Open Access Publishing How-To

Understanding OA Business Models

While OA publications are free to read, they are not free to produce. Since publishers cannot count on journal subscriptions or books sales to support production of these products, three business models supporting OA publishing have emerged thus far.

1. Article processing charges (APCs)

To fund the production of the journal, some publishers charge authors APCs ranging from several hundred to several thousand dollars. If you need help paying an APC, you can apply for funding from the Emory Open Access Publishing Fund. Note: This business model and the relatively low bar of entry to publish online have encouraged some unscrupulous actors to create OA journals that do not follow accepted scholarly publishing practices (e.g., they often do not engage in rigorous editorial selection and peer review), so it's important to choose carefully. For help, see "Choosing an OA Journal" below. 

2. Read and publish agreements between libraries and publishers

These agreements usually cover all or most of the costs of OA publishing for all researchers at a given institution (in the EU, these agreements may cover all researchers in a given country). They also guarantee institutional access to all or most of the archival issues of journals from this publisher. Emory Libraries have OA publishing agreements with several publishers, and more are being negotiated all the time.

3. Subscribe to open (S2O)

Publishers ask libraries to pledge support for the OA publication of specific titles for the next year (sometimes longer). If pledges are sufficient, the title(s) will be published OA; if not, they go back to pay-to-read. We are supporting the publication of many journals and books with S2O pledges. 

When publishing a journal article... 

Choosing an OA Journal

Whether you publish OA or not, you will want to carefully consider where to publish your work. Part of selecting a journal is determining its quality and fit for the topic of your article. There are several criteria to consider when evaluating the quality of open access journals.

When You Can't Publish in an OA Journal

Sometimes, the best place for your article is a traditional subscription-based journal. When that's the case, you may still have options for making your article openly available.

1. Publish in a hybrid journal

Some traditional journals, including many high-profile journals, have adopted a hybrid model. Articles in these journals are generally available by subscription only, but authors can optionally pay a fee to make their article OA. Note: Articles published in hybrid journals do not qualify for funding from our Open Access Publishing Fund because the Libraries already pay subscription fees for these journals, and it is not fiscally responsible to pay twice for the same title.

2. Deposit the article in a repository

You can often make your article openly available in a repository by following these steps.

Check the Publisher's Policies
Before you publish, look up the journal or publisher in Sherpa Services, a free database of publishers’ policies on authors' rights to share their work. Most journals allow an author to post some version of an article in an open repository, but their policies vary. For example, you may be allowed to post your original, unreviewed manuscript or the final manuscript after peer review, but not the final published PDF of the article. The publisher may also specify an embargo period (e.g., you must wait until 6 months after publication before sharing).

Deposit the Article in a Repository
Once you’ve ensured that you have the right to make your article available through a repository, you can deposit it in your institution’s repository, a subject repository, or both. If you're having trouble identifying a repository in your field, check the Directory of Open Access Repositories (OpenDOAR), the Registry of Open Access Repositories (ROAR), or reach out to your subject librarian or contact the Scholarly Communications Office for help.

Find out how to submit your article to OpenEmory, Emory’s open access repository of faculty works.

When publishing a book... 

When you publish a book, negotiating your author agreement may be advantageous to you, and the Scholarly Communications Office is here to help. Although we cannot provide legal advice, we can review your draft book contract and meet with you to help you understand it (access our online scheduling tool). If the publisher offers OA publishing options, you can ask that your work be published in an OA format. If the publisher does not offer these options, you can negotiate to have your book deposited in an institutional or subject repository after an embargo period, or you can request a rights reversion clause so that the publisher will legally transfer your books' copyright back to you, after which you can share it however you like.

For Emory faculty in the College of Arts and Sciences interested in exploring digital publishing and open access distribution, the Fox Center for Humanistic Inquiry has a digital publishing initiative that provides support and funding. Please contact Mae Velloso-Lyons at m.velloso-lyons@emory.edu.

Need help funding your OA journal article or book? 

Emory Libraries offers an Open Access Publishing Fund to help faculty, students, and researchers pay article processing charges so that their work their work will be openly available.