Author Submissions

Editors

Ronald Libby has written several books ranging from African and Australian politics, to world trade, US environmental politics and social movements including the Tea Party. He is particularly interested in the nexus of politics and economics including health, trade, and foreign policy. Email Ron / Libby's Books 

​​Justin DePlato is an American political scientist who has written four books on the philosophy and history of American constitutional law. His research and publications focus on understanding the powers, limits, and theories of the American Presidency--both in peace and in time of crisis. He focuses on understanding the powers, limits, and theories of the presidency from inception to the present.
Email Justin / DePlato's books
  

Preparing the Book Proposal:

1. Submission: submit your proposals as an e-mail attachment to one of the editors based upon their area of interest. 
2. Title
3. Summary: A one-line description of the book, summing up its scope and content. 
4. Description: A concise description of the book including your approach, main topics and the subjects discussed.
5. Rationale: The reasons why the book is needed, the needs it will fulfill and its fit with the contemporary literature.
6. Short Non-Technical Description: A short description that could be used for catalogue or jacket copy. It should be clear, informative and persuasive (175 words or less).
7. Key Features: Give three key benefits that your book offers to its readers.
8. Table of Contents
9. Chapter Outlines: Provide a brief description of the main topics to be covered in each chapter, including the main references upon which the material is based.
10. Length and Delivery: How many words (including footnotes and bibliography) will your manuscript be, how many illustrations will therebe and are their accompanying features such as a website that may be needed? Indicate when you expect to complete the work and allow for the unexpected.
11. ​Permissions: If you will be using any previously published material such as figures, diagrams and illustrations) of your own or others, please give the full details.

​Preparing Your Manuscript for Editing
The elements of your manuscript should be ordered as follows:

Front Matter

• title page
• dedication (optional)
• epigraph (optional)
• table of contents
• list of illustrations (divided by “Tables” and “Figures,” if applicable)
• preface (optional)
• acknowledgments (if not part of preface—optional)
• introduction (if not the first chapter of the book; see CMS 1.42 and 1.46 for information on where the introduction should be placed)
• abbreviations (if applicable)
• chronology (if applicable)

 
Text

• chapter 1
• chapter 2 (etc.)

 
Back Matter

• acknowledgments (if not in front matter)
• appendix (or first, if more than one)
• second and subsequent appendixes
• chronology (if not in front matter)
• list of abbreviations (if not in front matter)
• notes
• glossary (if applicable)
• bibliography, works cited, or references
• list of contributors (if applicable)
• illustration credits (if not in captions or elsewhere)
• index (to be compiled later)
• about the author page

Adapted from The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed:
 

1. All art (maps, figures, tables, etc.) for a project must be final before your manuscript can be released for editing. All figures should be submitted as separate electronic files, not embedded in the text.
   
   
2. Illustrations should be called out in the appropriate locations in the text and numbered sequentially by chapter (e.g., the second figure in chapter 3 should be figure 3.2, and the callout in the text should say “<Figure 3.2 goes here>”; insert this callout approximately where the figure is to appear in the text). Notes to figures should also be placed underneath the relevant figure, not numbered sequentially with the chapter notes.
   
   
3. Tables should be prepared in Word and placed in the appropriate location within the manuscript, numbered sequentially by chapter (e.g., Table 1.1, Table 3.2). Titles, sources, notes, and other material associated with the tables should not be in table cells. Notes to tables should also be placed underneath the relevant table, not numbered sequentially with the chapter notes.
   
   
4. You must have written permission to include any illustrations reproduced from another source. Written permission is also needed for substantial direct quotes from another source. From CMS 4.69: “Bear in mind that although the original text of a classic reprinted in a modern edition may be in the public domain, recent translations and abridgments, as well as editorial introductions, notes, and other apparatus, are protected by copyright. But whether permission is needed or not, the author should always, as a matter of good practice (and to avoid any possible charge of plagiarism), credit any sources used.” If you create the tables and figures using data from another source, that source must be credited under the table or figure.
   
   
5. Be sure to include a title page with the exact title and subtitle and all author/editor names spelled as you want them to appear in the book. Please also provide a table of contents. It is not necessary to include page numbers for the various elements in the table of contents.
   
