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We will be sending out a newsletter 3 to 4 times per year with information about new publications, any upcoming conference appearances, new developments on our website, and more.
Updated February 6, 2025
METS requires all documents to be submitted electronically. We do not accept hard copies. Editions must be submitted in their entirety. All documents should be submitted as Microsoft Word (*.docx) files. Each section (Front Matter, Introduction, Text(s), Explanatory Notes, Textual Notes, Bibliography, Glossary, Indices, Appendices) should be submitted as a separate file. File names should begin with a two-digit number, starting with 00 for front matter, so the desired order of sections is clear. Number all pages continuously and ensure the pagination matches the Table of Contents; all cross-references should be keyed to this pagination. Ensure that your file names include clear section titles (e.g., 12-Caxton-Romances-Bibliography.docx).
Below are instructions for submitting the entire edition; for details on formatting individual sections, see the Style and Formatting Guide.
When submitting your edition, include a cover note that lists all materials submitted. In addition to the edition’s Word files, include:
Formatting instructions for verse texts are listed in the Style and Formatting Guide > Formatting Texts > Verse. See below for formatting instructions for prose, drama, and facing-page translations. These instructions also appear in the Style and Formatting Guide, with examples.
Lay out prose in paragraphs. Number paragraphs only, placing boldfaced Arabic numbers before the indent. If your text includes books or chapters, restart paragraph numbers at the beginning of each. Separate each book into its own Word document.
Footnote glosses. For a single-word gloss, place a footnote at the end of the Middle English word; in the footnote, provide only the modern English gloss in italics. To gloss a phrase, place a footnote at the end of the phrase; in the footnote, include the ME catchphrase, a comma, and the modern English gloss in italics. Indicate foliation in-line and in square brackets. Put rubrics in boldface font.
To facilitate collation between Text and Notes, highlight catchphrases for Explanatory and Textual Notes in different colors. Explanatory Note catchphrases should be in yellow; Textual Note catchphrases should be in blue. In the sections for Explanatory and Textual Notes, do not number each individual note. Instead, place location headings above the relevant cluster of notes, using the formula: Book number, Chapter number, Paragraph number. Use Arabic numbers. For rubrics, use the same heading except replace Paragraph Number with Rubric. Otherwise, Explanatory and Textual Notes should be formatted like their poetry counterparts, with an italicized catchphrase before the note itself. See the Style and Formatting Guide for examples.
Texts that combine passages of verse and prose should follow the guidelines stipulated for verse and prose in the Style and Formatting Guide. Numbering for verse lines and prose paragraphs should be kept separate: lines of poetry should be numbered every 5 lines, regardless of any prose that interrupts verse lines or stanzas. Each prose paragraph should be preceded by a boldfaced paraph mark and a paragraph number (ex. ¶1) before the paragraph’s indent; these paragraph numbers should be consecutive for all prose paragraphs, regardless of any intervening lines of poetry. Both line numbers and paragraph numbers should be flush on the left margin.
Glossing should follow the same guidelines as Verse Glossing and Prose Glossing, respectively, in the Style and Formatting Guide. Lines of poetry should have side-glosses, while all glosses for prose paragraphs are footnoted. Footnotes will include both full-line glosses for verse and all glosses for prose. If the prose is in a non-English language, it must be fully translated into English. Treat the translation like a gloss, footnoting it.
Note indicators should follow the stipulations for verse and prose in the Style and Formatting Guide. You may indicate select, not all, notes by using (see note) for Explanatory Notes and (see t-note) for Textual Notes. For verse, insert them into the rightmost column. For prose, footnote them. Keep these tags to a minimum to ensure a clean Text. For Explanatory Notes, include a tag only if the reader would not understand the literal meaning of the text without the note. For Textual Notes, include a tag only when major changes occur in the base manuscript: for example, when there is a new scribal hand, a lacuna or damage that hinders legibility, or a new witness supplementing a gap in the base manuscript. Variant readings are generally not considered important enough to warrant a (see t-note) tag.
In prose sections only, highlight catchphrases for all Explanatory and Textual Notes to facilitate collation between sections. For Explanatory Notes, highlight catchphrases in yellow. For Textual Notes, highlight catchphrases in blue. These highlights will be deleted after production is complete, and will not appear in the final edition.
Translated texts should be submitted in two files: one for the original language text and the other for the modern English translation. Include line numbers in both files and check that they are correctly collated.
Prose translations may be tricky to collate; the modern English may be longer or shorter than the original language. In those cases, do your best to collate. If the original text and translation begin to misalign, re-align at the next paragraph or relevant text break.
In drama cycles, number each individual play, using Arabic numbers, and include these numbers in the titles of each play.
Characters should be listed in order of appearance. Drama cycles should include a Dramatis Personae for each individual play.
In the main text, Speaker names should appear in the leftmost column where the line numbers appear.
If you need to gloss stage directions or scene locations, add a footnote in the text and place the gloss in the footnote.
Editors are responsible for providing any visual materials and procuring all necessary permissions.
Mark clearly in the text where each illustration or table needs to be inserted. For example: [PLACE ILLUSTRATION 1 HERE]. Make sure that the illustrations and tables are clearly numbered (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.) and captioned; tables should include a brief descriptive title. In your Table of Contents, include a List of Illustrations in the Table of Contents, listed by Figure number. (See the sample Front Matter, above, for an example.)
It is the editor’s responsibility to secure permissions and cover any use fees for visual materials. When you submit your manuscript, enclose copies of permissions.
When seeking permissions, note the following:
Ensure that you start seeking permissions as soon as possible, as it often takes longer than expected. Always specify the use — e.g., a scholarly edition with a limited print run. Check whether a specific format for acknowledgement is required. Permission costs can often be reduced through external subsidies.