No APC Policy
ISSN: 0974-536X · Diamond Open Access · No Fees of Any Kind
Creative Saplings (CS) is committed to the open-access publication of high-quality scholarly research in English language and literature, entirely free of charge. The journal operates on a Diamond Open Access model — meaning that no fees are charged to authors at any stage of the submission, review, or publication process, and no fees are charged to readers for accessing published content.
Creative Saplings believes that financial barriers must never impede the creation, dissemination, or discovery of scholarly knowledge. This policy reflects the journal's founding conviction that open access to research is a prerequisite — not merely an aspiration — for the advancement of learning, global academic equity, and the free exchange of ideas.
No fees of any kind are charged. Creative Saplings does not charge submission fees, article processing charges (APC), article publication charges, peer review fees, copyediting fees, formatting fees, colour charges, or any other fee to authors, institutions, or readers — at any point in the editorial or publication process.
Section 1
Fee Schedule
The following table confirms the complete fee schedule for Creative Saplings. Authors and institutions are advised that this schedule is comprehensive and exhaustive — there are no charges, hidden or otherwise, beyond what is stated here.
| Fee Type | Amount |
|---|---|
| Submission fee | None |
| Article Processing Charge (APC) | None |
| Peer review fee | None |
| Copyediting or formatting fee | None |
| Publication or page charge | None |
| Colour or figure charge | None |
| Reader access or subscription fee | None |
| Any other charge to authors or readers | None |
Section 2
How the Journal Is Funded
The publication costs of Creative Saplings are borne entirely by its publisher, the Society for Academic Facilitation and Extension (SAFE), Regd. — a registered non-profit organisation based in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, India. The journal's operation relies on the voluntary contributions of time and expertise by editors, reviewers, and academic personnel affiliated with institutions across India and abroad.
Creative Saplings does not receive commercial advertising revenue, does not solicit sponsorship for editorial content, and is not affiliated with any fee-charging intermediary or publishing conglomerate. The journal's editorial independence is fully insulated from financial considerations.
Section 3
Rationale and Commitment
The decision to maintain a No APC Policy is grounded in the journal's foundational commitment to academic equity. Financial barriers to publication disproportionately disadvantage researchers from low- and middle-income countries, from institutions without substantial research budgets, and from scholars at early stages of their careers. Creative Saplings rejects the principle that the ability to pay should determine the opportunity to publish.
Equally, the journal holds that published scholarship should be freely accessible to every reader — student, scholar, librarian, or interested member of the public — without subscription barriers or paywalls. Creative Saplings is committed to promoting open-access publishing as a means of fostering global scholarly collaboration, equitable knowledge production, and the widest possible dissemination of research in English literary and cultural studies.
Commitment Statement
Creative Saplings commits to maintaining its No APC and Diamond Open Access model for the foreseeable future. Any change to this policy — which is not currently anticipated — would be announced publicly on the journal website with a minimum notice period of six months, and would not affect any manuscript already submitted or under review at the time of the announcement.
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Creative Saplings · e-ISSN: 0974-536X · editor@creativesaplings.in · https://creativesaplings.in/index.php/1/
