with a maximum of 2,000 words (length may also vary, at the discretion of the editors).

• Graphs, charts, photos, and illustrations add to the value of any submission.

• Technical Hints: Disorders, diseases, and disabilities are used in lower case, unless they are “named after” someone. As an example, we capitalize Down syndrome (“syndrome” is always lower-case) because Dr. Down is the person who identified it. We use “multiple sclerosis” in the lower case because it defines a condition.

• If a condition is commonly referred with an acronym (e.g., autism spectrum disorders, rendered as ASD) be sure to identify what the acronym stands for with initial use in the article. Henceforth, the acronym is sufficient.

• Please be sure to spell-check your article before sending it to us! Fact checking is also very important. Be sure to check all names, dates, and addresses. For example, “Kodak” should be referred to as “Eastman Kodak.” Make sure any website links listed in the article are valid and working. Please be as thorough as possible; the more accurate the information, the more professional the article will be.

• Remember to include author bio information (75 words or less per author,) which will be included in the total word count. This information consists of the name and pertinent background of the author.

• HELEN utilizes the Chicago Manual of Style.

• Following acceptance, please email articles as Word documents, using single spaced, 12 pt, Times New Roman. Please place only one space between sentences and denote new paragraphs with a hard return rather than an indent between paragraphs.

• Photos: Pictures and illustrations should be clearly labeled with the name(s) of the person or people, the activity, or the product shown. This is so the pictures and/or illustrations can be easily captioned and fit into the story. Place names in order of appearance in pictures. Include a release form for each individual in the photo(s). A sample release form for both the story and photos will be provided by the HELEN editorial staff after the article is accepted for publication. Photos can be sent as hard copies or, preferably, as digital files, which should be .jpg or .png files at least 300 dpi and at least 1.5 x 2 inches. Please do not write directly on the back of hard copy photographs. Include on the label the name and address of the person who is sending the pictures and the title of the article for which they are intended. Slides and transparencies should be numbered and described on a separate sheet of paper.

• Sources: Include with your article a list of sources you contacted, their telephone numbers, and copies of any materials you used (e.g., an article from another magazine, a photocopy of a technical or medical definition).

• Please submit your article at least one month before the next issue is posted.

Compensation

HELEN does not compensate for editorial contributions, however, contributors will benefit from wide exposure to key opinion leaders in the disability field.  Our editorial staff and Editorial Advisory Board members have had a long-standing reputation for producing quality publications and articles.