   
6. Use Times New Roman, 12 pt. for the font, double spaced, for the entire manuscript, including notes, block quotations, and references. Set margins at 1 inch all around.
   
   
7. Use paragraph returns (the “Enter” key) only for new paragraph, not for ends of lines. When increased margins are needed for block quotations or epigraphs, for example, change the margins for those sections. Do not use tabs and additional spacing to force alignment.
   
   
8. Remove any headers or footers in the manuscript.
   
   
9. Designate levels of subheads as <A>, <B>, or <C> instead of using bold, italics, etc., to distinguish them.
   
   
10. All notes should be embedded in the chapter files using Word’s embedded notes feature. This is found in the References section of the Word ribbon: Insert Endnote (or Insert → Reference → Footnote in older versions of Word).
    
    
11. Be sure to use a consistent citation system, either notes and a bibliography or in-text citations and a reference list. If you need more guidance on this, please refer to The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed.

 
NOTE: The manuscript you submit for editing is considered final, but you can still make minor changes when you review the edited files. The review of the edited manuscript is your last chance to make these changes. Proof corrections are restricted to typos, grammatical errors, and updating statements when world events subsequent to typesetting would affect the validity of what you say. Stylistic changes will be rejected in proofs.

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Preparing Your Book for Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP)

NOTE: You will prepare TWO versions of your book for publishing with KDP--one for print and one for digital. Any changes you make to the text of one file must be made exactly the same in the other file, so it’s best to finalize your text before creating the two versions for publishing with KDP.
 
Order of Elements - 2
Requirements for the Manuscript - 3
Using Word’s Styles - 5
Formatting Your Book for Print Publication - 6
Formatting Your Book for Digital Publication - 8

Order of Elements
Your manuscript should be ordered as follows.

Front Matter

• title page
• dedication (optional)
• epigraph (optional)
• table of contents
• list of illustrations (divided by “Tables” and “Figures,” if applicable)
• preface (optional)
• acknowledgments (if not part of preface—optional)
• introduction (if not the first chapter of the book; see CMS 1.42 and 1.46 for information on where the introduction should be placed)
• abbreviations (if applicable)
• chronology (if applicable)
  
  

Text

• chapter 1
• chapter 2 (etc.)
  
  

Back Matter

• acknowledgments (if not in front matter)
• appendix (or first, if more than one)
• second and subsequent appendixes
• chronology (if not in front matter)
• list of abbreviations (if not in front matter)

Notes
Glossary (if applicable)
Bibliography, works cited, or references
List of contributors (if applicable)
Illustration credits (if not in captions or elsewhere)
Index (to be compiled later)
About the author page

Adapted from The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed:
 
Requirements for the Manuscript

• All figures should be placed into the Word file using Word’s “InsertàFigure” feature, not copied and pasted into the text.
• Maps, figures, and tables should be numbered sequentially in each chapter (Figure 3.1, Figure 3.2, etc.) and should have
  unique titles. Titles, sources, notes, and other material associated with the tables should not be in table cells. Notes to tables and figures should be placed underneath the relevant table or figure, not numbered sequentially with the chapter notes.
  
  
• You must have written permission to include any illustrations reproduced from another source. Written permission is also needed for substantial direct quotes from another source. From CMS 4.69: “Bear in mind that although the original text of a classic reprinted in a modern edition may be in the public domain, recent translations and abridgments, as well as editorial introductions, notes, and other apparatus, are protected by copyright. But whether permission is needed or not, the author should always, as a matter of good practice (and to avoid any possible charge of plagiarism), credit any sources used.” If you create the tables and figures using data from another source, that source must be credited under the table or figure.
  
  
• Be sure your title page includes the exact title and subtitle and all author/editor names spelled as you want them to appear in the book and exactly as indicated in the metadata supplied to KDP.
  
  
• Use paragraph returns (the “Enter” key) only for new paragraph, not for ends of lines. When increased margins are needed for block quotations or epigraphs, for example, change the margins for those sections. Do not use tabs and additional spacing to force alignment.
  
  
• Do not insert blank lines to create additional space between elements (before or after a heading, for example). Use Word’s Styles to set spacing for each element (more on this below, under “Using Word’s Styles”).
  
