Laura Portwood-Stacer – författare

A step-by-step guide to crafting a compelling scholarly book proposal—and seeing your book through to successful publicationThe scholarly book proposal may be academia’s most mysterious genre. You have to write one to get published, but most scholars receive no training on how to do so—and you may have never even seen a proposal before you’re expected to produce your own. The Book Proposal Book cuts through the mystery and guides prospective authors step by step through the process of crafting a compelling proposal and pitching it to university presses and other academic publishers.Laura Portwood-Stacer, an experienced developmental editor and publishing consultant for academic authors, shows how to select the right presses to target, identify audiences and competing titles, and write a project description that will grab the attention of editors—breaking the entire process into discrete, manageable tasks. The book features over fifty time-tested tips to make your proposal stand out; sample prospectuses, a letter of inquiry, and a response to reader reports from real authors; optional worksheets and checklists; answers to dozens of the most common questions about the scholarly publishing process; and much, much more.Whether you’re hoping to publish your first book or you’re a seasoned author with an unfinished proposal languishing on your hard drive, The Book Proposal Book provides honest, empathetic, and invaluable advice on how to overcome common sticking points and get your book published. It also shows why, far from being merely a hurdle to clear, a well-conceived proposal can help lead to an outstanding book.

From the bestselling author of The Book Proposal Book, a practical, step-by-step approach to mastering the four pillars of scholarly writing for authors, editors, and publishing professionalsDevelopmental editing holds the power to make a manuscript connect with publishers and readers, yet few scholarly writers have the training to do it well. Make Your Manuscript Work offers a practical method for assessing and refining the features of their texts that matter most—argument, evidence, structure, and style. This guide shows scholarly writers how to identify what’s been holding their writing back and fix it so they can accomplish their publication goals.Laura Portwood-Stacer, a writer, editor, and consultant for academic authors, explains how manuscripts move through the publication process and identifies the key stages for authors to improve their texts. She helps writers better understand who they are writing for and why, enabling them to determine what their drafts need most to move forward. Drawing on a decade of experience as a developmental editor of scholarly manuscripts, Portwood-Stacer details the most common opportunities for development she’s encountered and shares practical tips for implementing needed edits. The book also includes a checklist of assessment questions, examples from real scholarly manuscripts, tips on seeking additional help, and advice on offering developmental editing assistance to other writers.Written with candor, empathy, and a deep awareness of the challenges faced by academic writers who want to publish, Make Your Manuscript Work is an indispensable how-to guide for scholars at all career stages.