Stipes Author Guidelines
(Frequently Asked Questions)
&
Prospectus Guidelines

Frequently Asked Questions 

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The following are some questions we are frequently asked. We hope that our answers will encourage you to discuss with us the possibility of publishing your book.

1. Does Stipes finance the publication?
2. Does Stipes market books nationally?
3. Is Stipes interested in publications which are not for national distribution?
4. Will Stipes work with material in its developmental stage?
5. Would Stipes be interested in working on a publication which is under contract to another publisher?
6. What types of formats and bindings does Stipes offer?
7. Will Stipes permit photographs and other illustrations?
8. Will my publication be reasonably priced?
9. What sort of manuscript preparation is required?
10. Will I get help in the preparation of my manuscript?
11. Can disks or CD’s be included with my book?
12. Will Stipes take care of obtaining permissions to use copyrighted materials which I have included in my manuscript?
13. Will my publication be copyrighted?
14. Can I obtain references regarding Stipes?
15. Will I lose control over my manuscript once it is turned over to Stipes?
16. How quickly can my book be produced?
17. How long has Stipes been in the publishing business?
18. How many titles does Stipes have?
19. What is the standard Stipes royalty?
20. How will my book be distributed?
21. What kind of information can I furnish Stipes for evaluation of the commercial potential of the material?

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1. Does Stipes finance the publication? Yes. We pay all costs involved. The author has no financial obligation. Our obligation extends for all costs involved in the manufacture and distribution of the book. All of the risk involved is ours. We also pay a royalty twice a year.

2. Does Stipes market books nationally? Yes. Our books are sold through over 2,500 bookstores throughout the world. Four of our books have over 300 college adoptions and dozens of our books have from 20 to 250 adoptions.

3. Is Stipes interested in publications which are not for national distribution? Yes. Many of our publications are designed for use by an author for a specific course at his or her school. Some of these publications are course outlines, syllabi, or specialized materials developed for a particular course. The feasibility of such an arrangement depends upon the number of students involved. It would normally require over 150 students per year. If enough students are involved, revisions can be made from year to year and in some cases even more frequently.

4. Will Stipes work with material in its developmental stage? Yes. We frequently work with an author on a preliminary edition. Our requirements for the size of a printing are small enough that such an arrangement allows for revisions and additions after a short period of time. Until the book is in final form, it is usually used at only the author’s own campus or possibly a few others. After it has evolved into a final publication, it can be marketed nationally.

5. Would Stipes be interested in working on a publication which is under contract to another publisher? With the approval of the other publisher, we have worked on preliminary editions of another publisher’s book. In such a case, the author is enabled to use the material in the classroom for a few years before it is released for publication in a final edition.

6. What types of formats and bindings does Stipes offer? We are in no way limited in this sense. The economy involved is the only limitation. Some of our publications are cloth, some with standard wrap-around paperback binding (perfect binding), some with spiral wire and plastic binding, and some with a specially designed binding that allows for tearout sheets.

7. Will Stipes permit photographs and other illustrations? Yes. All types can be used, including 4-color illustrations. Here again, economy is the only limitation.

8. Will my publication be reasonably priced? Yes. Very few publishers have their own printing facilities. We do have our own complete facilities. On occasion, we will farm out work the way most publishers do for all of their publications. However, our prices are based on our normal costs, which do not include a “middleman” mark-up that many publishers must include.

9. What sort of manuscript preparation is required? We have no magic formula. All we require is that the manuscript is legible. We can work directly from any type of computer disk. We usually request that the author supply us with a hard copy in addition to the disk. We also frequently work from camera-ready copy provided by the author.

10. Will I get help in the preparation of my manuscript? Yes. We work closely with our authors. We are not a giant corporation, and we feel that our personal working relationship with our authors is the essence of our business. We do not presume to be expert in each of our authors’ fields. However, we can give some editorial assistance and arrange for critical evaluations if the author desires us to do so.

