Information for Contracted Authors

Table of Contents

Your contract will include a due date for the final manuscript, illustrations (and permissions), maps, figures, etc. complete and ready for editing. Once you deliver a final manuscript to us, you can expect your book to be published within a year.

The Final Manuscript

Please see the Checklist for a detailed explanation of how to prepare a final manuscript.

Manuscripts submitted should be prepared according to the guidelines given here. Even if the book is to be typeset from diskettes provided by the author, two hard (paper) copies of the manuscript are needed.

Hard Copy:

Typed or printed, double-spaced on 8 1/2 x 11 inch paper, one side only, with at least one-inch margins on all sides. (Once a contract is signed, we need one hard copy of the ms.)
Manuscripts should be on good quality paper; no erasable bond.
Word-processed manuscripts printed with letter-quality or near letter-quality printer. No dot matrix.
No right-justification or proportional interspacing on word-processed manuscripts.
Number pages consecutively through the manuscript; DO NOT begin renumbering with each chapter.

Computer Disks:

Use the same hardware and software systems from start to finish. Indicate on the disk label whether you use a PC or Macintosh and the name of the word processing program.
Keep formatting and fonts to a minimum. Most of it must be removed before typesetting.
Once you have printed out the hard copy, do not make further changes on the computer disks.
Name files sequentially ("A. Front matter," "B. Ch 1," "C. Ch 2," etc.) Submit a list of file names with disks. Do NOT put an entire manuscript in a single document. It is ok to embed notes using Word, but if you do, you MUST send the final manuscript as separate chapters and not one file.
Front matter (title page, dedication, book epigraph, table of contents, lists of illustrations or tables, preface, acknowledgements, introduction, and foreword) and back matter (notes, bibliography, appendixes, index, and/or glossary) should be in separate files.
Use endnotes, rather than footnotes at the bottom of the page.
Double-space endnotes and bibliography.
Do not put two spaces after periods and colons as you do in a typewritten document. This causes formatting problems.
Do not doublespace between paragraphs.
Use tabs, not spaces, to indent paragraphs.

Illustrations:

UNT Press prefers electronic images but also accepts hard copy glossy photo prints (but not inkjet or laser printer copies). Electronic images must be high resolution 300 dpi minimum (do not copy images from websites, they will always be less than 100 dpi). You may check the resolution of an image by right clicking on it and look under Properties. Preferred format is TIFF images, with JPEGS as a lesser acceptable option. If you will be scanning hard copy photos yourself, please contact your acquisitions editor for specific scanning advice.
Type a numbered List of Illustrations bearing only a short, one-line title for each illustration and key to the supplied illustrations.
If supplying electronic images, save on CD or flash drive each image with a filename starting with the number from the List of Illustrations and then a short title (For example: 1. Alamo; 2. Santa Anna.)
If supplying photo prints, label the back of each illustration with this number and short title by affixing a label, NOT by writing directly on the back of the illustration (this leaves an impression on the front).
Type a separate sheaf of Captions bearing the full name and/or descriptive information of each illustration, and ending with a credit line: "Courtesy of …" or "Reprinted by permission of …" (see the permission letter for the correct language to insert).
If your manuscript has charts, tables, or graphs, or if you have line art originally drawn in Word, then you will need to convert any and all to TIFF images and supply with final manuscript. A designer friend may need to assist you.
If you have maps in your manuscript, please consult with your acquisitions editor. If you are unable to supply professionally drawn maps yourself, UNT Press can put you in touch with cartographers we work with to draw up maps at your expense.

Permissions:

Once you have a signed contract and are working toward a final manuscript, begin writing for permissions immediately. These take time and should not be done toward the end of submitting the final manuscript.
The author should obtain written permissions to use illustrations and any text or other material owned and copyrighted by another party, when use of such material is beyond fair use. Please ask your editor if in doubt about whether material is "fair use." For more information, please consult the Copyright Act of 1976 or the latest edition of The Chicago Manual of Style.
Note that by contract the author is responsible for paying any permission fees.
A sample permission request letter may be downloaded in Word or PDF.
Once you have obtained written permission for use, provide your editor with a photocopy and keep the original in your files. Note specific credit lines for use and acknowledgment and insert such credit in the copyright page, notes, captions, or elsewhere in the manuscript as appropriate.

