~ AUTHOR AND EDITOR GUIDELINES MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION AND BOOK PRODUCTION
OVERVIEW OF PROCEDURES AND SCHEDULING
Once your book has been accepted for publication, your acquiring
editor will work closely with you to produce a final manuscript, discussing
with you any substantive revisions and advising you about securing permissions
that may be required for reproduction of textual or visual material. Someone at
the Press will do a preliminary check of the manuscript in order to inform you
about stylistic or mechanical elements that need your attention. When the final
and complete draft is delivered to us via email attachment or through a file
sharing site, your acquiring editor will transmit everything to the prepress
department for copyediting, design, typesetting, and printing. Editorial
responsibilities are handled by a production editor, who will hire a freelance
copyeditor. The production editor will send you a rough schedule to give you an
idea of the approximate date for your review of copyediting, receipt of the
typeset pages for proofreading, and deadline for the index if you are preparing
it yourself or for your review of it if it is prepared by a professional. You
will also be told the time frame for each task.
PREPARING THE MANUSCRIPT
The following
basic mechanical guidelines will help you get everything ready for submission
and copyediting.
Format and Style
In keeping with
most academic publishers, we generally follow the rules established by the Chicago
Manual of Style, although we will accept other
commonly used styles such as MLA or APA as long as they are correctly and
consistently applied. Please consult the CMS, in print or online, for
detailed information on the format and style of both text and documentation.
Front Matter
See the model provided. The front matter consists of the
following elements and is numbered with small roman numerals:
First Half Title Page:
Only the main title should be given here, not the subtitle if your book has
one. Nothing else should appear on this page.
Series Page: The Press will supply
this page if needed.
Title Page: List full title,
including subtitle, with your name (no “by” preceding it, unless your
manuscript is an edited collection, when you would put “edited by” followed by
your name) and the publisher’s name and address (Rutgers University Press, New
Brunswick, New Jersey, and London); place each part on a separate line.
Copyright Page: The Press will
supply this page.
Dedication Page: If you want to
include a dedication, please send it with the final draft.
Contents: Start with a new page and
simply put the word “Contents” (not “Table of Contents”) on the first line.
This heading is followed on a separate line each by Preface (if needed), Acknowledgments,
and the numbered chapter titles. Following the chapter titles, put, on a
separate line for each, “Appendix” (if more than one, Appendix A, Appendix B,
etc.), “Notes,” “Bibliography” or “References,” and “Index.” If there are part
divisions, put them in the appropriate place—“Part 1” followed by a title, if
any—but leave the chapter numbers in consecutive sequence; in other words,
don’t start over with number 1 after a part division. Make sure that the
listings on the Contents page and the actual chapter and part titles match
exactly.
Lists of Illustrations, Figures, and Tables:
Most books containing these elements do not require such lists. They are useful
if readers are likely to want to find a particular illustration or table for
its own sake. Consult with the Press if in doubt. If they are included, each
list should be placed on a new page and put every item on a separate line.
Foreword: Start on a new page. The
foreword is an introduction to your book by a well-known person. Your acquiring
editor will advise you on the value of including such an endorsement, how to go
about approaching such a person, the length of the piece, and how to go about
getting a “consent to publish” form, which we must have for this purpose.
Preface and Acknowledgments: Start
on a new page. These two sections may be collapsed into one or treated
separately. The preface generally states the reasons for undertaking the work
and may give some of the author’s background. It is usually a good point from
which to segue into acknowledging and thanking the people who assisted you in
some form or other along the way. This section may also contain credits and
permissions for the use of other works or to acknowledge your previous
publications that are being reprinted in whole or in part in the text.
Projections of the contents of the individual chapters, if applicable, should
be done in the introduction proper, which may or may not be part of the front
matter.
Second Half Title Page: Same as the first; see above.
The Main Body of the Text
Chapter Structure: You
may want to subdivide your chapters. For most texts one or two levels of
subheadings are sufficient; three is the maximum possible. Subheads should not
be numbered and should be typed in the regular font and title style—no boldface,
all caps, italics, or underlining. The designer will style headings later.
