Overview

A step-by-step guide to crafting a compelling scholarly book proposal-and seeing your book through to successful publicationThe scholarly book proposal may be academia's most mysterious genre. You have to write one to get published, but most scholars receive no training on how to do so-and you may have never even seen a proposal before you're expected to produce your own. The Book Proposal Book cuts through the mystery and guides prospective authors step by step through the process of crafting a compelling proposal and pitching it to university presses and other academic publishers.Laura Portwood-Stacer, an experienced developmental editor and publishing consultant for academic authors, shows how to select the right presses to target, identify audiences and competing titles, and write a project description that will grab the attention of editors-breaking the entire process into discrete, manageable tasks. The book features over fifty time-tested tips to make your proposal stand out; sample prospectuses, a letter of inquiry, and a response to reader reports from real authors; optional worksheets and checklists; answers to dozens of the most common questions about the scholarly publishing process; and much, much more.Whether you're hoping to publish your first book or you're a seasoned author with an unfinished proposal languishing on your hard drive, The Book Proposal Book provides honest, empathetic, and invaluable advice on how to overcome common sticking points and get your book published. It also shows why, far from being merely a hurdle to clear, a well-conceived proposal can help lead to an outstanding book.

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9780691215723

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Reviews

Superb: practical, accessible, deeply savvy. . . . I truly believe that if you want to understand how books can be made in the 2020s, you should read Anne [Trubek] Laura [Portwood-Stacer] and... basically no one else! ---Robin Sloan, New York Times bestselling author of Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

Superb: practical, accessible, deeply savvy. . . . I truly believe that if you want to understand how books can be made in the 2020s, you should read Anne [Trubek] Laura [Portwood-Stacer] and... basically no one else! ---Robin Sloan, New York Times bestselling author of Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore I'm working my way through [The Book Proposal Book] and while I would like to rush right through it, I'm trying to read slowly because it's truly so instructive-not only for authors, but also for editors how to communicate better with their authors. ---Alison Syring, University of Illinois Press

Author Information

Laura Portwood-Stacer, PhD, is a developmental editor and founder of Manuscript Works, a consultancy serving academic authors around the world. She is the author of Lifestyle Politics and Radical Activism and previously taught media and cultural studies at New York University and the University of Southern California. She lives in Los Angeles. Twitter @lportwoodstacer

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