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350 Main St., Malden, MA. Executive Editor: Steve Smith, Philosophy Editor: Jeff Dean. Advanced texts, symposium collections/Festschriften, translations. In print: several hundred. Publishes 25-30 per year.
Reviewer's comments: Blackwell's has a very large selection of titles in its philosophy catalog. The catalog is itself an impressive publication: considerable thought went into its design and printing. The illustrations are interesting and include a detail from a daVinci study. The catalog provides longer than usual descriptions of books' contents and/or reviewers' comments.
The editors state that authors are currently about half British (broadly speaking) and half American with representations from other countries as well. The subject matter is quite diverse. There are several books on truth, realism and its varieties, topics in the philosophy of science, topics in political philosophy, Wittgenstein and rights (animal, vegetable and human). There is relatively little history of philosophy (except for so-called modern philosophy), logic, phenomenology, American philosophy. There is one book pertaining to women's studies. No books in robotics, computer and computer science or artificial intelligence are listed. Possibly Blackwell publishes books in these areas under a rubric other than philosophy.
Books from this press are well designed and executed. Dust jackets are unusually attractive, with multitone reproductions. Bibliographies, notes at the end of the book and name and subject indexes are standard. (DS)
See also their Philosophy Resource site
124 Roberts Place, P.O. Box 250, Ithaca, NY 14851. Editor: John G. Ackerman. Anthologies on special topics, symposium collections (rare), translations, old-masters editions, single-author original works in all areas of philosophy, some philosophy for general public. In print: 100 cloth, 30 paper. Publishes 8-10 per year. Representative books: Wallace, Virtues and Vices; Stephen L. Darwall, Impartial Reason; Sorabji, Necessity, Cause and Blame; Morris, The Logic of God Incarnate. Most wants strong, well-written monographs that appeal across several subfields. Don't send highly technical work or Festschriften. Preferred method of contact: Letter with prospectus and sample chapters. Submit vita also. Extensive guidelines available. Simultaneous, dot-matrix submissions OK, no electronic submissions. Receives 10-12 philosophy submissions per month. Reply time: 1 week.
Advance contracts: sometimes, if 2 or more referees and faculty board approve prospectus and sample chapters; usually requires finished manuscript. Advances: rare; $500-$2,500. Royalties: 5%-10% of net receipts. Cloth books $18.50-$55.00; paper $4.95-$19.95. Time to publication: 11 months. Advertising: promotional fliers and mailings to philosophers, nomination for awards, displays at APA conventions. Complimentary copies: 10. Review copies: 30-40. Books set in type. Acid-free paper. Simultaneous cloth/paper editions sometimes; if cloth sells strongly and there seems to be significant course market, paper edition issued. Might seek subsidy for large work, especially a translation.
Press rates quality of manuscript and readers' reports as most important, along with a work's "fit" with other titles in its subfield ("We try to build thematic concentrations"). Timeliness of topic and in-house market analysis somewhat important, author's reputation slightly important, author's previous sales record irrelevant. Editor reads submitted material and decides whether or not to pursue project; sends promising submissions to two readers. If readers recommend publication, editor presents project to Press's faculty board, which decides whether or not to authorize a contract. Most common reasons for rejection: poor writing style, negative readers' reports, too narrow a market. Publisher reports "a vigorous attempt to increase the number of new titles in philosophy."
Reviewer's comments: Cornell University Press titles are mostly specialized scholarly treatments of the traditional spectrum of philosophy branches, including philosophy of literature (and the recent interest in Continental philosophy on this subject), of law, of history, of science. Technical and mostly analytic, they address a scholarly audience, beyond the ability of most undergraduates. Many of the subjects covered are interdisciplinary.
In the various philosophy branches there are scholarly studies or translations of historical philosophers (Vico, Kant, James). There are several collections of essays by recent well- known authors edited by someone not well known. The few anthologies collecting influential essays also represent unknown authors as editors. However, well more than half of Cornell's authors have established reputations. None of the titles are textbooks.
The books each include a substantial bibliography and an index or substitute, with helpful documentation and meticulous copy editing. Spacious pages of high-quality paper and print have a neat, readable layout. Prices are reasonable. Length of books ranges from 129 to 800 pages, with over half between 170 and 300 pages. (JB)
HACKETT PUBLISHING COMPANY, INC.
P.O. Box 44937, Indianapolis, IN 46204. Editor: W.H.Y. Hackett. Introductory and logic texts, anthologies for survey courses and on special topics, symposium collections/Festschriften, translations, old-masters editions, original single-author works in all areas of philosophy, philosophy for the general public. In print: 100 cloth, 116 paper. Publishes 15 per year. Representative books: Goodman, Languages of Art, Ways of Worldmaking; Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics, new translation by Irwin; Walsh and Hyman, eds., Philosophy in the Middle Ages. Most wants original works and new translations of important old masters. Don't send anthologies. Preferred method of contact: Letter of inquiry with proposal or outline of book. Submit also vita, evidence of market for book, comparison with similar books on market and table of contents and introductory chapters, several chapters or finished manuscript. Prefers no simultaneous submissions; dot-matrix and electronic submissions OK. Receives 6-7 philosophy submissions per month. Reply time: 3-6 months.