Distinguish the levels by placing them in different positions, as follows:
Level A (or 1): on separate line, centered on the typed
page
Level B (or 2): on separate line, flush left
General Style: The CMS has excellent and thorough chapters
or sections on capitalization, punctuation, hyphenation, the use of figures or
words for numbers, and abbreviations. Please consult it for proper usage.
Quotations: The CMS recommends that quotations of eight lines/100 words or more
should be set off as indented extracts; shorter quotations should be run into
the text and enclosed in quotation marks. Material set off as a block quotation
should not be enclosed in quotation marks. The length guideline can be
overridden if you are quoting poetry, dialogue, or the material where
paragraphing or alignment is important for accurate interpretation.
Double-check all quotations carefully,
since you are the one responsible for their accuracy.
Names, Definitions, Foreign Terms, Acronyms:
The first time in a chapter when you refer to specific individuals, use the
full name—for instance, Terry Eagleton rather than just Eagleton. An exception
is a person who is universally known by one name and is not likely to be
mistaken for somebody else—Shakespeare, Goethe, Plato, Aristotle, Hegel,
Michelangelo, Mozart, Einstein, and Marx are some examples. A specialized term
or foreign word or phrase should be defined on first use in the book. The
foreign word/phrase should also be italicized, on first use, unless it is a
very common one appearing unitalicized in an English-language dictionary, such
as per se or zeitgeist. Please do double-check spelling and accents of any
foreign words that do not
appear in an English-language dictionary. The copyeditor is not responsible for
foreign languages. Acronyms should be fully spelled out on first use, followed
by the acronym in parentheses. If you use a great many acronyms in the text,
you should consider supplying a list of acronyms in the front matter of the
book for easy reference.
Quotation Marks and Italics:
We strongly urge our authors to refrain from use of quotation marks and
italics to convey emphasis. If the writing states the point clearly, any
intelligent reader will get the point without being prodded. It is also not
good form to use quotation marks around a word or phrase to indicate your
disagreement with its conventional meaning. A straightforward statement that
you disagree with such and such a definition or usage of such and such a word
will make the point much more forcefully.
However, italics should be used for titles of books, films, plays,
etc.
Tables and Illustrations
Formulas: Structural
chemical formulas, process flow-diagrams, and complicated mathematical
expressions should be used only when essential. If you use a program other than
Microsoft Word to produce scientific text, please consult with your acquiring
editor and the prepress department before submitting your manuscript.
Tables: If you use tables, number
them consecutively throughout the manuscript, or if they are numerous, by
chapter: Table 1.1, Table 1.2, Table 2.1, and so on. Do not use roman numerals.
Do not leave tables embedded in the text. Each table must be typed on its own
page and a clear marker must be inserted in the manuscript where you wish the
table to go. Type in a separate line, stating {~?~Insert table 2.5 about here}.
Never use such phrases as “the following table” or “the table above” because
table placement will be determined by the page layout and cannot be predicted
at manuscript stage (and the same goes for figures or images).
Figures: Charts, graphs, line drawings, and the like are called figures
and should be treated the same way as tables. Number them consecutively by
chapter and key them to the text as you would tables. key their ideal placement
on a line of their own, not bolded. Ex: {~?~Fig. 1 near here}.
The figures must also be accompanied by
a separate list of captions, providing all relevant information and a source
and credit line, if necessary, for the originator and/or owner who gave
permission for its use.
Images: Halftones (photographs and
photographs of artwork such as paintings and sculpture) have “tone,” that is,
gradations of shading from black to white rather than the simple black-on-white
representation in figures. Some very simple maps could be line art, and more
complex maps with shading for contour, for example, would be halftones. Most
authors now submit their images as digital scans rather than glossy prints. For
best results, the resolution must be high enough for print reproduction, which
is much higher than web reproduction standards (see separate guidelines on
digitized images). Please submit your images, before transmittal of the
finished manuscript if possible, for the prepress department to check
resolution. If your manuscript is a single-author volume, number the images in
the order in which they are to appear in the book. If there are 123 images,
they should usually be numbered 1 to 123 for the book as a whole and not by
chapter; don’t use numbers like “12A” or “12B.” If yours is an essay
collection, see the Editor Checklist for instructions on how to number images.
