A Behind the Scenes Look at Professional Publishing, and a Request
Publishing a book with Taylor & Francis has been a fascinating journey
The current cover design for Training Zen. How does it
strike you?
Dear Friends,
It’s been a little while. My writing style is like Japanese gardening. I spend a lot of time trimming and shaping so that all of the parts blend into a seamless, energizing whole. Writing like that takes time, but it’s always enjoyable time. The act of creating something is inherently motivating, and for this 50ish veteran of the field, writing Training Zen is also about making a contribution to the work I feel so passionate about.
What Professional Publishing Looks Like
If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to publish with a major academic publisher, here’s what the journey looks like:
After submitting my final manuscript in mid-September, a project manager welcomed me with a friendly email laying out the process. Then a production manager sent the timeline and steps in the production process—this is when I learned that the target launch date is March 2026.
Then comes copyediting. The production team formats your book, copyedits it, and sends it back with queries—questions and notes on their revisions. You reply to questions and approve changes. In my case, there weren’t many, but I was glad the editor discovered a redundancy I’d missed in my 94th pass through the manuscript.
A few weeks after you respond to queries and approve figure placement, you get a beautifully typeset proof to go through. This is the check, and this is where I am now.
One tip if you’re thinking about publishing: Get your foreword written early. I mistakenly assumed I could wait until I had the copyedited file to send to my awesome foreword writer. Had to get special permission to add it later in the process.
The Cover Design
About the time you get your proof, the publisher sends cover designs. I didn’t love the first round. The second round was better but still missed the mark.
Then yesterday, my publisher gave us permission to design it in-house. And guess who will do that for me? My brilliant daughter Rebecca. She’s got years of design experience and she knows her dad well. I’m thrilled that my daughter’s work will become the first think anyone who sees Training Zen will see.
A Request for Feedback
Please scroll to the top of the post and look at the current cover design. How does it strike you? Training Zen is a practical guide to building a successful career in corporate training and facilitation. It’s evidence-based but grounded in applied philosophy.
I want the cover to attract interest without overwhelming. I want it to look like a book for professionals, while communicating core parts of its essence—the importance of your guiding principles, how you think about your work as a trainer, and bringing the right kind of energy to the work.
I’d love to know, how close do you think we are with the current cover?
How well do the colors work?
How about the fonts?
How do those images grab you?
Note that the Chinese character for Zen (禪 ) appears on the right side.
Any feedback will be most appreciated, and if you are thinking about submitting a book proposal to a big publisher, feel free to reach out with any questions you have.
With gratitude,
True
