Emerald Literati
Awards
Championing research that shapes our world
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Since 1993, the Emerald Literati Awards have celebrated the thinkers and innovators whose ideas push boundaries and open new possibilities for the future of knowledge itself.
These awards exist because of you, our extraordinary community of editors, authors, and reviewers. Your efforts to grow understanding and find answers is turning research into action. Thank you for leading the way.
The aim of the awards
- Recognise and motivate exceptional research that has a meaningful impact.
- Promote global awareness of diverse voices and their valuable contributions to knowledge.
- Strengthen the impact of winning research through global reach.
- Celebrate the authors and reviewers who make it happen - through research, reviews, and the countless unseen efforts that keep knowledge moving forward.
What is outstanding research?
We define outstanding research by the quality, impact and meaningful contributions to various fields of study. It represents innovative approaches, valuable insights and addresses significant questions with rigorous arguments.
Whether it’s an influential paper with an ‘x-factor’ or groundbreaking experiment, outstanding research leaves a mark in academia and society.
Award categories
What makes the Literati Awards special is that every winner - whether an author or reviewer - is chosen by the journal or book series editor, with guidance from their trusted advisory boards. These are experts who live and breathe their fields, bringing deep insight and care to every decision.
Thanks to their experience with the work of our authors and reviewers, they make sure we celebrate those whose work matters most.
Take a look at our award categories below
Outstanding paper
This award has been the backbone of the Emerald Literati Awards for Excellence. The winners are chosen by a journal editorial team giving the winning authors confidence in knowing that their paper was one of the most impressive pieces of work from the previous year.
The judging process
The editor and Editorial Advisory Board (EAB) of each journal is invited to select a winner of the ‘Outstanding Paper Award' from the previous year’s volume.
Award-winning criteria
- Research creates impact and generates real change beyond academia
- Contribution of something new to the body of knowledge either in terms of approach or subject matter
- Excellent structure and presentation
- Well-written
- Rigour in terms of argument or analysis
- Relevance – to practice and further research, in most cases
- Up-to-date – demonstrating that the latest/key works in the field have been cited
Ultimately, an outstanding paper should have the ‘x-factor’ – something that makes it stand out from the rest.
Outstanding reviewer
This Award recognises the importance of reviewers to the scholarly publishing process. Academics rely on peer review to verify their research and add value to it through critical engagement before publication. Reviewers are specialists in a given area of research and are well placed to assess the soundness of an author’s work and share their own knowledge.
The judging process
The editor and Editorial Advisory Board (EAB) of each journal select a winner of the ‘Outstanding Reviewer Award’ from the previous year’s volume.
Award-winning criteria
- Timeliness of the reviews
- Quality of the reviews
- The depth of reviews and the amount of detail
Outstanding author contribution
This award rewards authors who have contributed something new or of significant value to the body of knowledge, either in terms of approach or subject matter.
The judging process
The chapter is to be nominated by the Series Editor and Volume Editor(s) with input from Editorial Board.
Award-winning criteria
Chapters should provide or demonstrate:
- Research creates impact and generates real change beyond academia
- Contribution of something new to the body of knowledge either in terms of approach or subject matter
- Excellent structure and presentation and well-written text
- Rigour in terms of argument or analysis
- Relevance – to practice and further research, in most cases
- Up-to-date – demonstrating that the latest/key works in the field have been cited
- A work which is clearly within the editorial scope and remit of the book series.
An outstanding chapter should be exceptional and stands out from the rest.
Rewarding the Literati Award winners
Outstanding Paper and Outstanding Author Contribution
- The winning research will be spotlighted by Emerald and made freely accessible for 12 months, amplifying its reach and impact across the global academic community.
- Winners will receive an official digital certificate, a mark of excellence that recognises their achievement and expertise.
- Where applicable, winners names will be proudly featured on the journal or book series homepage, showcasing their contribution to advancing knowledge.
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Outstanding Reviewer
- Winners will receive an official digital certificate, a mark of excellence that recognises their achievement and expertise.
- Where applicable, the names of the winners will be added to the relevant journal homepage in September of the following year as part of Peer Review Week.
Criteria
Criteria for outstanding papers:
- Contribution of something new to the body of knowledge either in terms of approach or subject matter
- Research has reach and influence within and outside of academia
- Research creates, or has the potential to create, impact and generate real change beyond academia
- Research is well-written with excellent structure and presentation
Criteria for outstanding reviewers:
- Timeliness of the reviews
- Quality of the reviews
- The depth of reviews and the amount of detail
Submitting your winners
We require the following information:
- Your journal name
- The URL for the outstanding paper
- Outstanding reviewers’ name, email address and affiliation
Opening/closing date and time
Deadline of Friday 12th September and winners announced October 2025.
Important information
- We require one outstanding paper and three outstanding reviewers for each publication.
- The paper needs to have been published in an issue in 2024, and not just published in EarlyCite.
Can I nominate a paper from this year?
Nominations need to be from the previous year. You can find more information on the criteria.
What are the dates that meet the eligibility criteria?
Every year we give the Editorial Advisory Board (EAB) a timescale for when nominations need to be sent, we will send this by email from May onwards.
Can an editor nominate their own research piece?
Unfortunately, we cannot accept nominations where the winning paper was written by the Editor of the journal. Nominations must come from the Editor or Editorial Board members.
Can an editor nominate an article by one of their Editorial Advisory Board members?
While we don't accept winning paper written by the Editors, we recognise that many of our journals have large and wide-spanning Editorial Advisory Boards, with very active researchers that may well write an article for their journal(s). We do accept winners who are part of the EAB, and we give our Editors advice on how to decide the best Paper.
Can I nominate an article that wasn’t published in the last year?
Articles and books series need to have been published the previous year from the Literati Awards. The nominated work does not need to have been written in the previous year but to have been published in an issue of the previous year. Find out more on the criteria.
I’m an Editor for more than one Emerald journal. Can I submit more than one nomination?
Yes, when your Commissioning Editor provides the link to our survey for nominations, please be sure to fill the survey out for the different journals you work on.
How many reviewers can I nominate?
We encourage Editors to nominate three reviewers to help celebrate all their hard work, however, you can nominate up to three, so if you’d like to nominate less than this, you can.
I’m an author, how can I participate?
The editor and the Editorial Advisory Board (EAB) of each journal selects one or several winners for the ‘Outstanding Reviewer Award’. Please find more information here.
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