  
• All notes should be embedded in the chapter files using Word’s embedded notes feature. This is found in the References section of the Word ribbon: Insert Endnote (or InsertàReferenceàFootnote in older versions of Word).
  
  
• Be sure to use a consistent citation system, either notes and a bibliography or in-text citations and a reference list. If you need more guidance on this, please refer to The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th ed.

 

Using Word’s Styles
You will use Word’s “Styles” to establish how your book will appear in print. It’s important to be consistent in how various elements are formatted across the entire book. Following are some things to keep in mind as you create your styles.

SIMPLIFY: To ensure consistency in appearance, it’s best to simplify the styles as much as possible. Choose one font for display elements (e.g., headings, chapter titles, figure and table titles) and one font for all text elements (e.g., chapter text, block quotations, notes, references).

SPACING: When creating your styles, make sure to appropriately set spacing before and after certain elements. For example, additional space should follow chapter titles and should precede headings (do not insert blank lines to create space). Additional space is generally needed for text following tables or figures, so create a separate style for text that follows directly after an illustration.

​INDENTS: Set styles for paragraphs that should be flush left and other paragraphs that should be indented.

COMPLETE: Every line of your manuscript should have a style applied to it.

TOC: Styles play an important role in creating an accurate table of contents, so be sure to use the same style for all chapter headings, and the same style for all figure and table titles if you would like them included in the TOC. See the following page for help in creating your TOC in Word: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/A1JMIOQ2RP4DPK.
 

Formatting Your Book for Print Publication

Amazon’s guidelines are found here: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/A25U9TH747BX5K.
A PDF of some KDP guidelines is available at https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/G/01/00/01/00/02/17/60/10002176030.pdf.

The following points refer to this document for further information.

• For digital publishing with KDP, your book should be in a single file. To keep notes numbered sequentially within each chapter (rather than sequentially across the entire book), use the “Layout>Breaks>Section Breaks>Next Page” function to insert the proper style breaks that will maintain your note numbering. Under “References>Footnotes,” make sure the “Restart each section” button is selected under “Format>Numbering.” Each new section (each chapter or front-/back-matter section) should begin with an unnumbered page (the number should be hidden, but the page is not skipped for numbering). To do this, access the header and footer design area (double click in either the header or footer) and select “Different first page” under “Options.”
  
  
• Set the page size to the trim size that will be used for your print book (see Amazon guidelines, page 18). Set margins and gutter (center margin) according to KDP’s guidelines determined by your final page count (see Amazon guidelines, pages 11 and 19–20).
  
  
• Most new elements in your book should begin on a right-hand (recto page). Insert blank pages on the left-hand (verso) pages where necessary. See CMS 1.4.
  
  
• Page numbering in the front matter should use lowercase roman numerals. Page numbering in the text (beginning with the second half title, if used, or with the introduction or chapter 1 if there is no second half-title) should begin with Arabic page 1.
  
  
• For best results of your print book, your final file for delivery to Amazon should be a press-ready PDF (PDF/X). See https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/APITVR0S7VP1S.

 

Formatting Your Book for Digital Publication

KDP’s “Simplified Formatting Guide” for digital publications is found here: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/A17W8UM0MMSQX6

• For best results of your digital book, your file format for delivery to KDP should be a Word document.
  
  
• For the digital book, do not insert blank pages between elements of your book. A single “section breakànext page” is all that is needed after each element (chapter or front-/back-matter section).
  
  
• Styles (see above: “Using Word’s Styles”) play an important role in creating an accurate table of contents, so be sure to use the same style for all chapter headings, and the same style for all figure and table titles if you would like them included in the TOC. See the following page for help in creating your TOC in Word: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/A1JMIOQ2RP4DPK. Using this method of creating the TOC is necessary in order to create “live links” in the digital book.
  
  
• The page size and margins of your Word document can be 8-1/2” by 11” and 1” margins all around for the digital file. This file does not need to be sized to match the print version.
  
  
• Other helpful information is found at the following KDP page: “Getting Started—How to Publish Your Book on KDP”: https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/A37Z49E2DDQPP3#publish_paperback

 


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