| name | mind-topic-selection |
| description | Use when deciding whether a philosophy project fits Mind and which content type (article, discussion, book review, critical notice) to target. Mind takes quality as the sole criterion and excludes no area, style, or school, so the test is the significance and defensibility of the thesis, not novelty of topic alone. Helps frame the question; it does not do the philosophy for you. |
Topic Selection & Fit (mind-topic-selection)
Mind publishes across all of philosophy and takes quality as the sole criterion — no area, no
style, no school is excluded. So the bar is not "this topic is fashionable"; it is "there is a sharp,
significant thesis here, and I can defend it soundly within ~8,000 words." Use this skill to
pressure-test fit before you invest.
When to trigger
- Choosing among possible projects or framings for a Mind submission
- A colleague said the idea is "interesting but not yet a paper" or "just a survey"
- Deciding between a full article and a shorter discussion of one paper
- Considering a book review or critical notice rather than an article
The Mind fit test
A strong Mind paper usually clears all four:
- A real thesis. You can state, in one sentence, a claim that someone competent could deny. Not a
topic ("on vagueness") but a position ("vagueness is semantic, not epistemic, because …").
- Significance. The thesis bears on a live debate — it resolves a puzzle, refutes an influential
argument, draws a distinction that was being run together, or reframes a question.
- Defensible by argument alone. The case rests on reasons, distinctions, and examples, not on
data. You can see the valid argument and you can answer the strongest objection (see
mind-objections-and-replies).
- Answerable in scope. Sharp enough to settle convincingly in ~8,000 words — one clean thesis
beats three half-defended ones.
Area framing (Mind welcomes the whole field)
| If your work is in… | a Mind-fit thesis looks like… |
|---|
| Epistemology | a decisive objection to a theory of justification, or a new condition that resolves a counterexample |
| Metaphysics | a distinction that dissolves a puzzle (grounding, modality, time, identity) |
| Philosophy of language | a semantic proposal that explains data a rival cannot, with informal exposition of any formalism |
| Philosophy of logic | a result or argument about consequence, paradox, or truth, made accessible to non-specialists |
| Philosophy of mind | an argument about consciousness, content, or perception that engages the standard rivals |
| Ethics / history / interdisciplinary | a defensible normative or interpretive claim that speaks to a current debate |
Content-type choice
- Article — a free-standing original argument, ~8,000 words.
- Discussion — a focused reply to one specific published paper; shorter and sharply targeted.
- Book review — an evaluative summary of a recent book.
- Critical notice — a longer engagement with a book that develops your own ideas in response.
Worked micro-example: from topic to Mind-ready thesis
- Topic: "I want to write about moral testimony." — an area, not a project; nothing here could yet
be denied (fails step 1).
- Coarse claim: "Moral testimony is problematic." — now a claim, but whole books defend and attack
it (fails the scope test at step 4).
- Mind-ready: "Pessimism about moral testimony cannot be motivated by autonomy considerations,
because the same considerations would indict ordinary moral advice, which pessimists accept." —
deniable, aimed at a live debate, defensible by argument alone, and settleable in ~8,000 words.
The one-per-12-months rule makes selection strategic
Mind permits one article per corresponding author in any twelve-month period, so the choice of what
to send carries a real opportunity cost:
- Send the paper whose strongest objection you can already answer — quality is the sole criterion,
so a fashionable question buys nothing here.
- If two projects are close, prefer the thesis that clears the fit test without hedging.
- When the point is a targeted refutation of one recent paper, a discussion may be the better use
of the slot — confirm on the live General Instructions page how the annual limit treats discussions
(需复核).
Anti-patterns
- A literature survey with no thesis of your own (Mind wants a claim, not a map)
- "No one has discussed X" as the whole contribution (mere gap-filling)
- A thesis too sprawling to defend in ~8,000 words
- A technical result with no philosophical payoff a generalist reader can see
Output format
【Thesis】one sentence a competent peer could deny
【Significance】which debate it moves, and how
【Defense】the shape of the argument (no data — reasons/distinctions/examples)
【Type】Article / Discussion / Book review / Critical notice
【Fit verdict】strong / needs sharpening / off-fit (why)
【Next】mind-literature-positioning
Supplementary resources
