Description

The primary aim of the SoSS Book Manuscript Workshop Grant is to help faculty develop book manuscripts and, for junior faculty, to develop professional connections to senior scholars outside of Rice. Matching funds will be provided to host a book workshop, typically after a draft of a manuscript is complete*, attended by external scholars in the faculty member’s subdiscipline who have the expertise to provide critical feedback on the draft of a manuscript. Additional benefits include connecting the faculty member with established scholars in their subdiscipline and familiarizing those scholars with the faculty member’s work. The grant is intended to supplement mentoring from senior and peer faculty in the faculty member’s home department.

*Faculty applicants and department chairs may determine together what “complete” means for each field. For some, it may be a full draft of a manuscript; for others, it may be a few developmental chapters.

Eligibility

• Must be a full-time Rice tenured/tenure track faculty member who has not received this award.
• Faculty may only receive this award once, and junior faculty will have priority.
• Typically, the book manuscript draft (or at least several chapters) must be complete before funds are disbursed and the workshop is held, but faculty may explain special circumstances in their Grantee’s Justification document.
• The book workshop itself is expected to be a departmental event, with invitations extended to other faculty and students in the home department.

Application Deadline

Applications are considered on a rolling basis until the allotted funds expire.

Award Information

Estimated Number of Awards: Contingent on available funding.
Anticipated Funding Amount per Award: up to $3,000 per book manuscript.

Funding

SoSS will match the faculty member department’s contribution up to $3,000. Departments will not be expected to contribute more than $3,000, making the total budget $6,000. Faculty may also supplement the department’s contribution with their research funds. The grant will support the following activities:

• External scholars’ travel to Rice University
• External scholars’ honoraria
• Book workshop event costs (space, catering, etc.)

Note that this grant is not intended to support professional editing or other publishing expenses.

Requirements of Faculty Grantee

• Grantee commits to:
  • Invite at least three external, senior scholars to review the book manuscript, none of whom may be former mentors or dissertation committee members.
  • Develop and complete a full book manuscript draft in time to give the external scholars at least one month to review the draft before the workshop.
  • Provide SoSS with a short report of outcomes and activities at the end of the award.

Requirements of External Scholars

• External Scholar commits to:
  • Having significant expertise related to the book manuscript’s topic.
  • Commit to reviewing a complete draft of the book and providing substantive written feedback.
  • Commit to participating in the book workshop (these workshops are expected to occur in-person, on Rice’s campus, but faculty may explain special circumstances in their Grantee’s Justification document).

Requirements of Department

• Department commits to:
  • Providing support in the form of matching funds as described above. Departments and grantees may combine departmental funds and grantee research funds to reach the full matching amount.
  • Assist the grantee in recruiting the senior scholars to participate.

Application Procedure

Submit a completed online SoSS Book Manuscript Workshop Grant application (at the bottom of this page) along with the associated components. Required proposal components are listed below. Incomplete applications will not be considered for funding.

1. A brief department chair’s letter describing support for the grantee’s application, suitability of the proposed external scholars, and the proposed amount of matching funds.
2. Grantee’s Justification that includes:
   1. Names of potential external scholars who might participate.
   2. Brief description of how the proposed external scholars will contribute to the manuscript’s development.
   3. Timeline and milestones for the manuscript draft’s completion, the workshop, and (eventual) manuscript submission.
3. Budget with a list of each proposed activity and associated cost. The typical external scholar honoraria are between $1,000 and $2,000. Larger requests must include a justification.
4. Book manuscript description (no more than 3 pages total, or the book proposal may be submitted instead).
5. Grantee’s most recent Curriculum Vitae (CV).

Review Process

Evaluation of applications will include the expertise and experience of the proposed external scholars; the faculty grantee’s progress on the manuscript; and support from the department.

Questions:

Please contact Chris Rodriguez.