THE PROPOSAL

Before formulating a proposal for Raw Nerve, please bear in mind the radical nature of Raw Nerve Books, allied to the need to produce a saleable item. However, as we are able to work to short print runs this allows many exciting - but not immediately 'popular' - books to be produced. We are also able and eager to produce books of varying lengths and formats, for instance short monographs or work-in-progress books.

As we move towards some on-line publishing, it will be possible to offer space for more experimental work, though the criteria below will continue to be relevant in nearly every case: you will still need to think about why you want to publish a particular piece of work and who might like to read it, as well as practical issues such as title, structure and copyright. You will not, of course, need to purchase any books, though neither you (nor Raw Nerve) will make any money from on-line publications as the web site will be free to access.

It would be useful if you would submit your proposal in line with the following criteria, as far as they are applicable to your book. If you are offering work that is not primarily aimed at an academic market, this is fine, but please adapt the criteria and think seriously about who would be likely to but the book.

  1. WORKING TITLE

  2. AUTHORS/ EDITORS
    • Name(s), email and postal address(es), phone number(s) of main author(s) or editor(s).
    • Why are you an appropriate person to write/ edit this book?
    • Brief details of other contributors.

  3. OUTLINE OF BOOK
    • Synopsis: aim, main questions and arguments, conclusion.
    • Methodology used
    • Major themes of the book; other themes included.
    • Related issues that are not included in your book. What are the boundaries of your book?

  4. IMPORTANCE OF BOOK
    • Why should the book be published now?
    • What are the book's main competitors?
    • What gap does this book fill?

  5. MARKETING
    • What are the main markets for your book? What constituencies of reader are you aiming for - undergraduate? Postgraduate? Research? Is there also a market for a general audience?
    • Is your book aimed primarily at a UK readership? Does it have an appeal to other nationalities? Be as specific as you can.
    • Are there existing or proposed courses that would use the book as a key text? Please name courses and institutions, and estimate the number of books each course would require.
    • If the book comes out of a conference, how many conference participants were there?
    • Finally, how many books do you guarantee to buy from Raw Nerve Books? (This is likely to be a provisional figure at this stage; it will help us have an idea of the market for the book, from your perspective, and help you think about who will be likely to read your work.)

  6. WHY IS THIS A RAW NERVE BOOK?

  7. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
    • Chapter titles and subtitles, if appropriate.
    • Synopsis of each chapter.
    • Word length of book, subdivided into chapters.

  8. ILLUSTRATIONS
      If appropriate, how many illustrations do you envisage? Black or white, or colour?

  9. COPYRIGHT
      If any material (written or visual) comes under copyright laws, do you have the necessary permissions, or what steps are you taking to obtain such permissions? If in doubt, please give details.

  10. SUBMISSION DATE
      When would you expect the ms to be ready for publication?

  11. BLURB
      What blurb would you like on the back of your book? Write a draft blurb about a paragraph in length. We will not hold you to this, but it is a good exercise for thinking about why others should buy the book, and about the work’s main selling points.

  12. ANY FURTHER INFORMATION that you think it may be useful for us to know.

  13. SAMPLE OF WORK
      If possible, this should be a chapter or section from your book. Drafts are fine.

Please contact us if you would like to discuss a proposal informally before submitting full details.

Let us know in advance if you wish to send an email proposal in an attachment, contact submissions@rawnervebooks.co.uk
or send a disk and one paper copy to:
Raw Nerve Books, Centre for Women's Studies, University of York, YORK YO10 5DD, ENGLAND.
 

return to Submission Details

Raw Nerve home