Essential knowledge about scholarly book publishing that every author should have. Get weekly tips on writing and publishing your scholarly book from developmental editor and publishing consultant Laura Portwood-Stacer, PhD.
The Manuscript Works Newsletter 🔧 5 Types of Edits
Published about 15 hours ago • 11 min read
The Manuscript Works Newsletter
Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have
Hello Manuscript Workers!
What's in this edition of the newsletter:
Quick tip: The 5 types of edits you'll make on your manuscript
Frequently asked question: How far in advance should I reach out to an editor to arrange a meeting at an academic conference? What should I say when I request the meeting?
As always, if you have a question or suggestion for a future newsletter, you can reply directly to this message. Thanks for reading!
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.
The 5 types of edits you'll make on your manuscript
Have you ever put an item on your to-do list along the lines of "Work on my book" or the slightly more specific "Revise third chapter"? If so, today's quick tip is for you.
Writing a scholarly publication is a massive undertaking that can take years to complete. It's never going to be quick or super-efficient, and it's not meant to be. The kind of thinking that brings real value to the world simply takes time to put into writing. (Yes, that was a subtle dig at generative AI.)
However, I've found after a decade of working with scholarly writers that some aspects of the writing process take longer than they really need to. The revision phase in particular can stretch on, seemingly forever in some cases. There are a couple of reasons for this. First, writers often aren't entirely sure when their draft is "finished enough" to send to a publisher. And second, when writers sit down to work on revising their manuscripts, they are largely going on vibes. They spot things that feel problematic, make a few changes, then run out of time in the revision session. The next time they sit down with their manuscript, the process repeats, but real forward progress feel elusive.
My solution to this problem: take the time to evaluate your draft comprehensively and identify the major aspects that need further development. Then make a concrete plan for revision, including an itemized list of the major edits you need to make.
Instead of making haphazard edits next time you're able to work on your manuscript, you can consult your revision plan and knock out an item or two, knowing that these edits are actually improving the manuscript and getting you closer to a submittable draft.
When I say "list the major edits," I mean that you should describe exactly how you will intervene in the manuscript. Don't just identify the part of the manuscript that needs revision (e.g. "revise Chapter 3"). Decide what you actually need to do when you are revising that part of the text.
In my work as a developmental editor of scholarly manuscripts, I've found that I can boil down the types of editorial interventions I recommend into five basic categories:
Inserting new material
Rewriting or reframing specific passages
Cutting or condensing specific passages
Moving blocks of text around
Inserting breaks in the text or closing up breaks that shouldn't be there
I'm sharing these five types of edits with you in hopes that they help add some concreteness to your revision plans. Your plan can now include things like "Insert new headings and topic sentences in Chapter 2," "Rewrite the analysis of X in Chapter 3," "Shorten the description of Y in Chapter 4," "Move the explanation of Z in Chapter 5 to the introduction," or "Merge the third and fourth sections of Chapter 6." The more specific you can be in your plan, the easier the changes will be to execute next time you can steal a few hours (or even minutes) for your writing.
If you'd like some support in evaluating your draft and making an actionable revision plan, that's exactly what my upcoming Manuscript Development Workshop is designed to do. By spending a few weeks making decisions about what your manuscript needs and getting a concrete plan in place, I hope to save you months or years of unnecessary tinkering on your work-in-progress.
Yes, there will be revisions to do and they will take time. But learning a systematic method for revision and sticking to it will make it all feel a little less overwhelming. Whether you're working on a journal article, dissertation chapter, or full book manuscript, I'd love to have you join me in March!
Read my books 👉 publish your book
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In this regular feature of the newsletter, I chat with an acquiring editor to find out what kinds of scholarly book projects they're interested in hearing about and to capture any great tips they have for aspiring authors. Today's guest editor is Emily R. King from the University of Notre Dame Press.
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Laura Portwood-Stacer: Thanks for chatting with me, Emily! Could you tell readers where you work, what kind of books you’re acquiring these days, and anything else about yourself you’d like to share?
Emily R. King: I’m the senior acquisitions editor at the University of Notre Dame Press (UNDP). We’re the largest Catholic university press in the world, and we publish about 50 books a year in a variety of areas that align with the academic strengths of the University of Notre Dame, spanning both academic and trade genres. I acquire 20-25 books a year for our religion, theology, and philosophy lists, and the press also has strong lists (managed by my wonderful colleagues) in political theory and philosophy, medieval studies, and history. For my acquisitions, I strive to have a capacious understanding of what religion, theology, and philosophy can mean or contain, while also honoring the press’s backlist and historic strengths within those areas. Above all of that, though, I’m very interested in a certain type of book—whether it’s a monograph in systematic theology, an American religious history book, a philosophy textbook, or a pure trade title—I’m looking for books that ask big questions, construct compelling narratives and arguments, and are rooted in expertise and substantiated by deep research.
LPS: You work at a relatively small university press. Can you talk about the benefits of publishing with a press like yours and what prospective authors might find appealing about working with a smaller university press?
ERK: I absolutely love this question, and could spend the whole interview celebrating small presses. In the course of my career, I’ve worked at three presses, and they’ve all been on the smaller side in one way or another, so while I know the benefits I’ll list here are absolutely true of UNDP, I do think they’re also true of smaller presses more generally. One of the fantastic things about UNDP is that we’ve chosen to go deep and not wide in terms of our lists. In other words, we don’t publish in all academic subject areas, but in our chosen areas, we have strong reputations and brand recognition and significant expertise in how to publish those books well.
