I agree, best to focus on one publisher with your submission. Of course, rejection or their reluctance opens the door for other publishers (including journals).

I think it is not allowed, as this considered as simultaneous submission.

Hmmm, I know that is the case for articles but it doesn' t seem fair for books.

Hi Deidre,

I've published a few books with CRC Press and Kendall-Hunt. Typically, the publishers/editors that I've worked with seemed to prefer mutual exclusion -- basically, submit your proposal to one publisher at a time.

Have a great day!

--Adrian

The general rule is to only send material for possible publication to one place at a time. The press often needs to send articles and books to readers. You don’t want to waste their efforts on your behalf.

Okay, thanks. Obviously this is not what I wanted to hear, but it seems to be unanimous. Maybe I will look around for a publisher with a quicker turn around time, 4 months seems a bit much for a response.

Ms. Deirdre Rose,

I'd like to share some cases from the COPE regarding simultaneous submission:

https://publicationethics.org/case/attempted-dual-publication

https://publicationethics.org/case/duplicate-publication-and-removal-article

https://publicationethics.org/search/site/%22simultaneously%20submitted%22

I agree, best to focus on one publisher with your submission. Of course, rejection or their reluctance opens the door for other publishers (including journals).

Surprisingly, it appears that at least for mathematical books simultaneous submission is not entirely disallowed. The book A Primer on Mathematical Writing, 2nd ed., by S. Krantz ( https://arxiv.org/pdf/1612.04888.pdf ) states that

"Most research journals tell you up front that, by submitting a paper, you are representing that it has not been submitted elsewhere.

Not so for books. You can submit a book manuscript simultaneously to several different publishers."

Probably this applies to the book proposals as well.

Usually it's to only one publisher, as the book publication involves both time & effort from the publishers side as well. But it's more a gentleman's agreement, and legally you may not be wrong in sending to two publishers.

It's ethically wrong to do that. Please, first target the top publisher. If they decline and give reasons, rework on the book and resubmit to the same publisher or forward it to another.

Thank you all,

It seems like I will be waiting 3-4 months to hear, of course I asked because I kind of knew the answer, and ultimately the majority will rule and I will only submit to one publisher.

Thanks for the responses, I have a few take-aways from here.

It is not accepted in the scientific world. I have few papers like that that took up to 9 to 10 months and I got impatient and wanted to send to another editor/publisher but I was rightly guided of the implications. Once sent, except you ask for withdrawer, you should not do that.

Following

The 'elephant in the room' here is the time it takes for most book publishers to reach a decision. Imagine your book is turned down by 4 or 5 publishers. By then it could be two or three years out-of-date. That is why authors are tempted to submit to more than one publisher, even though this is wrong, ethically speaking.

I have submitted the proposal to only one publisher. I will keep working on the manuscript and will hope that they like the idea! Thanks for all of your responses.

Nothing forbid you to make several submissions, and even to put the publishers in competition, as long as you have not underwritten (and negotiated) a contract of exclusivity. That's the rule in a capitalistic economy. Don't make it easy to your publisher who on its side won't hesitate to maximise its profit at your expenses (even though it is wrong ethically speaking,) don't be the sucker. This is not the same as an original paper with refereeing, for the referees are your colleagues and are not paid.

Hi Claude, That's what I thought for book proposals -- seems like a different situation than journal submissions. The publisher did get back to me, sadly it was with a rejection. I am going to continue working on the ms and submit elsewhere in a couple of weeks. My idea is to submit queries and I think this will address the concerns raised by others in this thread.

Thanks!

In my view it is unethical . Ones reject can opens does to other journals or book.

It is not a journal article, it is a book. I am going to send queries and there is nothing unethical about this at all. Thank you.

I prefer to send to one publisher at a time.. after receiving the response send to other one.

I agree with previous answers, .....

If you receive non positive response, you can avail the received comments to more improve your works, etc...

Good Luck!

In my opinion, one should submit book proposal to one publisher at a time.

Al the best

Each publisher has its own editorial policy. What is an improvement for one of them is not necessarily one for another. It is not research work, with standard criteria that are shared in a community. A publisher is an independent company.

In no way a book can be compared with an article. An article is automatically sold through subscription, while a book must have a good likelihood of commercial success on its own for the publisher to run the risk.

It is unfair practice, hence is not acceptable.

One publisher at a time and wait for feedback. One may request to expedite the feedback.

It is against the publishing policies to send the same book proposal to more than one publisher at the same time.

It's not fair to do that.

I think it is not permitted.

It's no acceptable. You need to send it to the first publisher and if they not accept it, then you can send it to another one

Dear Rose,

Can you sell your car to two people at the same time? (car = book/article/..)

Where is it written that it is "unethical"? When it is for submitting an article to a journal, that is explicitly forbidden by the publisher in the author instructions, and the submission must be done in a well defined way. But for a book proposal? Who decided the rules?

At one time only one published should be preferred.

In my view it is quite unethical also .Go for one at a time.

It’s not professional, focus your writing only a publishers, then you be included likely on red list of unethical

Normally the magazines, they express that limitation, that while revising the edition of the scientific product, it is forbidden to share that product with another magazine, however, to me it does not seem that it is not ethical, since the knowledge is yours and the idea is Share it, published in one or another magazine, is different, is more, if I saw an article published in several important magazines, would consider it very veridico, informed and relevant

It is ethical , it is competition in a free market of supply and demand. All (or almost all) the comments above pretend to be 'ethical' but:

1) they do not provide us with any argument to explain why it is not ethical (metaphor like 'can you send your bike to two people' are very warped and illogical; that person should have thought about sending request for a plumber service to multiple people and accept the quickest and the cleverest)

2) I suspect that they do not provide explanations because they do not have in their minds any clear ideas of what 'ethical' means.

3) while pretending to be fair, ethical, generous and altruist, they are only suffering from a complex of inferiority, feeling that the author is the weaker part in the publishing contract, and so, out of cowardice, they depict themselves as 'righteous' instead of as 'cowards'.

4) in fact when a vary famous author who sold millions of copies become the stronger part in the publishing contract, all those commentators above do not dare say "it is unethical" if that bestselling author sells his/her copyright to the publishing house who offers the most, having proposed the publication to (at least in principle) ALL the publishing houses of the world at the very same time.

5) as Claude Pierre Masse' said above, who establishes the rules? In a contract the rules are established consensually by the two parts of the 'negotium'. And this usually does not apply in publishing books because the publishing hoses do not ask the author to do this.

6) I think, dear Claude Pierre Masse', thatthe above commentators believe that the 'rules' are not made by human beings, but by some Platonic timeless Hyperuranic World of the Ideas.

look at here

http://www.publishingtalk.eu/getting-published/how-to-get-published/

Can I query multiple agents?

Yes, absolutely. It may take three months for an agent to reply to you – you can’t wait around that long. Draw up a list of agents you want to submit to – including those you’ve met at events – and send out queries to up to six of them. This will help you guage responses. If you get no requests for further material, your query letter needs work before you send it out again!

.............................................................................................

and mind that EACH one of those multiple agents will propose your book to multiple publishing houses!