Advance contracts: yes; terms vary. Advances: yes. Books $2.45 and up. Time to publication: 1 year. Advertising: catalogue, space ads in philosophy journals, APA programs and occasionally New York Review of Books, direct mail. Complimentary copies: varies. Review copies: varies. Books set in type. Acid-free paper. Simultaneous cloth/paper editions and paper editions depending on market conditions. Seeks NEA subsidies for some demonstrably non-profitmaking books.
Publisher rates quality of manuscript and compatibility with Hackett's line most important; in-house market analysis and readers' reports also very important. Author's reputation and timeliness of topic not very important; previous sales record not at all important. Submissions sent to at least two outside referees. Most common reason for rejection is poor quality.
Reviewer's comments: The company was founded in 1972 by Bill and Frances Hackett. It remains independent of conglomerate control. Bill Hackett died recently, but the company says, "We cherish his legacy and aspire to continue his unique service to the scholarly community--to the human community." For once you can believe what you read. Hackett's aim is to make a wide range of valuable books in the above fields accessible to students and scholars. Bill Hackett once said, "Our first question in considering a title ... is not how many copies will it sell but how long will it last." It's this outlook that determines Hackett's choice of what to publish.
Hackett publishes philosophy in several distinct categories. Most titles are in both cloth and paper and are attractive and inexpensive.
1. Hackett Classics Series. New student editions or translations of primary sources, with scholarly aids. Important works of classical authors as well as some of their less familiar works, and works of less accessible authors. Editing, annotating and translating is by people of the caliber of G. Grube, T. Irwin, J. Schneewind, C.B. MacPherson and P. Gay.
2. Textbooks. Single works, like Beardsley's Aesthetics and Bradley and Swartz's Possible Worlds. Collections, like Morick's Challenges to Empiricism, Mahowald's Philosophy of Women, and Bowie's Ethical Theory in the Last Quarter of the Twentieth Century.
3. Dialogues. Introductions in dialogue form to philosophical problems. Most present a good range of the issues; style is clear and attractive to undergraduates. About 50-100 pages.
4. Reprints of valuable works, e.g. by E. Burtt, E. Nagel and I. Scheffler.
5. Original works, including those by new authors. Each year Hackett guarantees publication of the unpublished author's book that wins the Johnsonian Prize. Also new work by established authors, like G. Schlesinger, J. Cooper, O.K. Bouwsma and J. Bennett. Wide latitude exists--e.g., phenomenology, history of philosophy, philosophy of science and social theory.
In short, you should think of Hackett if your book can satisfy a demanding review process, you want it to be easily available and attractively made and you fall into one of these categories: you want to edit a classic not available in a good edition; you want to write or edit an imaginative text; you want to write an introductory dialogue; you can suggest a book worth reprinting; or you have a new book that will excite the philosophical public. Since this company has the right goals, and since it pursues them in a professional way, it's a unique resource for people who care about making philosophy accessible. (SHV)
HARCOURT BRACE
JOVANOVICH, INC., College Division
1250 Sixth Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101. Editor: Bill McLane. Introductory, advanced and logic texts, anthologies for survey courses and on special topics. In print: 5 cloth, 21 paper. Publishes 2-4 per year. Representative books: Fogelin, Understanding Arguments; Salmon, Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking; Sher, Reason at Work; Sommers, Right and Wrong; Solomon, The Big Questions. Most wants basic books for commonly offered courses. Don't send specialized manuscripts. Preferred method of contact: Letter of inquiry and proposal or outline of book. Submit evidence that market exists for the book, comparison with similar books on market, table of contents and introductory chapters; author's vita and personal references help but not necessary; finished manuscript not necessary. Simultaneous submissions common, dot-matrix submissions OK "but hate them," no electronic submissions. Receives 10 philosophy submissions per month. Reply time: since most are rejected, usually immediate; for seriously considered projects, 2-3 months.
Advances: yes; amounts confidential. Royalties: confidential. Books $13-$23. Time to publication: 11 months. Advertising in journals, APA programs, HBJ-maintained mailing lists. Complimentary copies: 10. Review copies: 6. Books set in type. Paper not acid- free. Simultaneous cloth/paper editions rare; paper editions brought out when thought will help sales volume.
Publisher rates quality of manuscript, timeliness of topic and in-house market analysis as extremely important; author's previous sales record and readers' reports also very important. HBJ editor sends promising proposals to Philosophy Series Editor (a professor) and then to academic reviewers; when outside reviews in, editorial board examines HBJ editor's recommendation and approves contract and terms. Most common reason for rejection is that projects are not right for basic courses.
Reviewer's comments: Don't forget to specify "College Division." HBJ is a huge company with several divisions; communications can easily become confused. The college division publishes 100 textbooks a year, including introductory philosophy and logic textbooks, a History of Western Philosophy series and a Classics of Western Thought series. In logic their books vary in level from Understanding Argument by Robert Fogelin to Logic: Techniques of Formal Reasoning by Donald Kalish, Richard Montague and Gary Mar. Robert Solomon's Introducing Philosophy provides extensive aid for students before they read short selections and vocabulary and exercises after. Baruch Brody's Ethics and Its Applications and A.K. Bierman's Life and Morals have easy-to-follow structures, and both stress applications of concepts. HBJ books vary in length from 200 to over 700 pages, with prices from $15 to $25. An author need not be well known but must be familiar with trends in the discipline and what is being taught. (DWF)
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