Style Manual:

The University of North Texas Press follows the Chicago Manual of Style. However, we like to remain flexible to the needs of each manuscript, so alternate styles are open for discussion.

The Author Information Form gathers basic information about a new UNT Press author and his or her book for accurate record-keeping. It asks for complete contact information, how the author's name should appear on the book, a brief author biography, a short description of the book that could be used later in jacket flap copy, and suggestions for blurb writers. Return this form with the signed contract. Later, our Marketing Manager will contact you for input on marketing and promotion.

Download the Author Information Form in Word or PDF.

Download the Author Checklist in Word or PDF.

Adobe Acrobat Reader is needed to read, and print this PDF file. Adobe Acrobat Reader software can be downloaded free of charge from the Adobe web site.

Creating a WEBSITE:

So, you want to create a website to promote your book! Everyone is doing it, right? Can’t be too complicated! It can be easy and quick if you know the process. Or, it can be beyond any task you want to tackle. No problem, either scenario has an answer.

First of all, if you know the process, you probably have no need to read further. We do recommend that you create a website to help promote your book. According to an article in Publishers Weekly (April 24, 2006) a survey on the value of marketing pointed out, “The most effective way to promote a book was through the Internet.”

If you fall into the second “beyond me” category, the easiest answer is to hire someone else to do it for you. A quick search on the Internet of “create a website” yields over 500 million results.

There are sites that will charge you for the service, and there are sites that will tell you how to create a website on your own.

Some pointers: You need not be a “techie” or learn any type of complicated codes. You should know there are three main steps to creating a web site:

Get a domain name
Choose a web host
Create the website

Simply having a website will not ensure success. Ask yourself, “Who do I want to visit my site? What do I do to keep them coming back? Why not supplement your website with a blog?

BLOGGING:

What is a “blog” – Wikipedia defines blog as “a type of website, usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video.” When you create a blog website, there are several points of which you need to be aware.

A blog designed to market your book should provide commentary or news about your book, or to be most effective, about the subject of your book. Try to include, along with your running text, images, links to similar blogs, web pages, and even videos. The most successful of blogs allow the readers to post comments in an interactive format.

Be aware! Your goal is to generate interest in your book. There is, however, a risk of having your blog labeled as a “fake blog” – one created by a company where fictional postings serve only to promote a product. Simple steps to avoid this are – first and foremost - do not post fake commentary! Allow others to post comments, keep to your topic, and resist the temptation to plug your book in every post. It is perfectly acceptable to have a permanent banner on your blog page promoting your book and providing links to purchase. Many bloggers will have a bio as part of the home page – be certain to mention the book here. Post an image of the book cover on the home page as well.

The popularity of blogging has given rise to another term: a “troll”. This is someone who posts offensive, inflammatory blogs with the intention of provoking. There now exists a Bloggers Code of Conduct:

Take responsibility not just for your own words, but for the comments you allow on your blog.
Label your tolerance level for abusive comments.
Consider eliminating anonymous comments.
Ignore the trolls.
Take the conversation offline, and talk directly, or find an intermediary who can do so.
If you know someone who is behaving badly, tell them so.
Don’t say anything online that you wouldn’t say in person.

The Association of American University Presses (AAUP) publication, The Exchange (Winter 2006), suggests the launch of a blog in order to “form good old word of mouth publicity. Posting information about yourself and your book encourages lively discussions.”

Audio blogs or podcasting are also becoming popular for distributing information. In today’s world of immense amounts of publicly accessible information, why not find your audience and convert curiosity into book sales?

FACEBOOK/MYSPACE/TWITTER:

Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter are social networking sites. They allow you to network with “friends” by sending messages to your “followers”, posting information in your personal profile, joining other networks, etc. You can post text (Twitter posts are 140 characters maximum – called “tweets”) and images, videos, etc. You can restrict or allow access as desired. Privacy has been an issue in some cases, so be aware of this potential problem. Each of these have easy to follow instructions for setting up your account.

