Editors' Decision-Making Processes: How We Evaluate What Is a Trade, Scholarly, Technical, or Course Book and "Right for Our List?"

What criteria do book editors apply in making decisions about which book proposals and manuscripts are acceptable for publication? This presentation will report on the principles and guidelines used in selecting books for various markets. The types of presses covered include for-profit, non-profit, and independent publishers and university presses; the market sectors range from trade/general interest to scholarly monographs, and treatises and course and reference books. The pros and cons of using a literary agent will also be discussed. Tips, guidelines, and general principles reveal how it is possible to optimize seeing a book through to publication in an industry that, in the U.S. alone, produces about 200,000 books per year for net sales of more than $24 billion.