Internal Reference Document
Editorial Pipeline
Workflow Reference
A complete guide to which documents are sent at each phase, to whom, and what action the Director must take.
PHASE 1
Inquiry
Director Actions
- —Create a new record in Airtable Projects table. Assign a Project ID.
- —Assess the inquiry briefly. If there is no fit, decline courteously.
- —If there is potential fit, respond and send the orientation packet.
Documents to Send
| Document | Recipient | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Contributor Guidelines | Prospective contributor | Tells them what you commission, your standards, and how to pitch. |
| Project Pitch Template | Prospective contributor | The form they complete to advance to the Pitch phase. |
Do not discuss compensation at this stage. The Guidelines document handles expectations. The Pitch Template prompts everything you need to assess the proposal.
PHASE 2
Pitch
Director Actions
- —Review the pitch against your standards: argument clarity, source access, language competency, realistic timeline.
- —Assess fit within the current research agenda.
- —Decide: approve, decline, or request revision of the pitch.
- —If approved, advance to Commissioning. If declined, close the record with a note.
No documents are sent here. This is a review and decision phase. Approval of the pitch does not initiate work—it initiates the commissioning process.
PHASE 3
Commissioning
Director Actions
- —Determine the production model: researcher-writer, or separate researcher and writer.
- —Determine compensation based on the Article or Book-Length Compensation Policy.
- —Draft the Research Assignment Brief for the researcher.
- —Draft the Writing Assignment Brief for the writer (may be the same person).
- —Include the Submission Checklist with the Writing Brief so the writer knows what a complete submission requires.
Documents to Send
| Document | Recipient | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Research Assignment Brief | Researcher | Defines scope, sources, deliverables, and timeline for the research phase. |
| Writing Assignment Brief | Writer | Defines the argument, audience, length, and submission requirements. |
| Submission Checklist | Writer | Sent with the Writing Brief. The writer returns it completed with the manuscript. |
If the same person is doing both research and writing, send all three documents together. Do not advance to Agreement until the contributor has reviewed and accepted the brief terms.
PHASE 4
Agreement
Director Actions
- —Issue the appropriate contract (researcher, writer, reviewer, or researcher-writer).
- —Complete Schedule A with project-specific details: payment structure, deadlines, kill fee amount.
- —Once signed, send the full onboarding packet.
- —Send all relevant role and standards documents.
Documents to Send
| Document | Recipient | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Contributor Contract (appropriate variant) | Contributor | Awaiting legal review before first use. |
| Contributor Onboarding | Contributor | Sent after the contract is signed. |
| Researcher Standards and Responsibilities | Researcher | Omit if contributor is writer-only. |
| Writer Standards and Responsibilities | Writer | Omit if contributor is researcher-only. |
| House Style | All contributors | Every contributor holds this before beginning work. |
No work begins before the contract is signed. The Agreement phase closes the moment the signed contract is returned.
PHASE 5
Active Work
Director Actions
- —Log the project start date in Airtable.
- —For book projects: schedule weekly Director meetings in Zoom. Zoom AI Companion generates meeting summaries automatically.
- —After each meeting: create a record in the Airtable Meetings table. Zapier archives the note to Drive.
- —Set milestone records in Airtable with due dates. Monitor for slippage via the Overdue Milestone Alert.
- —Remain available for questions. All communication passes through you as Director.
No new documents are sent during Active Work unless the contributor requests clarification on the brief. Weekly meetings are required for all book projects.
PHASE 6
Submission
Director Actions
- —Receive the manuscript and completed Submission Checklist.
- —Verify the checklist is complete before logging the submission.
- —Log the submission date in Airtable. Advance the pipeline phase to Director Review.
- —Archive the submitted manuscript in the project's Drive folder.
If the Submission Checklist is missing or incomplete, return it to the contributor before logging the submission. Do not begin review on an incomplete submission.
PHASE 7
Director Review
Director Actions
- —Read the manuscript against the brief, the House Style, and your scholarly standards.
- —Assess: argument, structure, citations, transliteration, Arabic handling.
