Hi Johanna,
 I have only published one book, Rhythms of Writing, so I respond with rather
limited experience.  But I would not sign that contract without asking some
questions.  Here are some of the things to consider.

1.  Are they giving you an advance and how much ?
2.  What are your royalties?  Will royalties be based on list price, invoice
price, or net receipts?
3. Have a lawyer read the contract.  There is legal terminology and
consequences that are difficult for lay people to decipher.
4. Who is the editor and do you have assurance the editor will be there
through the publication of your book?   I learned this from a publisher friend
who signed a contract and a few months later the editor left.   The new editor
didn't like my friend's book, making the publication difficult and slow.
5.  There used to be a website for Text and Academic Authors.  I can't find it
on the web, and the old address doesn't connect.  I will do more search
engines if you want me to.  I have saved some of the info gleaned there.  Will
copy salient points:
Ask the editor:
6. Tell me about your current list.  How many titles are there?  What
disciplines and curricular level?  What are your lead titles?  What sort of
market share do they have?  Are any of them market leaders?  The answers to
these questions will tell you something about your editor's place in the
pecking order and about how much attention your project is likely to get.
7. How do you envision positioning my book vis-a-vis the competition?  This
will tell you what your editor sees as your work's competitive advantages.
8. Who are the principal competitors in this market?  If you have not already
submitted to these competitors, you should seriously consider doing so
immediately.  The best leverage you can have in negotiating a book contract is
to know that there is another interested publisher in the wings.
9. How big a market are we talking about?  What are your sales projections?
10. What would you envision doing to promote a book like mine?  Will review
copies be sent out to instructors – where?
11. Roughly what percent of the titles you sign actually make it to print?
(This was an important one for me. I did not realize that signing a contract
does not mean the publisher will publish it.  There's a clause in contracts
that says the book has to meet satisfactory qualifications, something to that
effect.  At any rate, in asking the question, I found editors that published
all books they signed, and others who did not have such a good record.)
That is the end of the printed material I have,  Now, back to my questions:
12.  Will they send it out for review?  That, I would think, is a necessity.
One of the things my publisher friend told me was not to sign any contract
until I got the reviews.  Not all of them will be positive and it is important
to know how the editor will respond.  For example, if half of the reviewers
don't like your approach, where does the editor stand?  I had to rewrite so
much of my book to satisfy the two sets of reviewers my book was sent to.  It
was painful, but at least I had a comfortable working relationship with my
developmental editor and we had the same visions for the book.  You want an
editor who sees the same strengths as you do, who will not compromise what you
feel is the integrity of your book.  This I think is essential.
13.  Who will you be working with?  A developmental editor?  I think it is
essential to meet that person.
14.  How  well is this publisher respected in your field?  If most instructors
don't buy this publisher's books, you may have harder time selling your book.
Who has the top sellers, and do you want to approach them?  This sounds
mercenary right now, but you will churn yourself inside out in writing this
book and when it's all over, you want it to be as worthwhile as possible.
15.  When do they envision publishing this book?

 This has been quite a lengthy response.   Sorry if I gave you more than you
needed.  Good luck, Johanna.  Please let me know how I can be of any help.
Pam Dykstra

Johanna Rubba wrote:

> Hey, anyone out there who has published a book ... a publisher's rep.
> approached me today about publishing my grammar book. The publisher is
> Kendall/Hunt. I am completely green about publishing a book, and don't
> want to get snookered, as the British say. Can anybody give me advice? I
> can send a few questions to you if you respond to me personally. I have
> a contract on my desk and have to decide by 11/29.
>
> One thing that makes me suspicious is that they do not automatically
> send the book out for peer-review, although they will do so if I request
> it. Anyway, I'll pose more questions if I get responses.
>
> Thanks in advance.
> Johanna
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Johanna Rubba   Assistant Professor, Linguistics
> English Department, California Polytechnic State University
> One Grand Avenue  • San Luis Obispo, CA 93407
> Tel. (805)-756-2184  •  Fax: (805)-756-6374 • Dept. Phone.  756-259
> • E-mail: [log in to unmask] •  Home page: http://www.calpoly.edu/~jrubba
>                                        **
> "Understanding is a lot like sex; it's got a practical purpose,
> but that's not why people do it normally"  -            Frank  Oppenheimer
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~