Perhaps the best benefit of publishing with a small press is the amount of time individual members of the press staff—your acquisitions editor, your production manager, your marketing manager—will devote to your specific book and to direct communication with you as the author. I’ve also found that, as an editor at a small press, I’m able to follow my authors and books closely throughout the entire process even once they’ve left my hands and moved onto my colleagues in production and marketing; the press truly works as a team and our departments aren’t siloed or isolated from each other. Ultimately, as an editor my most significant responsibility is to be an advocate for my authors and their work, and I’ve found I’m able to do that the best at a small university press.
For authors, I’d say it’s important to realize that, regardless of size, a press can be the best or one of the best and most well-known presses in a specific subject area, and a smaller press can absolutely be a better choice than a larger press for your book. Like with any major decision, there are going to be pros and cons to every potential press on an author’s list, and it’s ultimately up to you to decide which factors matter most. [Note from Laura: If you need help clarifying what matters most to you in your current book project, see the free resource below, Clarify Your Book Goals.]
LPS: How do you tend to meet authors? Do you find yourself seeking scholars out or do they find you first?
ERK: At Notre Dame, I’ve found it to be about a 50/50 split between projects I commission or seek out, and books that come in over-the-transom (by which I mean books and proposals that are unsolicited and submitted to my inbox, our general submission inbox, or pitched at a conference). In my past work at other presses, I’ve seen quite a range in that percentage split over the years—at one point, as high as 90/10 for commissioned/over-the-transom. I love the balance I currently have at Notre Dame. One of the joys of university press publishing is that there are so many smart people with great ideas writing good books, so the overall quality of my unsolicited submissions is higher. I also find it really exciting to learn about scholars doing fascinating work in my publication areas, and begin a conversation to see if they’d like to publish their book with UNDP. My favorite way to meet authors, whether I reach out to them or they reach out to me, is at conferences. For me, nothing beats the face to face conversation and its ability to help an author and editor establish trust and a solid foundation for their work together on a book project.
LPS: What kinds of projects are you most excited about lately?
ERK: My goal is to build the press’s legacy by maintaining strength in our core areas while creating an exciting future for religion, theology, and philosophy at UNDP. One of the ways I’m doing that is by building my lists out into adjacent subject areas that make sense with my current lists, or that complement other lists at the press. That means that I’m always going to be excited about what you might think of as more traditional theology or philosophy books, but I’m also excited to watch new things develop. For example, a political theology book or a sociology book that intersects with religion in some way would be a great fit, or we also have a growing list in bioethics. The same is true of our world religions list, where we have a small but growing list in Islamic studies. If I had to pick a favorite, though, it’s the books that fit my list but also bring something new to the table.
LPS: Where can authors find you if they have a project they’d like to connect with you about?
ERK: If you have a book that could be a good fit for Notre Dame, I’d love to talk to you! Authors can find me via email at eking8@nd.edu, or (even better!) in-person at conferences. I always attend the American Academy of Religion and Society of Biblical Literature joint conference, and the Catholic Theological Society of American conference. Whether you’re reaching out over email or at a conference, I’m happy to speak to authors at any stage of development with their book. If you’d like to meet at a conference, please reach out in advance to schedule a meeting; I definitely want to talk to you, but my schedule inevitably fills up so it’s best to arrange a time in advance.
LPS: Thank you, Emily! If you're an acquiring editor who'd like to share tips in a future newsletter, feel free to get in touch by replying to this email.
Looking for professional support with your book or article manuscript, but not sure who can help? When you fill out my referral request form, you'll be sent a curated list of trusted editors—matched to your specific field and needs—whom you can contact right away.
Keep in mind that experienced developmental editors may book up months in advance, so if you're even starting to contemplate working with someone, now is the time to reach out.
Frequently asked question
How far in advance should I reach out to an editor to arrange a meeting at an academic conference? What should I say when I request the meeting?
Answer: As Emily King mentioned in the interview above, acquiring editors love meeting new authors at conferences. That's a main reason their presses have them attend! But there will be limited time during the conference to speak to every author, so it's best to follow a few best practices to make sure you have a productive conversation.
I recommend reaching out by email 6-8 weeks in advance of the conference. You can ask whether they plan to attend and if they have time for a brief conversation about your current book project. Share a few details about yourself and your project so they can see that your book is potentially a fit for their publisher. If you have any specific reasons why you're reaching out to this publisher or editor in particular, say so. It might be that a colleague or mentor suggested you get in touch; it's good to name-drop in this situation. If you have a book proposal ready to share, you can let the editor know that too, so they can request it in advance or ask you to bring it to the meeting. (If you don't have any written materials ready to share, it's perfectly fine to reach out and see if the editor would still be willing to meet with you. Don't take it personally if they say they'd prefer to wait to meet until you have a proposal to submit.)
If the editor doesn't want to set up a formal meeting but encourages you to find them in the book room at the conference, consider that a sincere invitation. If you find them during a quiet moment when they aren't busy speaking with others, they will be happy to chat with you about your project and the interests of their press. (But please don't follow them around the conference or corner them in the restroom. They're human too, and conferences can be just as overwhelming for them as they are for scholars.)
Want more guidance on connecting with publishers at conferences? There's an email template in The Book Proposal Book(p. 108). You can also watch this free recorded webinar on how to have conversations about your book project with acquiring editors.
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Essential knowledge about scholarly book publishing that every author should have. Get weekly tips on writing and publishing your scholarly book from developmental editor and publishing consultant Laura Portwood-Stacer, PhD.