SPECIFIC BOOK PROMOTIONAL WEBSITES:

LibraryThing
An online service that allows users to catalog their books. Free account for 200 titles; paid account allows unlimited entries. The site uses Amazon and libraries that allow open access to their collections. Amazon holds a stake in this company.

Shelfari
This site allows members to build virtual bookshelves to “express themselves to their friends and to the world,” and discuss books with their “friends”. They rate books, interact with authors and participate in book groups. This site was acquired by Amazon.com in 2008.

Goodreads
This is a social network for readers, with a cataloging service that is similar to LibraryThing. Has backing from MySpace.

All of these sites, and similar social networks for readers and writers, will primarily offer opportunities for promotion by word of mouth, and might result in positive endorsements. However, please understand these are basically online book clubs where readers discuss books they have read. Getting them to read yours will be the goal.

Positive Endorsements, Reviews, and Jacket Blurbs:

Positive endorsements are statements from individuals about your book (as opposed to jacket blurbs and reviews—see below). You can obtain these in several ways. The easiest is to assemble them from your social networking. When a reader posts on your blog about how he enjoyed your book and why, ask him if you can quote him in your promo material; ask him to post it on Amazon.com and similar sites that post customer reviews.

It is possible to recruit “reviewers” to post reviews on Amazon, B&N, etc. First and foremost, ask your friends and relatives to post. UNT Press would not be able to send review copies to these contacts, but we can provide you with an electronic version of an excerpt from your book that you can use for this purpose. We discourage authors from sending out entire electronic copies of the book to anyone, as this can result in piracy. If a potential contact asks for a complete book in order to review it, you will first need to decide if they are a media reviewer. If they are, UNT Press can send them a review copy. If they, for example, only post on a website, they will probably not qualify for a review copy. In some cases, an author will purchase a few extra copies (at their author discount) to send out to these types of reviewers. It is also possible to find potential reviewers for your book by checking out books similar to yours to see who has reviewed that book. You can do this, for example, on Amazon.com. Find a book that is similar to yours by searching by subject. Scroll down to the customer reviews. Click on the name of the reviewer; this will bring up their profile. In many cases, they will provide their email. All you need do now is email them and tell them you saw their review of a book similar to yours, and ask if they would be interested in reviewing your book.

Jacket blurbs are endorsements solicited by the publisher for use on the jacket of the book. The author can usually assist with these by suggesting members for their peer group for UNT Press to contact. These are called “blurbs”. In addition to appearing on the jacket, they are printed on the press releases and posted online on the UNT Press site (http://www.unt.edu/untpress), the Texas A&M University Press site (http://www.tamupress.com), and submitted to the Amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com) and Barnes & Noble.com(http://www.barnesandnoble.com) sites to be posted there as well.

The term Reviews is used by UNT Press to refer to only book reviews received by those in the media who regularly print or post reviews. These are obtained by UNT Press as a result of sending out review copies of the final book. The main purpose of this type of a review is to reach the readers of the reviewer’s outlet as this increases sales. For example, a book about the history of World War II might be reviewed in the Journal of Military History and the academics who read that journal will purchase the book, or perhaps adopt it for classroom usage. A collection of poems might be reviewed by Foreword Magazine, widely read by librarians, and added to the library’s acquisitions. A book could be reviewed by a newspaper or magazine and boost sales significantly. Excerpts from these types of reviews are often posted by UNT Press on Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.

SOCIAL NETWORKING by UNIVERSITY PRESSES

An article posted by MIT Press (Social Networking: University Presses in a 140-character World, Colleen Lanick, Summer 2009,) states that most University Presses are using some kind of social networking. These presses use the electronic world to “put a face on the press,” respond to comments and questions, and encourage interaction with readers. Many use the sites to announce events, but the University of Arizona Press admits that the Twitter community “does not like marketing or self-promotion,” so they talk about their books, but also talk about publishing, local community concerns, especially if they are “connected to anything we publish.” Several presses are using this form of communications to interact with journalists and keep up with publishing news.

