Part 1 Prepublication Planning

Publication Planning Process (Revised February 2010)  

Prospective authors must submit a written proposal to the New York-New Jersey Trail Conference Publications Committee (600 Ramapo Valley Road, Mahwah, NJ 07430) that includes the following information. Contract negotiation and agreement to follow the Trail Conference's Style Sheet are part of the acceptance process.

All proposals must indicate

  • Author's contact information
  • Overview of content
  • Target audience
  • Schedule of materials delivery
  • Estimated number of pages
  • Sample materials
  • Competing titles 

Proposal Guidelines  

Type of book - classified by the dominant means of description.

  • Guide- a mile by mile description of a trail or trails. example: Long Path Guide
  • Trails - description forindividual trails which the reader will link together to make a hike, example: New York Walk Book
  • Hikes - descriptions of dfhikes including information about what one sees. example: Circuit Hikes in New Jersey
  • Other - coffee table, stories of hiking experiences, informational, children's, etc

Scope:

  • Geographic area - example: Bear Mountain-Harriman State Park (Harriman Trails)
  • Theme - example: history (Iron Mines Trails)
  • Intended audience - example: residents of Westchester County (Walkable Westchester) 
  • Outline - what the book will cover including chapter headings
  • Introductory material - outline or list of what is likely to be included, which is be 10% or less ofthe total number of pages
  • Side bars - whether or not included and if so, what topics 
  • Background material - whether there will be information about geology, flora, fauna, and history,etc. and the format in which it will be presented such as separate chapters, orwithin each chapter as text, as side bars, or at the end of a chapter.

Illustrative materials

  • Drawings - who supplies
  • Photographs - who supplies
  • Maps - topographic or schematic

 

Proposed

  • Time frame - length of time you expect to take
  • Size - approximate pages

Sample chapter

  • Text of at least one chapter or representative hike that includes driving directions and  public transportation
  • information about the park(s) such as parking availability, fee if charged, contact information, web site address, restrictions, other services,etc.

Optional

  • Suggested title
  • Bibliography or further readings
  • Index - whether or not you want to include, but is necessary for "trails" types ofbooks

Note: The Publication Committee will assign a project manager/editor and material will be checked by someone other than the author.

 

 

 

Sample Materials Submission:

Each project being considered will have a complete proposal form, a sample chapter that includes all elements that intend to be included: illustrations and graphics, maps, sidebar material, and manuscript representative of all type sections. See Example.

MarketAnalysis Component for Book Proposals

  1. Develop print specifications for proposed book
    • Dimensions
    • Number of Pages:
    • Number of Illustrations
    •  
      • Black & White
    •  
      •  
        • Photographs   
    •  
      •  
        • Maps
    •  
      •  
        • LineArt
    •  
      • Color
    •  
      •  
        • Photographs
    •  
      •  
        • Maps
    •  
      •  
        • LineArt
    • Cover art description
    • Other special features
    • Companion maps, etc.
  2. Research competitive titles
    • Identify as many other similar publications (current or out-of-print) and complete the "Researching Competition" form (from manual).

Analysis

  1. Estimate cost and price of proposed book using cost calculator spreadsheet.
    • Determine the optimum length of time before publishing the next revision
    •  
      • When will the author be ready?
    •  
      • When will the information be obsolete?
    •  
      • Is it a brand new book (lot of errors) or a stable revision
    • Determine the monthly sales average over the period before the next release.
    •  
      • Compare to other similar books in similar markets (i.e.Walkable Westchester and Hiking Long Island are both geographically limited compared to the Walk Books.)
    •  
      • If no comparables available, consider
    •  
      •  
        • Popularityof hiking area covered?
    •  
      •  
        • Untapped markets?
    • Multiply the monthly sales average times the optimum revision timeframe (this is the print run)
    • Estimate total production costs (editing, indexing, layout, cartography, artwork, covers, printing, etc.)
    • Choose a price based on a multiple of 4x-5x times printing and production costs
  2. Compared to books on the market
    • Compare to competition
    •  
      • If no competition, ask why
    •  
      •  
        • No market for this publication?
    •  
      •  
        • Great opportunity to publish?
  3. Make decision to publish or not based on cost feasibility and degree to which the proposed book fulfills mission.

 

Acceptance/RejectionCriteria:

Proposals will be presented at the monthly PublicationsCommittee Meeting for review and voted upon. Members will consider how the proposed title would enhance or duplicate current Trail Conference offerings, impact production resources in use, and affect Publication Budget funds allocated for the fiscal year. Publications Chair will review the sample materials for acceptability.

Preliminary BudgetDevelopment/Costing/Sales Projections:

Prior to final acceptance, all materials will need to have a preliminary budget prepared, including projected sales, to justify development and production. Preliminary budgets will be approved by________________________ prior to final acceptance.

Author Contracts/Agreements:

All materials published by the Trail Conference need to be covered by an agreement or contract. Without an agreement or contract, copyright and rights cannot be determined and payment (if any, strive for donations)cannot made. Written agreements and contracts protect both the Trail Conference and volunteers by delineating responsibilities as well as establishing schedule parameters. 

