In scholarly publishing, it can take up to two years for an accepted article to appear in a journal, and books take even longer. By the time the research is published, it can already seem outdated. Currents, a new short book series published by Gallaudet University Press, will facilitate the timely publication of original, innovative scholarship that fosters discussion and future research.
Born digitally, a Current will take three forms: ebook, print-on-demand paperback, and an online Manifold edition. Manifold is an elegant online publishing platform that allows scholars to include material not possible in a printed book or downloadable ebook, such as high-resolution video, full-color images, and interactive objects.
Currents is for ideas that need to stretch beyond the word limit of a journal article, but don’t require the length or extensive documentation of a traditional monograph. All Currents will be between 15,000 and 30,000 words, and will have a strong central argument that is both concise and fresh. A Current can originate from master’s theses, blog posts, Twitter threads, conference papers or posters, etc. The series will span the range of our publication program: deaf education, deaf history, deaf studies, disability studies, signed language interpretation and translation, and signed language linguistics.
Prospective authors are also encouraged to include videos of any length. They could be signed summaries of the book’s sections (and can be done in any sign language as long as they are captioned in English) or a complete translation of the text. The print and ebook editions will have URLs as well as QR codes so readers can be taken to the video content immediately.
Currents will be published on an expedited schedule without sacrificing scholarly quality: every Current will be peer-reviewed, board-approved, and professionally edited.
Gallaudet University Press is currently accepting manuscript proposals for the series.
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
To inquire about potential interest in your project, you may submit a brief email query describing your project. Or you may proceed directly to submitting a proposal. We welcome proposals for projects in all our fields of publication. Your proposal must include the following information:
- a description of the project, including its title, subject, purpose, scope, a summary of its main contributions to scholarship, potential target audience(s), and its relationship to existing literature on the topic;
- a statement on why the project is particularly suitable for Currents;
- a draft table of contents and chapter summaries;
- manuscript specifics, including estimated word length, completion date, any video content you plan to include, and number and type of illustrations (note: manuscripts should have no more than 10 illustrations);
- an outline of subvention sources (if any) that might be available to support a potential open-access Manifold edition;
- a list of 5 to 10 appropriate reviewers, including their name, email address, and institutional affiliation (please do not contact reviewers yourself);
- a list of any previously published portions of your proposed manuscript;
- your current curriculum vitae or résumé; and
- your contact information.
In addition, you may also include 2–3 sample chapters, such as an introductory chapter and 1–2 substantive chapters. Please note that sample chapters are optional; we do not need them in order to consider your project.
Please send proposals to: currents@gallaudet.edu
WHAT TO EXPECT NEXT
The internal review of your proposal should take no more than two weeks. If we decide to pursue the project further, we will invite you to submit the full manuscript, which will then be evaluated by outside specialists.* If they support publication of your work, the project will be sent to our Editorial Board for final approval. Upon board approval, we will offer a contract to publish the book.
Following board approval and submission of the final manuscript, all Currents will be published within approximately twelve weeks.
If you have any questions, please contact us at: currents@gallaudet.edu. We look forward to receiving your book proposal.
* Note that in order to ensure that the peer review process is conducted ethically and involves relevant stakeholders, the evaluation of your manuscript might take up to ten weeks. We strive for transparency throughout the entire process, so if you have any questions regarding the review process or the status of your manuscript, please get in touch with our acquisitions editor.
