The Manuscript Works Newsletter
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.
After you "finish" your book
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Hello Manuscript Workers! In this month's author interview, I was reminded that the period between submitting your final manuscript to your publisher and the actual publication date of your book can be a bit of a black box for writers, especially first-time authors. Since my own book, Make Your Manuscript Work, is releasing next week, I thought I'd take some time today to fill you in...
What's in my new book
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Hello Manuscript Workers! The excitement is ramping up around here, because my new book's official release date is just around the corner. I've heard from some of you that you've already received your copy, and my author copies arrived at my home last week! Always ask for more free author copies in your contract ;) In today's newsletter, I'm sharing the annotated table of contents...
How to finish your book when you're running out of time
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Hello Manuscript Workers! At the last meeting of my Book Proposal Accelerator earlier this month, one of the participants asked an age-old question: “I’m on a tight timeline to finish my book and get it published. What advice can you give me to make the most of the time I have?” Most authors I know are working under time constraints. Even those who aren't on a tenure clock don’t have...
This month's author interview
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Hello Manuscript Workers! This week's newsletter features an author interview with Dr. Rose Casey, whose new book, Aesthetic Impropriety: Property Law & Postcolonial Style, has just come out from Fordham University Press. I first learned about Rose's book project in the spring of 2020, when she was part of the intrepid group of scholars who went through my Book Proposal Accelerator...
Vibe check at university presses
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Dear Reader, In the wake of all the uncertainty of the past several months, a big question on the minds of the scholarly authors I’ve talked to is “Will I still be able to publish my book?” Let's put aside for a minute the fact that the conditions we're living in are not conducive to writing books. If you are finding it impossible to write at the moment, you're not alone....
This month's author interview
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Dear Reader, This week's newsletter features an author interview with Dr. Collie Fulford, whose new book, Insiders, Outliers: Centering Adult Student Writers at an HBCU, comes out this month from Rutgers University Press. I first met Collie when she reached out a few years ago to let me know that with the help of The Book Proposal Book and my Perfect-Fit Publisher Challenge, she had...
How writing fits into an academic career
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Dear Reader, I'm pleased to share another author interview with you this week, as I try to do every month in this newsletter. This time I spoke with Dr. Hannah Zeavin about her new book, Mother Media: Hot and Cool Parenting in the 20th Century, out later this month with MIT Press. Many of the authors I work with are navigating what it means to be a writer inside, alongside, or...
The prose-polishing trap
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Dear Reader, I’m currently working with a group of scholars who are learning how to become effective developmental editors of their own writing. This means they’re discovering how to assess their texts for big picture issues like argument and structure and fix the problems that will make the biggest difference in getting their texts accepted for publication. I gave these writers a...
How to love your book cover
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Dear Reader, In the midst of so much bad news lately, I was relieved to get a small piece of good news last week: the cover design for my forthcoming book came in, and I love it! Releases on August 5, 2025. Click here to be notified when preorders are available. Privately, I’d been anxious about how this moment in the production process would go. I plan to do a lot of promotion for...
Simple book promotion ideas for every author
The Manuscript Works Newsletter Essential knowledge on scholarly book publishing that every author should have Dear Reader, If you're a returning reader of this newsletter, you know that every month I highlight the experience of a different scholarly writer who has recently published a book. This month, I'm excited to share an interview with art historian Elizabeth Petcu, author of The Architectural Image and Early Modern Science: Wendel Dietterlin and the Rise of Empirical Investigation,...
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.