Who are you and why are you different?
What is Creative Commons?
Copyright ownership
Submitting a proposal
Working with your manuscript
Royalties and free copies
What will my book look like?
Are there any limitations on design and extent?
Sales and marketing

What is Bloomsbury Publishing?
Bloomsbury Publishing Group Plc is one of Europe's leading independent publishing houses. It has a stellar list of non-fiction and fiction titles, and is a leader in media and electronic reference publishing and children's books, including the wildly successful Harry Potter series. Bloomsbury owns A&C Black under whose umbrella there are a number of specialist imprints. Bloomsbury books sell worldwide.

What is different about Bloomsbury Academic?
The imprint is committed to working closely with the academic and library community to maximise the opportunities afforded by digital access to content. Bloomsbury Academic will publish all publications online on Creative Commons licences, thus allowing open access to the full content immediately upon publication. We believe greater exposure online will increase rather than decrease hardcopy sales.

What is a Creative Commons licence?
The Creative Commons (CC) licences enable copyright holders to grant some or all of their rights to the public. In the case of the CC non-commercial licence, which we'll use, licencees (i.e. your readers) are granted the right to copy, distribute and display the work on a non-commercial basis. See Creative Commons.

Who retains copyright in my work?
You do. In some cases, your funder may insist on holding the copyright, but we do not ask for the copyright from anyone. We will enter into a contract which gives us the rights we need to publish online on a Creative Commons non-commercial licence. We retain control over any commercialisation of the content – such as printing and selling physical books, from which you earn royalties.

Where can I find out more about copyright and contracts?
Please visit the Intellectual Property Office or consult the Writers & Artists Yearbook, published by A&C Black.

How do I submit a proposal?
There are two ways to submit your proposal:

• Fill in the book proposal form
  
• Write an e-mail or letter enclosing a short outline and a CV

Send to one of our commissioning editors. We look forward to hearing from you.

Are you looking to commission book series?
Yes, indeed, if you have an idea for a series please let us know.

How long does it take to get a title approved?
Our editors will endeavour to respond to a book proposal within a fortnight. If taken to the next stage, projects will be submitted for peer review. We aim to conduct this quickly, but a good guideline would be 6-8 weeks.

Will Bloomsbury Academic undertake the usual publishing functions such as peer-review, editing, formatting, marketing, production and distribution?
Yes! We will impose the same standards expected of any world-class academic publisher. Manuscripts that pass the editorial selection process will be peer-reviewed, edited and formatted. Authors will have their works marketed and sold globally. In addition, Bloomsbury Academic will be at the forefront of promoting the text online.

What work do I have to do to prepare the manuscript? How much support will I receive for this from Bloomsbury Academic?
You will need to submit your manuscript in electronic form. However, we will provide guidelines, and help from a real person where necessary.

Will Bloomsbury Academic typeset and design my book?
We will design and format the book from the digital file you produce and which we have copyedited.

Will there be possibilities of updating my work?
Yes! Absolutely. We want to take advantage of the digital medium with you.

Is this like the open access model for journals where authors (or their institutions) have to pay for the publishing process?
No, Bloomsbury Academic finances the publishing process and expects to recover its costs through sales of print copies.

Will I be paid a royalty?
Yes. Royalties will be modest, but we would like to see our authors receive some financial reward for their works so royalties will be negotiated with your editor in the usual way.

Will I still get some free copies on publication and be able to purchase additional copies at a discount?
Yes! In the usual way.

What will the hardcopy book look like, and how will it be produced?
A key factor that makes this economic model work will be to keep tight control of inventory. Your book will be produced first in a short print run and then by the new digital print on demand (POD) methods which allow for runs ranging from one to a few hundred at sensible unit costs. Both methods produce the same high quality look as is expected of academic publishers. Our selected printers will hold the digital file of your work and be able to produce copies in less than a week.

Will you only publish in hardback, or will it be available in paperback too?
Sometimes there is a demand from a significant number of individuals for the most important books to be available in paperback. If the numbers work, we'll make it happen.

How soon after publication online will physical copies be available?
Depending on the printing process selected, one to three weeks.

Can I include illustrations in my book?
In principle yes, but the details will need to be discussed between you and your editor.

Is there any limit on extent?
There is much more flexibility to add more materials behind an e-book/online publication. Please discuss with your editor if you expect the length of your book to exceed 120,000 words.

Are there limits on the book size?
Our current book sizes are: 5.5 x 8.5" (216 x 140mm) 6 x 9" (229 x 152mm) 6.14 x 9.21" (234 x 156mm) 7 x 10" (254 x 178 mm).

Can I add additional materials online to supplement my work?
Yes! Your work can either be a stand-alone volume, or part of a larger body of research output, such as databases. We like links.

Can I include works in other media such as video and podcasts?
Yes! Whatever you think will enhance the utility of your work will be of interest to us. We will help with the links.

What will my book sell for?
The recommended retail price will be in line with other academic publishers.

Will my book be available as an e-book as well as online?
Yes, we will ensure that your book is available in a multiplicity of e-outlets.

Why do you believe libraries will still buy my book when it is available on the internet free of charge?
Librarians know that the physical book is still the most economic format for multiple use of research publications. The real cost of single copy printouts that often end up in someone's desk drawer is remarkably high when true overheads are taken into account. Some people still like physical books, and some librarians are worried that digital formats are changing so quickly it won't be possible to read today's e-Book with tomorrow's technology. Nobody knows for sure what the future holds – but for the time being we feel our hybrid model serves best.

Will my book be on display at conferences?
Yes, we want your work to receive high exposure on all fronts.

Will you send out review copies of my book?
Yes. Reviewers have the option of receiving an e-book or a printed copy.

Can you ensure availability even if sales are low?
Yes! Your book need never go out of print.

Can I obtain feedback from readers via your platform?
Yes, talk to our editors to set this up.