Scheduling

 

  • Establish Market-Driven Publication Date
  • Revision Cycle
  • Form

 

 

Electronic Text Preparation

 

  • Manuscript Development Guidelines
    • Accuracy
    • Field Checking
    • Style
  • Manuscript Specifications

 

Visual Material Preparation

 

  • Maps, Photographs, Line Drawings
  • Digital Repurposing Considerations
  • Technical Specifications
  • Identification Methodology (Coding)

 

Preliminary Product Launch Meeting

 

  • Covers Design, Editing, Production, Manufacturing ofProduct
  • Schedule Development (see sample schedule on p. xx   )

 

 

Book Production Schedule (Form)

Title:                                                           Edition:

ISBN:

ProjectManager/Ed.:                                Printer:

Designer:                                                      Binder:

Pub. Date:

Stage

Begin

End

Comments

Launch Meeting

Order ISBN/CIP data

Manuscript

     To Proj. Mgr.

Field Check

Copy editing

Author Review

Return ms. to Project Manager

Review  edits and  add inputs

Final ms. to Design

Design

Sample Materials to Design

Sample Materials from Design

Approval

Cover Materials to Design

Cover Materials from Design

Approval

Cover Proofs

Cover Proof Approval

Pages

Pages 1  to Ed.

Pages 1 to Author

Pages 1 Returned to Ed. for review of author changes

Pages 1 to Design for correx.

Pages 2 to Ed.

Pages 2 to Author

Pages 2 Returned to for review of Author changes

Pages 2 to Design for correx.

Final Pages to Ed.

Final Pages to Author

Final pages to Design for correx.

Final illustrations. to Design

Final pages to Ed.

Final Disk to Printer

Stage

Begin

End

Comments

Illustrations

Initial material to artist/cart.

1st pass to Ed.

1st pass to Author

1st pass back to Ed.

Changes to artist/cart./design

2nd pass to Ed.

2nd pass to Author

2nd pass back to Ed.

Changes to artist/cart./design

Final to Ed.

Final to Design

 

Index

Pages to indexer

Ms. from. Indexer

Edit index

Edited ms. to Design

1st pages from Design

Edit/review pages

1st pages to Design for correx.

2nd  pages from Design

2nd pages to Design

Final pages

 

Printer (Text)

Digital Proofs/Pages to Ed.

Digital Proofs/Pages return to Ptr.

Approval

Check copy of Text to Ed.

Check copy of Text return to Ptr.

Shipping

Printer (Cover)

Disk to Printer

Digital color proofs to Ed.

Digital color proofs to Printer

Covers ship to printer

Binding

BOUND BOOK

 

Example Book Proposal

PROPOSAL FOR A BOOK ON HIKING IN THE NORTH JERSEY HIGHLANDS

Submitted to the Publications Committee of NYNJTC on June 20. 2002
George Petty

 

  1. Title: Hiking the Highlands: Woodland Trails in Northern NewJersey
  2. Classification:This is a Hikes book, according to the categories listed in the NYNJTC BookProposal guide.
  3. Scope: It will contain descriptions of 20 hikes in the Highlands,with details of sights and landmarks along the way.
    • Geographical area: The New Jersey Highlands, as geologically defined. An area of precambrianridges extending from Sterling Forest and Bearfort Mountain at the New Yorkborder to the southwestern end of the ridges at the Delaware River.
    • Theme: Hiking trails in your backyard
    • The intended reader includes New Jersey families looking for outdoor exercise near their homes, teachers and scout leaders interested in group hikes for young people, and more experienced hikerswho would like to know of trails to enjoy close to home. Not intended for athletes seeking tests of skill, or woodsmen interested in off-trail challenges
    • Outline: (See accompanying Table of Contents) Each hike description will includen on-technical comments on geological features, animals, birds, and plants;cautions and encouragements about the walk; frequent notes on mileage and time,discussion of options for cutting or extending the hike, and where appropriate comments on the history of the trail. The hikes are classified according to difficulty: Starters, Climbs and Scrambles, and Challenges. Information on transportation to the trailhead will be provided in a box at the top of thehike description. Innovations include locating the hike on a small schematic map of North Jersey at the top of the hike description; placing in the marginsof the description a small icon of flora and fuana to be seen at that place inthe hike, and providing eight pages of color pictures of typical Highlands geological features, birds and flowers. The marginal icons are line reductions of these pictures.
    • Introductory material: The Geology of the Highlands; Brief general history of Highlandstrails from old maps, records of early settlements, forestry records, mining histories, and their description in the first edition of the Trail Conference's New York Walk Book (1921); typical animals, birds, trees, shrubs and flowers;weather and seasonal change in the Highlands
    • Background material: one or two paragraphs of background as applicable to each hike will be provided at the beginning of the hike description.
  4. Illustrative Materials: Photographs of at least one significant landmark on each hike, and watercolors of typical geological features, animals, birdsand flowers found on thesse hikes. Photography by Marilyn Katz and Robert Whitney. Watercolors by Annette Collins. Schematic maps by Mike Siegel.
  5. Proposed time frame: 2 years from contract date.