Key the images in the manuscript the same way you would tables and figures (as
above). If you have no graphics, you can use the term “fig.” but if you have
both figures and images, or both black-and-white and color images, use a
different designation, e.g., “image” or “color image.” Provide a caption list
with credit lines as for figures. We want two sets of numbered photocopies of
your images, and, if absolutely necessary, these can also be used to indicate
cropping or sizing.
Your acquiring editor will want to see your ideas for a cover image
early on. The sooner you find something suitable, the better, since permissions
are often needed for pictures and photographs. Getting a response from the
copyright holder is frequently a long, drawn-out process and may require
several reminders and sometimes more than a little bit of nudging. Remember
that you are responsible for paying any necessary fees.
Citation Styles and Back Matter
Documentation
There are two basic methods of source attribution:
1) Endnotes with full citation on first
occurrence in a chapter, and shortened thereafter. In this system, the
bibliography, if included, is a selected list of important sources, not
everything cited in the book. This system is most commonly used in the arts and
humanities and for general interest books.
2) In-text references in parentheses and
a full reference list or works cited list in the back matter. In this system,
you can also have endnotes for commentary. This system is most commonly used in
the social sciences and sciences but the MLA style is also an in-text system.
Back Matter
The back matter, which follows the
text, usually consists of endnotes, bibliography or reference list, index, and
author bio. Sometimes authors also include one or more appendices. These should
be marked with a capital letter—Appendix A, Appendix B—and follow the last
chapter directly. In other words, the order of back matter is: appendixes,
notes, glossary, bibliography or reference list, index, and author bio.
Glossary: A glossary is a list of specialized
or foreign terms used in the text with which the reader is not likely to be
familiar, and which may not appear in English-language desk dictionaries. This
section is not necessary in most books.
Bibliography or References: The form
of the bibliography depends on which note style you choose to use. See the CMS for guidelines.
Index: To be compiled from page
proofs; therefore not submitted with the manuscript.
About the Author or Notes on Contributors: A short biography of
about 250 words per person inserted at the very end of the manuscript. It
should include relevant information such as affiliation and other publications.
Be sure to omit publisher information.
Finishing Touches before Submission
Here are some
important tips and reminders:
¨ When inputting the text do not space twice after a period and
before beginning a new sentence. Use one tab rather than the spacebar to indent
paragraphs.
¨ Use 12-point Times New
Roman type throughout.
¨ Do not style the text in any way (with the exception of italics for
titles). Do not use boldface, all caps, or italics for headings and subheadings
and chapter openings. They only will have to be removed again for the
typesetter.
¨ Remove headers and
footers (such as your name or the chapter title) from the tops and bottoms of pages.
Use only page numbers.
¨ Set the justification of
your word processor to “left” so that the right-hand margin appears ragged
rather than fully justified.
¨ Double-space the entire manuscript—including the table of contents,
notes, extracts, and bibliography.
¨ Number the pages
consecutively, starting with arabic numeral 1 on the first page of the first
chapter of the text proper and follow through to the end of the manuscript. The
front matter—the section that contains, among other things, the contents page,
preface, and acknowledgments—is numbered in lowercase roman numerals.
¨ Do not use hard returns and indents to achieve a hanging indent.
¨ Leave generous margins on
the page all around.
¨ Use endnotes rather than
footnotes. The notes to each chapter should follow the text and start at the
top of a new page for authored manuscripts or directly following the text for
edited volumes. They should begin with a key to that chapter (e.g., “Notes to
Chapter 1”). The numbering of the notes should start over for each chapter.
¨ To indicate a section
break, insert <#> on a separate line. Do not use asterisks or other
symbols or ornaments for this purpose.
¨ Rutgers University Press expects
bias-free writing in the books it
publishes.
¨ We will want a word count
of the entire manuscript, including notes and other scholarly apparatus.
¨ Do not forget to include
an About the Author page (or, for edited collections, Notes on Contributors).
