NextGen Genealogy: The DNA Connection is moving toward publication

With great haste we make slow progress. I just returned the copy edits for my new book to the editor. Another step closer to the publication date but still a few steps to go. 

For those of you who have not experienced the process, I'll review it for you. I signed the contract last September. The manuscript was due at the publisher at the end of December. That deadline was missed and my co-author had to withdraw because of success in other areas of her life as a genetic genealogist. It was April before I finished the part she was to have written. 

First the acquisition editor read the manuscript and approved it to go into production. Then it was reviewed for plagiarism, copyright and legal permissions from those whose material was being included. Here the progress seemed to bog down. I'm not sure whether this was due to an illness of the production editor or because of the cycle adopted by my publisher. The cover was developed as soon as the manuscript went into production. Authors, at least with this publisher, have no say about the cover. We can negotiate almost any other aspect but not the cover.

Manuscripts for other books I have done with this publisher were due at the end of December. This allowed the books to be available for showing to thousands of librarians who attend the American Library Association Conference typically held at the end of June. Since the current title missed that cycle, it seemed to fall into the next cycle. That cycle is to get it out in November so that it could be available for Christmas.

The production editor assigns the manuscript to a copy editor who reads it for grammar, footnote format, etc. The manuscript is returned to the author for concurrence with any changes and to answer any questions from the copy editor. This is the last point at which the author can make any changes or add new material. 

The manuscript is returned to the copy editor for final formatting. It is then converted into page proofs. These are returned to the author for one last review. At this stage only the most minute changes can be made so that the pagination will not be disrupted. The index is created at this point. I prefer to do my own indexing. Our work schedule calls for me to be indexing in mid-September. The page proofs and index are returned to the copy editor who places every thing in final form and forwards it to the publisher for printing and distribution.

If you should order this book from the publisher, be advised that the electronic format offered was designed primarily for library servers and may not be what you have come to expect from Kindle. The book also can be preordered from Amazon but the discount code shown above will not be honored there. 

Makes one want to investigate self publishing.