When your manuscript is nearly complete, it will be assigned to an editor in Manuscript Editorial who will lead you through the copyediting and production processes. The steps below explain the specifics of the process and give you a clearer sense of what will be required of you as your book winds its way to publication.
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Editorial Manuscript Appraisal
Once your acquiring editor has confirmed a date for the submission of the final manuscript for copyediting, a member of the Press’s manuscript editorial team will prepare and send via email an editorial checklist of necessary corrections/adjustments you must make to the manuscript before you submit the final version for copyediting. The changes called for at this time are usually of a general or mechanical nature; finer points are addressed later, in the detailed work of copyediting.
Assigning ISBNs
Your book will be published in a number of different formats (cloth, paperback, and/or ebook), according to its specific marketing needs. We will assign each of those formats an ISBN, a 13-digit identification code that uniquely identifies it. The ISBN is a global standard, facilitating the
distribution of your book to libraries, bookstores, and online vendors such as Amazon. ISBN assignment is handled by UNCP staff—you don’t need to take any action regarding it.
Library of Congress Cataloging-In-Publication (CIP) Data
Professional catalogers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Libraries work in cooperation with the Library of Congress Cataloging-In-Publication Division to produce Cataloging-In-Publication (CIP) data for your book, using information provided by UNCP staff. There is nothing you need to do during the CIP application process.
CIP data provides librarians with metadata for their catalogs and shelving instructions, both of which facilitate the rapid integration of your book into library collections. It appears in the front matter of your book as a well-structured block (see exemplar below). While UNCP provides the catalogers with files and information, UNCP does not choose the subjects or the classification numbers assigned to your book. Subject areas and classifications are defined by the Library of Congress and assigned by catalogers according to rules that have been established by the Library of Congress.
CIP Exemplar
Names: Felber, Garrett, author.
Title: Those who know don’t say : the Nation of Islam, the black
freedom movement, and the carceral state / Garrett Felber.
Other titles: Justice, power, and politics.
Description: Chapel Hill : University of North Carolina Press, [2020] |
Series: Justice, power, and politics | Includes bibliographical references
and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019019411| ISBN 9781469653815 (cloth : alk. paper) |
ISBN 9781469653822 (pbk : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781469653839 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Nation of Islam (Chicago, Ill.)–History. | Black
Muslims–History. | Discrimination in criminal justice
administration–United States. | Justice, Administration of–United
States–History. | Black nationalism–United States.
Classification: LCC BP221 .F45 2020 | DDC 297.8/7–dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019019411
Copyediting
The project editor assigned to your manuscript will be your primary point of contact as the manuscript moves through copyediting and production. For some manuscripts, the project editor will be based at the Press; for others, the project editor may be located outside the Press and working under the Press’s management. Although in some cases the project editor and the copyeditor will be the same person, in most cases the copyeditor will be a freelancer who is assigned the manuscript by the project editor. All manuscripts are edited on computer, using Microsoft Word. Once copyediting begins, the project editor will let you know when to expect to see the edited manuscript for review and when we will need the reviewed manuscript returned to us.
Author Reviews Copyediting
The edited manuscript is sent to you via email as Word files in which changes have been tracked, with the files protected so that the changes you make in reviewing the editing will be tracked automatically. You will receive detailed instructions for reviewing the copyedited manuscript along with the files. When you complete your review of the editing, you’ll return the reviewed files to the project editor via email.
Manuscript Transmitted to Production
After you return the edited manuscript, the project editor gets it in final shape to go to production. The project editor goes through all of the reviewed files carefully to see how you responded to queries made during editing, to check your changes or additions for consistency with the style established during editing, and so on. We ensure that the manuscript is complete, and we double-check everything related to illustrative material (photos, maps, figures), as all illustrations must be in hand, along with any necessary permissions to use them, before a manuscript can be put into production. When all is in order, the project editor transmits the cleaned-up files to the production department. In the production department, the manuscript is designed and readied for the typesetter. The project editor will send a production schedule to you once the manuscript has gone to the typesetter. Your project editor will send page proof to you for proofreading and indexing, and you will return the corrected page proof and send the index to the Press by the date indicated in the production schedule.
Author Review of Page Proof
Page proof is the first and only text proof that you will see. Despite the use of electronic files, some errors still can and do occur in typesetting. Therefore, proofreading remains a vital part of producing a book that is as precise and correct as possible. Although your project editor at the Press checks the key elements (front matter, chapter openings, running heads, etc.) of all books in page proof, word-for-word proofreading is your responsibility. In our experience, however, authors often fail to notice errors of detail such as misspellings or other inconsistencies; they are so close to the manuscript that they no longer perceive flaws that would be evident to an experienced proofreader. For this reason, we suggest that authors obtain a professional proofreading of their pages to supplement their own reading. Your project editor can advise you in regard to proofreading when the production schedule is sent.
Creating the Index
Because no one is more familiar with your book than you are, we generally encourage you to prepare your own index. When that is not possible, you will need to hire a professional indexer. You are welcome to hire an indexer on your own, of course, but we recommend that you contact us about obtaining the services of a freelance indexer whom we know and trust. Of course we never make final arrangements with a freelancer without consulting the author, who must ultimately pay for the indexer’s services, which can be expensive. In order to guard against production delays and give us time to contact reliable indexers (who often schedule their work tightly and well in advance), we ask that you let us know as soon as possible if you think you will need a freelancer to prepare your index.
The index you submit (by the date indicated on the production schedule) is copyedited by your project editor, who sends it to you for approval. This will be your last editorial task! Once you have approved it, the project editor transmits it to production for typesetting. Your project editor checks the revised pages and typeset index, makes any necessary final corrections, and returns the finished pages to production, which soon passes them along to the printer.