How we choose what to publish

We get a lot of proposals. Here's roughly how we read them.

First: is the argument clear? A book has to know what it's about. If a one-page pitch can't say it cleanly, the manuscript usually can't either.

Second: is the topic worth a reader's hours? We're not interested in books that could have been a blog post. We want subjects that reward sustained attention.

Third: does the author have a voice? Editing can sharpen a voice. It can't invent one.