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.
This month's author interview, kind of
Published 19 days ago • 7 min read
The Manuscript Works Newsletter
Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have
Hello Manuscript Workers!
I'm invoking newsletter-writer's privilege this week and sharing an author "interview" with myself, to give you some behind-the-scenes info about my new book, which was released in the US last week. (The UK release is coming in September, but you should be able to preorder now if you're outside the US.)
I normally interview other published authors, but I thought this might be a good way to tell you just a little more about my new book, including some of my promotion efforts (which several of you have said you'd like to hear more about). Hope you find it interesting and maybe even a little useful in thinking about what you'll be doing when your own book gets published!
I found my book on the Writing shelf at Vroman's in Pasadena
Who do you hope will read this book?
Make Your Manuscript Work is for all scholars who hope to publish their research. It has specific tips about writing and publishing scholarly books, but I think the core principles apply to any kind of serious writing project, from books to articles, to conference papers, to dissertations. If someone were to tell me this book made their writing process easier, or helped them get over a big hurdle with their draft, or made them feel more confident submitting their work to publishers, that would be the best compliment I could receive.
I also want this book to be a go-to resource for editors and other mentors who support scholarly writers. When an acquisitions editor or dissertation advisor has a writer whose draft could use some help, I’d love to think they would recommend this book as a source of extra support.
What are you doing or planning to do to promote the book when it’s released?
While it can be hard to put yourself out there and feel like you’re being self-serving to talk about your new book constantly, it really helps me to remember that this book is itself a way to help others. The more people I tell about the book, the more people can hopefully benefit from reading it and using it to get published.
I’ve been talking about the book and sharing the preorder link in my newsletter for months. I created a free workbook to accompany the book that anyone could download if they preordered. (The workbook is still available if you've already ordered.) I also held a drawing where people who preordered could win a few prizes.
The four winners of that drawing were: Iñigo S., Christopher W., Carrie R., and Keisha A.
If one of these sounds like you, check your inbox (or spam folder) for a message about what you've won.
For anyone who missed out on the preorder incentives, I’m also running a little campaign to encourage readers to help other discover the book with simple word-of-mouth efforts online. Anyone who shares a photo or posts a review online in the first three months after the book’s release will be entered into a second drawing for a few more prizes, including a private consultation with me to talk about your book project.
To the two people who have already left 5-star ratings on Amazon, thank you, you’re my anonymous heroes of the week! 🙏 You're helping the giant book search engine know that it should show this title to more people!
Another way I’ve been trying to bring visibility to what I do has been to hold free workshops for scholarly writers throughout 2025, including one specifically tied to the book on the day after release day. That one was called How to Edit Your Own Book, and the recording is still available to anyone working on a scholarly book project (whether they purchase my book or not).
I also co-organized a panel for the Association of University Presses conference in June (to connect with my in-house editor audience) and will be running a webinar for the Editorial Freelancers Association in September (to connect with my freelance editor audience).
I’ve set up several podcast interviews, including Your Words Unleashed and The Academic Life. Those episodes will be rolling out over the next several months. (If you have a podcast and would like to bring me on, reply to this email!)
In addition, my publisher—Princeton University Press—pitched a few advice essays to publications that my audience reads. One was published last week in Inside Higher Ed ("The Good Enough Manuscript"), and we're still waiting on confirmation for the others. My publisher has done a lot of additional promotion on their end as well, including providing review copies to podcasters and book reviewers; I've let them know that I'm available to support their efforts in any way I can. (Planning to write a review or invite me on your podcast? Reach out to Barbara Tonetti at Barbara_Tonetti@press.princeton.edu and she'll hook you up.)
What has been the most surprising thing about the process of writing and/or publishing this book so far?
The book had a pretty significant change in framing between the proposal and the final version. I initially thought I was writing a book for editors on how to edit other people’s scholarly manuscripts, but I ended up writing a book for writers on how to edit their own manuscripts. While the first iteration was much easier and quicker for me to write, the final version feels more aligned with the readers I really want to be speaking to and allows me to offer the most help to the most people. All the extra labor and time involved in revising the manuscript feels worth it at this point.
For anyone who is considering making such a significant pivot in your own book project, it’s important to be in dialog with your publisher if the book is already under contract. My editor and peer reviewers were very supportive of the change in direction because they could see not only how much value it would offer readers but also how it would enlarge the potential readership.
What were the most helpful sources of support you received in the process of writing and publishing this book?
Beyond my acquiring editor (Matt Rohal) and publisher, I have to shout out the three peer reviewers, four friendly reviewers, and twenty beta readers who gave feedback on the manuscript at multiple points in the process.
The peer reviewers helped me see who I really wanted to be writing for and gave me the encouragement I needed to elevate the manuscript for a larger audience.
The four friendly reviewers also provided helpful feedback. I’m particularly grateful to my most critical friendly reviewer. While his comments weren’t the easiest for me to hear at first, they ended up being crucial to the final framing of the book.
Most of all, I have the deepest gratitude for the twenty scholarly writers who read a nearly-finished version of the manuscript last summer, tested out its method on their own writing projects, and gave me incredibly thoughtful and generative feedback. Their involvement showed me that this book could actually do the work I wanted it to do and helped me improve the manuscript so it would be even more effective. For example, when I saw that my beta readers really needed a pep talk after reading the middle chapters (on how to assess your manuscript), I added a brief section to the book offering words of encouragement to readers. The beta readers’ enthusiasm gave me the confidence I needed when it was time to submit the final version to my publisher and tell everyone about the book now that it’s out.
I also have to shout out readers of this newsletter. When my mom died last September just as I was trying to finish up the manuscript, I received so many messages of support and encouragement. Your messages helped me to see that what I do truly matters to people, at a time when I could have easily felt adrift and ready to give up. I wasn’t able to respond to each message directly but I want to take this opportunity to say again how meaningful your messages were. I’ll remember forever how they helped me in a difficult moment.
If you’d like to get a copy of Make Your Manuscript Work by me (Laura Portwood-Stacer), you can order from Princeton University Press, Bookshop.org (affiliate link), or anywhere you buy books.
Keep scrolling this newsletter for more new book announcements and other resources for scholarly writers.
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.
If you're an author with a book coming out this year and any of my resources have helped you along the way, shoot an email to support@manuscriptworks.com to have your book featured in a future newsletter.
Coming up at Manuscript Works
September 3, 2025. Learn how to reframe your dissertation project so publishers will see it as an appealing future book. Registration now open (free).
Use my time-tested curriculum to bring structure and motivation to your book writing process. The Book Proposal Shortcut takes the guesswork out of writing an outstanding pitch for university presses and other academic publishers. Once you register for the Shortcut, you'll be eligible to join my next Book Proposal Sprint from September 8–12, a week of daily online coworking & live Q&A to help you make meaningful progress on getting your first (or next) book published.
Following the Sprint, you'll keep complimentary membership in the Manuscript Works Author Support community, a private hub for ongoing support in your scholarly book publishing journey. Inside this community you'll get honest advice about publishers, peer review, offers and contracts, as well as join live Q&A sessions with Laura Portwood-Stacer and your fellow Manuscript Works authors.
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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.