 

Hiking the Jersey Highlands:   Wilderness in Your Backyard

 

Table of Contents 

  • Introduction
    • Trails in Highlands
    • History
    • Geology of the Highlands
    • Highlands Habitats
    • Wildflowers, Shrubs and Trees
    • Wildlife
  • Starter Hikes (Up to 4.6 Miles,3 hours)
    • Ringwood State Park: The Manor Loop (2.2 miles, 1 hour)
    • Allamuchy State Park: Deer Park Pond Loop (3.0 miles, 1 ½ hours)
    • Wawayanda State Park: Laurel Pond Loop  (2.1 miles, 1 ½ hours)
    • Hacklebarney State Park: Boundary Loop (4.2 miles, 2 hours)
    • Morris County Park: Pyramid Mountain Loop (4.2 miles, 2 ¼ hours)
    • Norvin Green State Forest: High Point Loop (3.5 miles, 3 hours)
    • Pequannock Watershed: Bearfort Mountain Lookout (4.6 miles, 3 hours)
  • Climbs and Scrambles (Up to 6miles,  4 hours)
    • Norvin Green State Forest: The Tourne Loop (1.6 miles, 1 hour)
    • Wawayanda State Park: Wawayanda Mountain (2.5 miles, 1 ½ hours)
    • Wawayanda State Park: Terrace Pond Loop (3.8 miles, 3 hours)
    • Norvin Green State Forest: Carris Hill Loop (4.5 miles,  3 ¾ hours)
    • Norvin Green State Forest: Buck Mountain Loop (4.7 miles,  3 ¾  hours)
    • Abram S. Hewitt State  Forest: Surprise Lake Loop (4.7 miles, 4 hours)
    • Jenny Jump State Park: Ghost Lake Loop (6 miles, 4 hours)
  • Challenges (up to 12 miles, 8 hours)
    • Wanaque Wildlife Mangement Area: Horsepond Mountain (5 miles, 4 hours)
    • Rockaway River Wildlife Management Area: Lost Lake (6.5 miles, 4 ½ hours)
    • Norvin Green State Forest: The Viewpoint Circle (8 miles, 6 hours)
    • Pequannock Watershed: The Highlands Trail (8.3 miles, 6 ½ hours)
    • North Jersey District Water Supply Commission: Stonetown Circular (9 miles, 7 hours)
    • Farny State Park: Split Rock Pond Circular (12 miles, 8 hours)

Competition 

  1. 30 Walks in New Jersey Kevin Dann,Gordon Miller / Paperback / Rutgers UniversityPress / July 1992 $14.95
  2. New Jersey Walk Book. New York : New York-New JerseyTrail Conference, 1998
  3. Scofield,Bruce. Circuit hikes in northern New Jersey / Bruce Scofield. Mahwah,N.J. : New York-New JerseyTrail Conference, 2001.
  4. Scofield, Bruce. 50 hikes in NewJersey : walks, hikes, and backpacking trips from the Kittatinniesinto Cape May / Bruce C. Scofield, Stella J.Green, H. Neil Zimmerman ; photographs by the authors. Woodstock, Vt.: Backcountry, c1997.
  5. Zatz, Arline, 1937- Besthikes with children in New Jersey / by Arline Zatz and Joel Zatz ; photographsby Arline Zatz and Joel Zatz. Seattle: Mountaineers, c1992.
  6. Lonely Planet New York, NewJersey and Pennsylvania Tom Smallman, David Ellis, Michael Clark / Paperback / Lonely Planet Publications;  2000 $17.59.
  7. Appalachian Trail Guide to NewYork-New Jersey Appalachian Trail Conference/ March 1998DanielD. Chazin (Editor) / Paperback / $17.95,
  8. Day Walker: 32 Hikes inthe New York Metropolitan Area  New York-New JerseyTrail Conference,  December 2001 $10.75,
  9. Iron Mine Trails Edward J. Lenik  New York-New JerseyTrail Conference; 1997; $8.95
  10. Great Rail-Trails of New Jersey: The Essential Outdoor Guide to theGarden State's Best Multi-Use Recreational Trails Built on Abandoned Railroad Grades; Craig P. Penna, Craig P. Della Penna, Valerie Vaughan (Editor); New England Cartographics; 1999; $15.25
  11. Hikes in the Mid-Atlantic States: Exploring theAppalachian Trail; Glenn Scherer, Don Hopey; 1998; $17.95
  12. Enjoying New Jersey Outdoors : A Year-RoundGuide to Outdoor Recreation in the Garden State and Nea rby Helen Lippman, Patricia Reardon; Rutgers University Press; 1991; 15.00
  13. Natural Wonders of New Jersey: ExploringWild and Scenic Places Hope Gruzlovic, Amy Cradic McGraw-Hill; 1999 $14.95
  14. New York and New Jersey : A Guide to the State and National Parks Barbara Sinotte; Hunter Publishing Inc; 1996; $11.95