Journals

Journals are available in nearly every field. Law, medicine, computers, fiction, history, poetry, sciences, health, art, music, journalism and more all have various journal publications that speak to current trends in their field, publish new works and discuss older works as well. Like a newspaper, journals are the publishing world's way to keep interested readers up-to-date on what's happening in a particular area.

Journals are typically published by an editor with a specific take on a subject matter. A legal journal, for example, may only discuss constitutional law, while a poetry journal may only publish abstract works. Depending on a person's tastes and interests, there is likely to be a journal to speak to it. And while journals are collectively popular, individual journals tend to speak to a niche market. Depending on the type of publication, this can either drive the cost up because of low circulation, or keep the cost low in an effort to attract more readers.

Journals are distinguished from magazines in their approach, which is less commercial. Whereas a magazine may be filled with glossy ads and cover a range of topics within its umbrella of health, for example, a journal will typically be narrower in scope and more concerned with the content. Many journals, in fact, are published by universities and are subsidized wholly by university funding and sales. Often the only advertising a reader will see is for back issues of the same journal or for conferences sponsored by the journal.

Journals also welcome submissions, while magazines do not, except for letters to the editor. So a reader who is also a writer will enjoy the possibility of seeing his or her own work published in a journal. The volume of submissions and the chances of getting published varies, of course, but the interactivity between publishers and readers gives journals a more intimate feel.