10 spots available. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and will remain open until the club is filled (or March 29th, whichever comes first).
publishing a book is a monumental project.
Yet most scholarly authors are left to navigate it on their own.
As a developmental editor and publishing advisor for scholarly writers, I’ve supported thousands of academics reaching for the same goal: to publish an outstanding book with a competitive scholarly press. My courses, books, and workshops focus on demystifying the hidden curriculum of book publishing, giving writers the knowledge and tools they need to craft persuasive book proposals and award-worthy manuscripts.
And yet I’ve seen firsthand that a scholarly writer can attend all the classes in the world about getting their book published and still not know which path is the right one for them to take. It’s impossible to predict and plan for every hypothetical scenario when you’re at the start of your publishing journey, and you no longer have a dedicated advisor helping you along the way as you (hopefully) had with your dissertation. It’s easy to become confused and overwhelmed by anxiety when you receive a cryptic response from an editor or hear conflicting advice from mentors who barely understand today’s publishing industry better than you do.
By joining the Manuscript Works Publishing Club, you’ll get an individualized book publishing plan and personal advice from a trusted expert.
Information about writing and publishing a scholarly book is more plentiful than it’s ever been. That’s a good thing in principle, because it means that knowledge isn’t being gatekept as it once was. But access to so much information can also lead to overwhelm and decision fatigue. And, unfortunately, some of the advice circulating out there is just plain wrong. (I have seen the Reddit threads and I have been alarmed. Don’t get me started on ChatGPT.)
The aim of Pub Club is to quiet the noise and give you a supportive path toward achieving your book goals, with expert advising at every step.
When you join the Pub Club, I will get to know you and your book project deeply, and we will form a strategy for writing and publishing your book that accounts for your unique goals, needs, and personality. Then I’ll be there for you with regular advising sessions so you’ll never be at a loss for how to reach out to publishers, how to respond to an editor, or how to deal with a peer review. I’ll personally review your book proposal and manuscript revision plan. And then I’ll support you in fielding offers and understanding your publishing agreement. If rejections come up, I’ll help you put those in perspective, too, so you can pivot confidently without losing too much time.
A full year of resources and support
The Publishing Club will launch on Friday, May 1, 2026 with a half-day planning lab where you’ll get an overview of the entire book publishing process and a comprehensive to-do list for scholarly authors. During this session you’ll map out your personal book publishing master plan.
Following the planning lab, you’ll have a private advising meeting with me (Laura Portwood-Stacer) to go over your master plan and establish realistic milestones for the year. We’ll solidify your goals including the audiences you want to reach and the publishers you’ll target.
You’ll then get to enroll in my Book Proposal Accelerator course as a private advisory client. This means that I’ll privately review your coursework and offer personalized feedback on your project during the course. I’ll also review your completed proposal and meet with you one-on-one to discuss your submission strategy. As a Pub Club member, you may choose to enroll in either or both sessions of the Accelerator offered in 2026 (May 18–June 30th and/or September 8–October 23).
You’ll also join my Manuscript Development Workshop. As a private advisory client in that course, you can submit your coursework for my private review and I’ll personally review your book revision plan and meet with you to discuss it one-on-one. This means you’ll have the opportunity to get developmental feedback on your book’s argument, evidence, structure, and style before you submit your package to publishers. As a Pub Club member, you may choose to enroll in either or both sessions of the Manuscript Development Workshop offered in 2026 (March 2–31 and/or July 6–August 6, with the possibility of a third session November 9–December 11).
You will also get six additional advisory meetings with me during your membership in Pub Club (nine advisory meetings total). Prior to our meetings you may send me publishing documents to review, such as your full book proposal draft, your book’s chapter outline, communications with editors, peer reviews and response memos, publishing contracts, author marketing questionnaires, and promotion plans. At our meetings I’ll offer concrete feedback, advice, and pep talks, all informed by a deep understanding of your book and your goals.
You’ll keep lifetime access to all course curriculum and I’ll provide you with recordings and transcripts of our advising meetings so you can refer back to them at any time even after the year-long run of Pub Club is over.
Please note that the private advising in Publishing Club does not include hands-on developmental editing of your manuscript or chapters. However, I will be happy to advise on whether you would benefit from developmental editing and I can refer you to trusted developmental editors who I think would be good matches for you and your project.
who’s a good candidate for publishing club?
You’re highly motivated to submit your book proposal and sample chapters (or full manuscript) to publishers by the end of 2026 (at the latest).
Because membership in Pub Club lasts for one year, you will get the most out of it if you’re prepared to hit the ground running on your publishing journey as soon as possible. By completing your book proposal and manuscript revision plan and submitting your package to publishers by the end of 2026, you’ll hopefully be able to get support through the next stages of the process—responding to peer reviews, fielding offers, and making a promotion plan for your book—within your year of membership ending in April 2027. The earlier you submit your proposal package, the more time you’ll have to deal with the subsequent steps. If your manuscript is nearly or completely drafted when joining Pub Club, you’ll be very well positioned. However, you may not need a full manuscript if you are open to an advance contract and you know that your target publishers have the potential to offer one based on review of your proposal and sample chapters alone. In this case, you can join if you have one or two sample chapters nearly completely drafted.
I welcome first-time book authors with a well-developed project who need to make efficient use of limited time.
If you are already on the tenure track and your clock is ticking, I can support you in Pub Club.
