The Full Manuscript Review Process

After receiving your proposal, the editor will review your materials carefully, potentially sharing them with colleagues and series editors as appropriate. We make every effort to confirm receipt of proposals and review materials in a timely manner.

If we decide your proposal is a potential fit, we will invite you to submit your full manuscript for peer review.

Once you have been invited to submit a complete manuscript, please send it to your editor as an email attachment following these guidelines:

  • Please include a brief, one-page abstract.
  • Please submit the manuscript in Word or PDF format, preferably as one file.
  • The manuscript should be completely double-spaced, including notes and references, in 12 point Times New Roman or a similar font
  • Please include a title page, a table of contents, and a bibliography or list of works cited.
  • Illustrations, figures, tables, and maps should be included, preferably embedded in the manuscript. However, you do NOT need to obtain permissions or high quality versions at this point.
  • Note: if you are submitting an edited volume, please be sure to update the list you submitted with your original proposal with the full names and affiliations of all of your volume's contributors. You should also be sure that each contributor uses the same font and citation style in their submissions.

Simultaneous Submission Policy

SUNY Press does not review manuscripts currently under review with another publisher. By sending us your complete manuscript, you are implicitly acknowledging that it is not under review elsewhere.

Peer Review

All scholarly books published by SUNY Press are subject to anonymous peer review and final approval of our editorial board. When you are invited to send your full manuscript, we will also ask you to send a separate list of reviewer suggestions. This list should include the names and institutional affiliations of five or six individuals you believe are qualified to review your manuscript. We will consider your suggestions as we come up with a list of readers. Please do not suggest anyone who might have a potential conflict of interest. This includes anyone who:

  • Is located on your campus, even if in a different department
  • Coauthored or coedited another book with you
  • Was on your dissertation committee
  • Has communicated in depth with you about this specific manuscript
  • Is a close personal friend
  • Is a mentor/mentee

Also, if you strongly believe a particular individual would not evaluate your manuscript in an objective and impartial manner, you should inform your editor. Do not contact any potential readers yourself, as this compromises the anonymity of the review process. Unless the readers specifically waive their anonymity, their identities will not be revealed to you.

How Does the Peer Review Process Work?

Along with the manuscript, readers are given our reader’s report form, which asks them to evaluate the significance and quality of your manuscript. Questions posed to readers include:

  • How does this manuscript contribute to its field?
  • Is the scholarship sound?
  • How effective is the manuscript’s organization?
  • Does the manuscript have a readable style?
  • Are there any sections of the manuscript that could be shortened, condensed, or omitted without loss? Would the manuscript benefit from amplifying any of its parts?
  • What are this manuscript’s greatest strengths?
  • Does the manuscript require further work to make it publishable, or if it is currently publishable, would certain revisions improve it?
  • What are the most important books already published on this subject, and how does this manuscript compare with them?
  • Please describe the audience for this manuscript. What kinds of courses might use this book?

The length of the peer review process may depend on, among other things, the nature and length of the project and the timeliness and availability of reviewers. If you have a question about the review process or the status of your manuscript, please contact your editor.

The Reviews Are In: What Happens Next?

Once your peers have submitted their reports, your editor will evaluate them carefully. Under ordinary circumstances, these are the most common results of the review process:

  • You will be asked for a brief written response to the readers’ concerns and suggestions (if any) and to outline your final revision plans.
  • You will be invited to revise and resubmit the manuscript for another round of peer review.
  • The Press will decline to publish the manuscript.

If your response to the readers’ reports is deemed satisfactory by the acquiring editor, your manuscript will be presented to the SUNY Press editorial board for final consideration. The editorial board consists of faculty members drawn from campuses across the State University of New York system. The mission of the editorial board is to make a final recommendation that the project be accepted for publication or rejected. The editorial board meets on a monthly basis.

Your written response to the reviews will be shared with the editorial board, along with the manuscript, the original reader reports, your CV, and a summary of the project prepared by your editor. You will be notified promptly and in writing of the decision reached at the editorial board meeting.