The purpose of this editorial is lo explain when a suhmission is considered "original" by AMJ, and to DlOVide an update to the Ireland (2009) "From the Editors" (I'TIi) essay on this topic. Although previous FTE essays have covered several topics about the types of research AMJ seeks to publish, describing how new submissions are evaluated and how AMJ responds to changes in the expectations and practices of the field will still bit useful for prospective authors. Discussing what constitutes original empirical research by AMJ might, for instance, help those who plan to contribute to the scholarly conversations about their research topics by sharing their work in our journal for the first time.