- —Decide: accept, request revision, or reject.
- —If revisions are required, advance to Revision. If accepted, advance to Acceptance.
This is a substantive scholarly review, not a copy-edit pass. The copy-edit happens at the Editing phase.
PHASE 8
Revision
Director Actions
- —Complete the Revision Tracking Sheet with specific revision requests.
- —Send the sheet and the annotated manuscript to the contributor.
- —Set a revision deadline. Log it in Airtable.
- —When the revised manuscript is returned, repeat Director Review.
- —Multiple revision rounds are at your discretion.
Documents to Send
| Document | Recipient | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Revision Tracking Sheet | Writer | Lists every revision requested and tracks whether each is addressed in the returned draft. |
PHASE 9
Acceptance
Director Actions
- —Notify the contributor that the manuscript has been accepted.
- —Release the acceptance milestone payment if applicable.
- —Log acceptance date in Airtable. Advance the pipeline phase.
- —Identify an editor and advance to Editorial Assignment.
Acceptance is the Director's formal scholarly approval. It does not mean the piece is ready to publish—editing and typesetting remain.
PHASE 10
Editorial Assignment
Director Actions
- —Assign an editor (in-house stipended staff or contracted contributor).
- —Issue a Reviewer Brief or editing scope note.
- —Send the role document and House Style to the editor.
Documents to Send
| Document | Recipient | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Reviewer Standards and Responsibilities | Editor / Reviewer | Governs the editorial review process. |
| House Style | Editor / Reviewer | Send even if the editor has worked with you before. |
PHASE 11
Editing
Director Actions
- —Editor works through the manuscript for language, style, citation format, transliteration, and house style compliance.
- —Monitor the editing timeline against the Airtable milestone.
- —Receive the editor's report and annotated document.
The editor submits a written report and an annotated document, not a clean revised draft. You retain final editorial authority.
PHASE 12
Director Review of Edit
Director Actions
- —Review the editor's changes and annotations.
- —Accept, modify, or reject each change at your discretion.
- —If further editing is required, return to the editor. If satisfactory, advance to Handoff to Typesetter.
- —Finalize the clean manuscript.
PHASE 13
Handoff to Typesetter
Director Actions
- —Confirm all Arabic is correct, citations are complete, and structure is final.
- —Send the manuscript to the external typesetter with formatting specifications.
- —Log the handoff date and typesetter contact in Airtable.
Typesetting is outsourced externally. Provide the typesetter with a style brief covering font specifications, layout requirements, and any special handling for Arabic passages.
PHASE 14
Typesetting
Director Actions
- —Monitor the typesetting timeline.
- —Receive typeset proofs from the typesetter.
- —Advance to Proofreading.
PHASE 15
Proofreading
Director Actions
- —Proofread the typeset document against the final manuscript.
- —Check: pagination, running headers, Arabic rendering, footnote numbering, citation completeness.
- —Return a marked proof to the typesetter if corrections are needed.
- —Repeat until proofs are clean.
Proofreading is not a new editing round. It checks that the typeset version faithfully reproduces the approved manuscript. Substantive changes at this stage should be rare.
PHASE 16
Final Approval
Director Actions
- —Complete the Pre-Publication Checklist in full.
- —Confirm author attribution is correct.
- —Sign off on the checklist.
- —Archive the project file: Research Dossier, all drafts, review report, revision tracking sheet.
- —Log the publication in the institute's publication record: title, author, date, format.
Documents to Complete
| Document | Completed By | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Publication Checklist | Director (internal) | You complete this yourself. It is the final gate before publication. |
The signed Pre-Publication Checklist is archived with the project file. Do not advance to Published until the checklist is fully complete and signed.
PHASE 17
Published
Director Actions
- —Release the final publication to the appropriate channel (website, print, or both).
- —Notify the contributor. Release final payment if on a milestone schedule.
- —Update the Airtable record to Published. Log the publication date.
- —Update the institute's public publication record on the website.
- —Close the project file.
Publication is the end of the pipeline, not the end of the record. Retain all project files permanently.