¨ Divide the text into separate chapter
files. The copyeditor cannot work when everything has been stored in a single
file. Be sure to label files clearly.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Production of Your Book
Copyediting: Every manuscript,
before it is typeset, will be copyedited. The manuscript editor is a
professional freelancer, selected on the basis of affinity for and knowledge of
the subject matter. This is the only person working for the Press who will
closely read the entire manuscript for punctuation, grammar, spelling, and
consistency of various elements such as headings, notes, bibliography, tables,
and captions to illustrations, if any. The copyeditor will also query you if
something seems unclear or in error and make suggestions for rephrasing a
sentence here and there or for replacing a word for one that will more accurately
express your meaning. The average time for copyediting is four weeks from the
time the copyeditor receives the manuscript. The author usually has two to
three weeks to review the editing. At this time, you can accept the changes or
make counter suggestions. This is also the last opportunity for major changes,
additions, or deletions, and all citations must be complete. Before returning
the manuscript (usually in electronic form) to the copyeditor, you should save
a copy showing all the corrections for yourself, so that you have the text to
read against at the proofreading stage. The copyeditor will then incorporate
your changes in the electronic files, which is sent back to the Press. Almost
all manuscripts are now edited and transmitted electronically.
Once the manuscript is back in house, the production editor will
check the copyeditor’s work to make sure everything is in good order and the
manuscript has been properly coded for the designer and typesetter. The
production editor will be in close contact with you by e-mail or telephone to
tie up any loose ends.
It is crucial that you adhere as closely
as possible to the schedule, so that your book will be ready in the publication
month announced in our catalog. Any protracted delay is liable to break the
chain of production, marketing, and publicity. To enable us to coordinate all
this, it is of the utmost importance that you inform the production editor if
you are planning a vacation or a business trip and provide addresses, telephone
numbers, and e-mail addresses so that we can reach you at all times if the need
arises.
Design and Typesetting: This stage
normally—that is, for a book that is fairly straightforward and has no unusual
elements—takes about four to six weeks. The Press relies on the author to
proofread carefully. Proofreading means checking for typographical or other
errors you and the copyeditor might have missed at earlier stages. At this
stage, no major changes or rewriting are possible. If you are not doing the
index yourself, you will have four weeks to proofread; five weeks, if you are
preparing the index yourself. Your corrections will be reviewed in house and
transferred to a master set.
Indexing: A basic component of any
book is the index. You should decide early whether you want to do the index
yourself or have us recommend a professional freelance indexer for you. Your
production editor will be able to give you a rough estimate of the cost of
hiring a professional. If you decide to do the index yourself, the prepress
department can review a sample of your index pages as you get started to make
sure you are on the right track. Although you cannot fill in the page numbers
until we have page proofs, it is always a good idea to get a head start on
setting up categories and cross-references so you will only have to plug in the
page numbers later on. The final index (e-mailed as an attachment) will be due
at the time you return the page proofs with your corrections.
If you go the professional route, we will ask you to supply a list
of items to guide the indexer. You will have an opportunity to review the
indexer’s work and do some fine-tuning since you, as the author, know best what
is most effective. Also, please be advised that if we hire the indexer, you
will be expected to pay the bill on completion of the index. The Press cannot
charge the cost against future royalties.
MARKETING
Your first contact with the marketing department will likely
occur when you receive catalog copy for your book. You will be asked to verify
facts and make certain that your book is well presented.
Plans to promote and publicize your book get under way long before
bound books are available. To aid the process, it is absolutely essential that
you fill out the Marketing Questionnaire carefully and completely and submit it
with or very soon after you send the final manuscript. The marketing department
will, as far as possible, incorporate your preferences and suggestions as well
as those of the acquiring editor and the director into the marketing plan. With
or soon after you receive the seasonal catalog that includes your book, the
marketing department will send you an overview of planned promotion, including
direct mail, email, awards, conferences, etc. Our publicity manager will also
be in touch shortly after publication to share the press release, the list of
publications to be sent copies for potential review, and any relevant plans for
events. Once the book is out and is being reviewed, the marketing department
will, upon request, update you about published reviews, ads in which the book
is featured, catalogs and fliers in which it appears, and any other marketing
activities in which it is included.
GUIDELINES FOR EDITORS OF
MULTIAUTHOR BOOKS
Editing and
producing a book with a variety of styles—not only of the writing itself but
also of spelling, capitalization, notes and in-text citations, bibliographies,
subheads, tables, graphs, charts, maps, and illustrations—can be a problem for
the manuscript editor and the prepress department. To minimize such problems
please follow closely our separate guidelines for multiauthor books.
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