1. Preparing the Manuscript Files
If you are seeking to submit a manuscript to be considered for publication, please go here.
Please read these guidelines entirely. Failure to follow them will result in your manuscript being returned and delays in production.
1.1 Create a folder on your computer for the project. Please label this folder with your last name plus abbreviated title of book, such as,
SMITH_History_of_Roquefort
1.2 Have each chapter in a separate Word file within that folder.
1.2.1 Title the chapter files so that it’s clear what order they go in.
For example:
00_Front_Matter.doc (acknowledgments, table of contents, dedications, etc.)
01_Introduction.doc
02_Cheese_and_its_Discontents.doc
03_The_Epistemology_of_Feta.doc
1.3 Images, figures, tables, and plates must be provided separately and not included into the manuscript file, i.e., do not include them in the Word files. Images should have a minimum resolution of 300dpi and width of 5 in. See here for further specifications. If there is a question about whether or not an image will be usable, please consult with punctum before submitting your final manuscript.
1.3.1 A note about fair use
Fair use laws are a mess. They are not as permissive as they probably should be; they differ from country to country; there are not enough clear cases of precedent.
In the US, the relevant part of the copyright law is 17 USC § 107, which states that copying for criticism, comment, reporting, and scholarship does not infringe copyright if the use meets several other loosely defined criteria.
Because our books are commercial (even if we are a non-profit press), it needs to be clear that when we reproduce something, we are reproducing it for non-commercial reasons. We can reproduce copyrighted material for analysis or criticism—but we cannot reproduce it merely to illustrate (because that, in effect, makes our work more lucrative).
We also don’t want to be jerks. We don’t want to exploit someone else’s work just because we found it on the internet and couldn’t contact them. Even if we feel we have the right, we may avoid using a public domain work that an institution feels they “own” the copyright to by virtue of owning the object (and the ability to make an adequate reproduction of it); after all, you might need a favor from that institution some day.
There are certainly valid scholarly and artistic reasons for pushing the limits of fair use. Still, we want to be thoughtful about when and how we push those limits.
(This all applies to quoted text as well, of course.)
1.3.2 You, the author(s), have the first responsibility of making sure we’re reproducing images ethically. If an image has an unclear source or permission (e.g., if it’s “from the Internet”), make sure you are analyzing the image, not just using it as illustration. If it’s just illustration, consider deleting it and rewriting the passage.
1.4 The most important thing is that the manuscript is consistent and uniformly and cleanly formatted. We do not use a word processor as a basis for our layout, so there is no need to adjust margins, manually correct hyphenations, create elaborate formatting styles, use special fonts, or add other typographical flourishes. Please present your text in the most plain-style, cleanest fashion possible, left-aligned, no justification.
1.5 In particular, make sure that each chapter uses the same style, including citation style (see our style guide). But also check that headings and sub-headings, section numbering, captions, block quotes, etc., are all consistent and uniform throughout the book.
1.5.1 If you are using reference management tools like Zotero, please make sure to save your documents without the reference links (the “grey highlights”) active. Otherwise they severely impede the copyediting process.
1.6 In addition to the chapters and the information about the images, include a file (sub-folder) that has descriptive information about the book:
1.6.1 Verbiage for the website and the back of the book (250 words, give or take). See the catalogue on our website for examples. This verbiage is to be written in the 3rd person singular.
1.6.2 An image (or selection of images) that you’d like to be considered for the cover, or a description of the sort of image you’d like, or any notes or ideas you have regarding how you think the cover design should be. punctum has a specific and recognizable design profile and we don’t want to compromise that; at the same time, we want to involve authors in the cover design process as much as possible. (See 3. Manuscript Check and Cover Design of the guidelines)
1.6.3 A one-paragraph biography (of no more than 200 words) for each author.
1.6.4 For each author indicate under which of their names they should be alphabetized.
1.6.4 We encourage our authors to also register for an ORCID identifier and to include that with biography.
1.6.5 If you’re attached to an institution, include its ROR identifier in the biography.
1.6.6 Seven keywords describing the monograph as a whole.
1.6.8 Preferred personal pronouns
1.6.9 If amenable, please supply author photograph(s).
1.7 Because all our books are always available as searchable PDFs, we in general do not include indexes in our books. If for whatever reason you still want to include an index in your book, this will have to be prepared by a professional indexer. We have a few contacts in the specialized world of indexing, but they are busy and should be contacted early on in the production process. Failure to do so may lead to significant delays in production. We do not cover the costs for indexing.
1.8 Once your folder is prepared, you are ready to send it to us.
1.8.1 Compress the folder containing all the documents into a single ZIP file and check it has the right name (see 1.1).
1.8.2 Upload this file into the dedicated punctum file drop and notify us that you have uploaded your files. Do not send us files by email. We also advise against using free services such as Dropbox and WeTransfer, which will keep your files (and your intellectual property) in their clouds indefinitely, and which will make your work vulnerable to modes of surveillance and mining.