Publishing your first academic book

How to choose your publisher?

• Take a look at your own bookshelf of texts from your academic discipline, is there a common publisher in this field? Perhaps there is a current series that your book could fit into? Different publishers tend to have their own specialised areas. 
• You are welcome to approach several publishers if you feel your book fits with more than one company, but for some authors there may just be one obvious choice.
• Reach out to the editor, you can usually find their details on the publisher's website and make an initial enquiry about whether your book would fit their portfolio.

Writing a proposal

• Contact the editor and send a proposal. This doesn't have to be the finished article and can take various forms but as a general guide it might include: 
  • A short overview about your project and how it fits with this publisher's portfolio (keep this fairly broad and understandable).
  • An annotated table of contents with a brief paragraph on each chapter. 
  • A section identifying who is the audience for this book (academics in general, undergraduates, the general public etc). 
  • What else already exists in the field / your competitors and how your book will be different. Pick four or five similar books in the field and explain how your book is different. Explain how your book will contribute to this field.
  • Also include a section about yourself and your academic background. 
• Send it in, make sure you have a cover email addressed to a real person (not Dear Sir/Madam) and see what they say. If you don't hear back then email them again to check in.

When should you contact an editor

• There is no right time, don't feel that you need to complete the perfect proposal, if you have a good idea then write it up and start talking to an editor. 
• Remember that you don't just have one shot, you may need to revise your proposal, or send it to a few different people, or chase people up. 
• It is your priority, so it is up to you to take the initiative and make it happen!
• There is no set timeline for publishing an academic book, unless it is a textbook.

The peer-review process

• You may be talking to several editors, but if you reach peer-review stage it is best to mention this to the other companies so that you only go through this with one publisher.
• This process can vary, but for example at CUP a first-time author's book will be sent in its entirety for peer-review (for later books usually only a chapter will be sent). 
• You are welcome to send recommendations of who to send (or not send) it to, and depending on the editor they may take this on board or prefer to select their own reviewers. However generally this process is anonymous and you won't know who has reviewed your book. 
• Two or three people will be approached to read the text, often three in case one pulls out. Reviewers are very busy, this process may be scheduled to take three to four months, but can overrun. 
• The editor will receive the comments and then make a decision whether the book is worth pursuing or whether it would better suit another publisher or whether it just isn't viable. 
• The comments will be passed to the author and whatever the outcome these comments are very helpful in planning your next steps. If only minor amendments are suggested then the author can revise and resubmit the book and one of the reviewers would take a second look at it.

Editorial board

• The editor will then send the book to the editorial board to approve. The nature of this board will vary amongst publishers, but essentially they check that the peer-review process has been conducted appropriately and that the book is of a high quality. At CUP this board is called the Syndicate. 

Contracts

• Once your book has been approved by the editorial board you will talk to your editor about contracts and delivery of the book. Your editor will remain your key contact throughout this process.
• For a first book you would not usually receive an advance, instead you will be offered modest royalties. You should consider why you want to write the book and see it as a platform for raising your profile and possibly as a springboard to future books and projects. Sales are likely to be small. You can use the book to develop your voice, writing style and your unique selling point, you will work with a range of people and learn new skills. 
• You could negotiate for a sliding scale of royalties, for example 5% might be normal for the first tranche of sales, but this rate could go up once you sell 500 or 1000 copies. However you may be unsuccessful in your negotiation, particularly if there are high costs involved, for example if your book is very long or there are other people to pay, such as an illustrator.
• Always hold on to your copyright - check the contract!
• Translation rights - the publisher likes to keep these, at least for two years. This can be helpful, for example if an unauthorised person decides to make a translation, your publisher can step in to address this.

Production

• Your book will then enter production, with typesetting and proofreading etc and this can take six to nine months. 
• The sales and marketing team will decide whether it will come out in hardback or paperback, depending on the nature of the work.

Open source publishing

• If you want to take this route the publisher will require for a fee for this (to compensate for sales revenue), which should be paid for by your institution not you as the author.

Writing style and techniques

• Your first book will be very different to your doctoral dissertation. In your dissertation you were proving that you had mastered your subject, including every fact and demonstrating the depth of your knowledge. Your audience was your examiners and possibly any close friends and family who had followed your PhD journey. 
• In your first book you need to write for a wider audience and use more accessible and succinct language to tell your readers about your work. You need to be more selective about what you include in the text, instead of trying to include everything. 
• Think about why people should take the time to read your work, what is compelling and different about it.
• A typical academic book can be 80,000 to 100,000 words. However there are other series which call for shorter texts for example, the Elements series. 

Literary agents

• An agent is not usually necessary for an academic book, but would be recommended for a trade book. Your editor can advise you about this.

Other options

• If you cannot find a suitable publisher then you may want to look at other options, such as publishing your work as journal articles or in other shorter formats.

Useful links

• Gunning Fog index - use this tool to assess the readability of your writing. For an academic book you might want to aim for an undergraduate reading level.
• Society of Authors - they can be a useful support, for example with advice about contracts.