The Manuscript Works Newsletter

Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have

Hello Manuscript Workers!

In 2025, I committed myself to holding free monthly webinars for scholars who want to publish books. Putting on webinars takes a lot of work, and it's not something I'll be able to do at the same pace next year. But this year of webinars collectively had over 5,500 registrations, and it's incredibly gratifying to know that I was able to help so many people get at least a little bit closer to accomplishing their book publishing goals.

All of the webinars were recorded, and I'm keeping them open for free registration through December 31st. So if you missed any and want to make sure you catch them before they expire, now's the time to go sign up. I know it's a busy time of year, so you don't have to actually watch them before December 31st, but you do need to get signed up to retain access to the recordings after that date.

It would be amazing if you could also forward this message to anyone you know who's working on a scholarly book but might not be aware that these resources exist!

The links below will take you to the relevant webinars based on your specific situation:

​If you need to land a book contract with an academic press next year but you're not sure how the whole thing works​

​If your book manuscript is out for peer review and you're worried that mixed or negative reviews will kill your project before you even get the chance to publish it​

​If you feel like your book project has taken over your life and so much is riding on it that you aren't moving forward for fear of messing it up​

​If you're an interdisciplinary scholar and you've been having a tough time explaining your book to publishers (or prospective employers)​

​If you're curious about trying to publish a trade or crossover book with a big publisher (and you think you might need a literary agent)​

​If you know your manuscript needs help but you don't know how to find a good editor who can get things on the right track again​

​If you know your manuscript needs help and you want tools to diagnose and fix it yourself​

​If you've written a dissertation but aren't sure how to pitch it as a book that publishers will actually want​

​If you're ready to reach out to publishers about your book project but the idea of cold-emailing an editor or walking up to them at a conference makes your blood run cold​

​If you want to help other writers improve their manuscripts without it eating up all your time or stressing you out​

​If you've got that one tricky question about writing or publishing you haven't been able to find a satisfactory answer to​

That last one is what my free Ask Me Anything session is for, and it's happening today at 12pm Pacific (3pm Eastern, 8pm UTC). I've received a few questions by email from people who already registered, so I know I'll be talking about publishing a book from a dissertation, the market for academic developmental editing services, what's worth negotiating in an academic book contract, and when to follow up if peer review seems to be taking an awfully long time. If you've got a question along these lines—or something totally different—do join me today!

This newsletter is coming to you from Laura Portwood-Stacer, PhD, professional developmental editor and publishing consultant. I help scholarly writers navigate the book publishing process with more ease and agency. I hope you'll stick around for practical tips on writing and publishing your scholarly book, but if you'd like to adjust your subscription settings, you can do that at the bottom of this message. ​More about Laura and Manuscript Works →​

Coming up at Manuscript Works

More resources for academic authors

My books ​Get The Book Proposal Book and Make Your Manuscript Work, plus download free worksheets to support you in writing and publishing your scholarly book →​

Did you have a scholarly book come out in 2025? If so, I'd love to celebrate it in this newsletter next week. Send your book's cover image and publisher webpage to support@manuscriptworks.com. Bonus points if you share a sentence or two about how any Manuscript Works resources have helped you along the way!

See you soon,

Laura Portwood-Stacer ​Manuscript Works​

113 Cherry St #92768, Seattle, WA 98104-2205
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