If you are not on the tenure track but you still plan to seek tenure-track employment, Pub Club may not be the best fit for you. I tend to recommend that authors writing a book for tenure wait to commit to a publisher until they’ve actually landed in the department where they will make their tenure case.
I especially welcome repeat book authors who want to take a more intentional approach this time around.
If you’ve written a book before, you already know how opaque and stressful the publishing process can be. My goal will be to help you seize your agency and publish your next book how you want to, so you can feel even more confident in approaching publishers and even more satisfied with the results you get.
I also welcome writers who are off the tenure track, retired, and/or employed outside of academia.
I can help you clarify what you really want to get out of publishing your scholarly book and figure out the best path to getting the results you’re seeking.
Because Pub Club doesn’t include review or developmental editing of your manuscript itself, it’s ideal for writers who prefer to write and self-edit their manuscripts independently while also receiving big-picture advice and tailored support from a trusted publishing expert. You will learn a systematic method for evaluating and revising your own manuscript in my Manuscript Development Workshop. Additionally, in my Book Proposal Accelerator and our one-on-one advising meetings, you’ll be able to refine your book’s argument, overview, and chapter outline with personal feedback. I just won’t be reading and editing your actual manuscript draft.
If you struggle to get writing done on your own, frequently miss deadlines or let other tasks take priority over your book writing, or you’re still conceptualizing your project, Pub Club is likely not the right fit for you. Not because those things make you an inferior scholar or writer—they don’t, and they are very common struggles. I simply think your time and money would be better invested working with someone who offers productivity coaching and can support you with those particular issues in ways that I can’t.
Questions about whether you’re a good candidate for Publishing Club? Email support@manuscriptworks.com and ask away.
Even if Pub Club is not the right fit for you at this time, you are still very welcome to enroll in my courses this year to get targeted support with developing your book proposal and self-editing your manuscript.
What’s the expected time commitment?
I intend for every minute of your time spent in Publishing Club to feed back into your progress on writing and publishing your book. There will be no busy work, group work, or required peer interaction (though you’re welcome to connect with other members outside the club if you wish).
You should plan to attend the half-day planning lab on May 1st. This meeting will be exclusive for Pub Club members and thus limited to a small number of participants. It will take place between 8am and 12pm Pacific (11am and 3pm Eastern), including regular breaks. A recording will be provided but I strongly encourage you to attend live.
Your private advising meetings will me will last 45 minutes to an hour, and you will have nine of these meetings in total over the year of the program. I recommend that we set a regular schedule for these meetings (at a mutually agreeable time) so that we are checking in on a roughly monthly basis until your proposal package is under review with publishers. Then we can resume meeting when you have peer reviews in hand and offers to deal with.
Beyond the planning lab and private advising meetings, you can invest as much or as little of your time as you’d like in my Book Proposal Accelerator and Manuscript Development Workshop. Check out those course pages for a sense of the meeting schedule for each program. All live meetings are recorded and asynchronous participation is completely acceptable.
Your advisor
Hi, I'm Laura Portwood-Stacer, creator of the Manuscript Works Publishing Club. I've been a professional developmental editor and publishing advisor for scholarly authors since 2015. Prior to starting my editorial business, I earned a PhD in communication from the University of Southern California and taught courses in media and cultural studies at New York University.
You may know me from my books on scholarly writing, editing, and publishing: The Book Proposal Book: A Guide for Scholarly Authors (Princeton University Press, 2021) and Make Your Manuscript Work: A Guide to Developmental Editing for Scholarly Writers (Princeton UP, 2025). I also write a weekly newsletter for scholarly writers and publishing professionals.
I grew up in Michigan, moved to California for grad school, and relocated to New York (Brooklyn and Long Island) for a decade. In 2020, I moved back to Los Angeles where I’m currently based. I’m an avid knitter, a parent of two kids in elementary school, and a two-time Jeopardy! champion. To learn more about me and the other programs I offer, check out ManuscriptWorks.com.
how much does it cost?
The cost for a year of membership in Publishing Club is $8000. This covers the half-day planning lab, nine private advisory meetings, unlimited enrollment in the Book Proposal Accelerator and Manuscript Development Workshop, and private review of your complete book proposal draft and manuscript revision plan.
Credit card payments are accepted, though checks or direct deposits are preferred when possible.
I am happy to work with your institution to set up direct payment if you have professional development or research funds that can be used for this program.
A ten-installment payment plan of $880 per month is available for those paying out of pocket (without institutional funds). Total payment must be completed by the end of 2026.
If you are accepted into Pub Club, an $880 non-refundable deposit (or payment in full) will be required by April 15th to hold your spot in the program. If on the payment plan, addition payments will be due on the first of the month from May to December.
how to apply
If you are interested in joining Publishing Club, please fill out the application form at the bottom of this page.
I will review your application to make sure we’re a good fit to work together. If I think I’m equipped to help you get the results you’re looking for, I’ll reach out to you to set up a brief meeting so you can get any questions answered about the program and decide if you truly want to participate. I know it’s a big investment of time and money, so I want to make sure you feel 100% certain before moving forward. I may have some additional questions for you as well, to help me assess whether I’m the right person to support you.
If we decide to work together, my client support specialist Rebecca will send you an invoice and enrollment agreement. She will work with you to arrange payment whether through your institution or on an out-of-pocket payment schedule.
The Pub Club is limited to ten members for 2026. I will review applications and set up meetings on a rolling basis. The application form will close on March 29th or when the 10 spots are filled, whichever comes first.