Author Tools
Author FAQs
This list of frequently asked questions aims to introduce new authors and reacquaint experienced ones with the detailed process that gets a manuscript from contract to bookstore. Each leg of the publication journey is addressed in close detail, so the document should provide you with a picture of what to expect from month to month. Please forward to us any questions that aren’t covered here.
Author Questionnaire
The questions in this document are essential to our efforts to describe and position your book effectively in the marketplace. Please consider them thoughtfully and respond as thoroughly as you can.
Vendor Identification Form
All authors, editors, vendors, and freelancers that do business with the press need to be in the university’s database of vendors before we can issue payments of any kind. To make sure you’re in the system, fill out this form and return it to us as soon as you can.
Contributor List
If your manuscript is an edited collection, contributor agreements must be signed before we can proceed with review or production. To facilitate the timely execution of these contracts, please download this Excel template of our Contributor List, fill it out, and return it as soon as you can.
Manuscript Delivery Guidelines
This page provides specific information for formatting manuscript documents for our editorial and production teams. Inside you’ll find guidelines on setting up your digital file so that your content is properly processed and presented as it travels through our workflow, including specifications for file preparation, content formatting, working with notes, inserting callouts, and linking to illustrations and tables. All manuscripts must adhere to these guidelines before the project can be scheduled for publication.
Style Guide
The Chicago Manual of Style is an indispensable asset for writers as well as our press’s default style guide. There you will find almost everything you’ll need to construct a manuscript that conforms to the standards of academic publishing. From usage and syntax to workflow and copyright, almost every topic an author might find useful is covered within its pages. The online version of the manual is excellent, and access to it is often free through university libraries. (Consult your research librarian for more details.) Access to a copy or to the website is compulsory for new authors who are working with our copyeditors to finalize a manuscript.
Permissions Guide
Under the terms of our publication agreements, authors are the sole bearers of the responsibility to secure permissions for all material they use, including text quotations, images, and other reprinted materials. Authors should educate themselves on the details of intellectual property regulations and fair use to avoid the possibility of copyright infringement. The resource linked here, prepared by the American Association of University Presses, provides a good primer to help you understand when and why you should seek permission and how to get it. It also provides letter templates for making requests from rights holders.
Permissions Log
Use this Word template to make careful records of all illustrations and text included in your work that are not original. As the author (or the editor of a collected work), you are responsible for acquiring any permissions needed for inclusion in your book of any artwork or written material that belongs to some other party. When permission is required, provide a copy of a permissions request signed from the current rights holder. If you are claiming that permission is not necessary, provide an explanation of why that situation applies based on public domain or fair use exceptions. For more information on permissions, copyright, and fair use, visit the Permissions FAQs (link on this page) from the American Association of University Presses, where you’ll also find templates for permissions requests.