11. Can disks or CD’s be included with my book? Yes, we include these media. We usually insert them in a pocket attached to the inside front or back cover and shrinkwrap the book.

12. Will Stipes take care of obtaining permissions to use copyrighted materials which I have included in my manuscript? Yes. We will contact the copyright holder and obtain all necessary permissions. We also pay any required permission fees. When we are faced with unusually high permission fees, we consult with the author before proceeding.

13. Will my publication be copyrighted? Yes. It can be copyrighted either in our name or that of the author. In addition, all books that are marketed nationally are listed in the various publications such as Books in Print that are used throughout the country to facilitate finding and ordering a book.

14. Can I obtain references regarding Stipes? Yes. We are more than happy to refer you to any of our authors. We have authors on campuses from coast to coast and in Canada. We feel that the goodwill we have with our authors is our greatest asset. Please do ask us for references.

15. Will I lose control over my manuscript once it is turned over to Stipes? No. We do not presume to make reprintings, revisions, editorial changes, or other changes without the author’s consent. No decision regarding the handling of your book, manual, syllabus, or outline will be made without your consent.

16. How quickly can my book be produced? Because we have our own facilities, we are able to rush books through our plant. Sometimes we have been able to get a book out in a matter of two to three weeks. However, normal scheduling requires that we have two to four months. This is flexible, and we will be happy to do our best to accommodate your needs.

17. How long has Stipes been in the publishing business? We have been in business for over 60 years.

18. How many titles does Stipes have? We have more than 300 titles.

19. What is the standard Stipes royalty? Our standard royalty is 15% of the list price.

20. How will my book be distributed? Stipes publications are sold through all normal publishing outlets, including your local campus bookstores.

21.  What kind of information can I furnish Stipes for evaluation of the commercial potential of the material? See the "Prospectus Guideline" below.

Prospectus Guidelines

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     This outline is intended to provide a general frame of reference for evaluation of the commercial potential of your material.  Please discuss with us any questions it may arouse, or any concerns you may have about preparing material for review.

I.   MARKET CONSIDERATIONS

A. General Market
     1. What course is the text intended for?
     2. What are the prerequisites for the course?
B. Market Segment
     1. What segment of the market is your text designed for?
     2. Discuss which competing books will be closest to your text in level and appeal.

II.  THE TEXT

A. Brief Description
     1. In one or two paragraphs describe the work, its rationale, approach, and point of view.
B. Outstanding Features
     1.  List briefly what you consider to be the outstanding features of the work.
C.  Apparatus
     1.  Please outline the pedagogical elements of a typical chapter.
     2.  Please discuss all the ancillary items you feel will be needed to publish a competitive text.
D.  Competition
     1.  Identify the leading texts and briefly discuss their main strengths and weaknesses compared to your text.
     2.  What aspects of your topical coverage are similar to or different from the competition?

III.  STATUS OF THE TEXT

A.  Schedule for completing the text
     1.  When do you expect to have a completed manuscript?
B.  Length
     1.  What is the goal for the page length of a bound text?
     2.  What is the estimate of the length of text in manuscript pages?
C.  Competition
     1.  Do you intend to class-test the material?

 IV.  STATUS OF THE GRAPHICS

A.  Layout features
     1.  What special layout features (spot color, shadings, gradients, bleeds) do you plan to employ?
B.  Illustrations
     1.  How many illustrations, photos and line-drawings (graphs and diagrams) do you plan to include?  C.  How are these illustrations generated, and in what form will they be submitted?

V. ADDITIONAL MATERIALS

A.  Annotated Table of Contents
     1.  A detailed outline provides reviewers with a sense of how the material will be organized and developed.
B.  Vita
     1.  We would appreciate a current vita.
C.  Sample chapters
     1.  Sample chapters need not be chronological – it would be advisable to prepare the chapters you feel initially most comfortable in writing.