Publishing Your Book with SIAM

Chapter 2

Proposal Submission, the Review Process, and the Contract Decision

All potential SIAM authors are required to submit a proposal describing their book project so we can have the project reviewed by 3 to 5 experts in the field. To submit a proposal, you’ll need to assemble the following items:

• a completed copy of SIAM’s book proposal form, (for ASA Series use this form)
• a preface that describes the scope and aim of the book,
• a table of contents with a short description of each chapter, and
• a list of sample references.

We encourage you to submit some draft material—as much as you feel comfortable sending out for an external review—because reviewers generally prefer to see some of the manuscript before forming an opinion.

Once you submit these items to your acquisitions editor, they will be sent out for review. As reviews are returned to your acquisitions editor, they will be shared with you, although the reviewers will remain anonymous. The process of soliciting and receiving reviews generally takes about 8 weeks.

The review process is valuable because you will receive feedback on how to improve your book, perhaps by broadening its scope or making the content more accessible to readers. This is typically the stage when changes and suggestions can easily be incorporated into your proposal or draft manuscript. You may not agree with all reviewer suggestions, of course, but most will be useful as you revise. Your acquisitions editor will discuss with you the reviewer suggestions that SIAM feels are most important to follow.

If the reviews are positive or recommend publication with revision, your acquisitions editor will present your book for contract decision to our Book Acquisitions Committee. This committee judges the technical merit and marketability of your book and also discusses any production issues that need to be addressed in the contract (e.g., color figures). The committee will issue one of three decisions: (1) accept outright, (2) accept conditionally, or (3) decline. In the first case, a contract offer will be made, with terms to be negotiated by you and your acquisitions editor. In the second case, you may be offered a contract containing guidelines set by the Book Acquisitions Committee that will need to be met before the book is published. In the third case, we will not offer a contract because, for example, the book does not address the needs of the SIAM audience. However, if your book is declined, we hope you will have benefited from our review process and will be able to find a suitable publisher for your book.

If your book is accepted for publication, you should be aware that another peer review—known as the final review—will be conducted after you submit your complete and revised manuscript. Your manuscript will be checked for any remaining content-related revisions that may need to be made before your book can begin the editing and production process. At the same time, SIAM staff will be reviewing your manuscript for any issues with the formatting or electronic files to resolve any potential problems prior to production.