Lanick admits “it is doubtful that social media will replace traditional publicity and marketing efforts.” Rather, they enhance those efforts. These same principles can be applied to your social networking. Your Facebook page, with your profile, photos, info, and wall posts can “put a face” on you as an author. You can respond to Tweets, and talk about your book on librarything.

Finally, you must not become so entangled in promoting your last book that you do not have time to write your next one. And you must not forget to keep a box of books in your trunk, offer to speak at your local library, and continue to promote in traditional ways.

Marketing is the promotion of a book, including publicity, advertising, exhibiting, and direct selling. Marketing is actually handled by UNT Press and Texas A&M (our distributor) in conjunction. A&M pitches the book to national and regional bookstores either directly or through sales reps, gets the book into online bookseller sites, gets it sold through overseas vendors, pitches to book reviewers who then check off which titles they would like to receive (i.e., increased odds they will review it after we send them copies), and meets with various book industry entities in NYC for rights and media contacts. A&M's primary marketing effort is toward "sell-in," or placing the book in various outlets so they can be seen and purchased. They act as our distributor in this regard. Our authors typically do not work with A&M on any of this and instead work with UNT Press on publicity and promotion.

At UNT Press our marketing job is to try to get "sell-through" so the customer goes to the store or online vendor and actually buys the book, preventing its return to our warehouse and stimulating a reorder by the bookstore.

The University of North Texas Press promotes its books in any or all of the following ways:

Advance publicity is sent to bookstores and trade media.
Sales of book-club and translation rights are considered.
Promotional copy is prepared for the dust jacket.
Each book is listed in a spring or fall catalog and in the online Books-in-Print catalog.
Catalogs are sent to book buyers and to academic personnel and other professionals.
News releases and an average of 40 review copies are sent to reviewers.
Space advertising is planned where it will be most effective. We typically place one ad for each book, priced at no more than $500.
Author appearances and signings are scheduled with the assistance of the author.
Press books are exhibited at appropriate conferences and meetings.
When appropriate, a direct-mail or email campaign is undertaken.
Books are submitted to award competitions and book festival committees.

Participating in the Marketing Process

The author participates in the marketing process by promptly providing full information on the Author Information Form, by taking part in and helping to set up book signings (particularly for events outside DFW area), by bringing books and/or handouts to meetings, and by making speeches and media appearances relating to his or her book. In our experience, the best promotional campaigns for a book involve a proactive author who publicizes and promotes the book personally and effectively through his or her local area, is willing to travel to booksignings, and works tirelessly to get the word out about his or her book to a peer network of contacts not normally reached by the Press. These efforts, when combined with the efforts of the Press as outlined above, can sustain a promotional campaign for the book for many months after initial publication.

Note that during the copyediting of your manuscript we may supply you with PDF proofs of your book. PDF proofs are for proofreading only. Any PDFs of the book you receive should not be circulated to anyone, posted on a Web site, or otherwise distributed in any way. These are not the final files for your book, and the copyright has not been formally registered. After publication we will gladly provide you with a portion of the final files for the book, which you can post on your Web site in order to publicize it.

Once you have a signed contract and are working toward a final manuscript, begin writing for permissions immediately. These take time and should not be done toward the end of submitting the final manuscript.

The author should obtain written permissions to use illustrations and any text or other material owned and copyrighted by another party, when use of such material is beyond fair use. Please ask your editor if in doubt about whether material is "fair use." For more information, please consult the Copyright Act of 1976 or the latest edition of The Chicago Manual of Style.

Note that by contract the author is responsible for paying any permission fees.

Copies of granted permission letters are to be sent to the Press at the time of delivery of the final manuscript.

Download a sample permission letter in Word or PDF.

Adobe Acrobat Reader is needed to read, and print this PDF files. Adobe Acrobat Reader software can be downloaded free of charge from the Adobe web site.