Milton Society of America First Book Assistance (MSA FBA) Program

Beginning in 2014, the Milton Society of America provides annually a single $500 reimbursement to support the publication of an outstanding first book devoted substantially to John Milton. The prize recognizes the originality, scope, and scholarly rigor of the book chosen. Applicants must belong to the Milton Society of America. Applicants need not hold the Ph.D.; those who do must have completed their Ph.D.s no longer than six years prior to applying.

The reimbursement may be used to offset costs from the press associated with copy-editing; preparation of an index; permissions for photographs, artwork, and the like; color reproductions; and preparation of graphs and maps. Ineligible expenses include computer and other equipment, travel, and income replacement. The reimbursement is intended to aid scholars undertaking an original, first-time, book-length work in Milton studies. No anthologies, chapters, essays, edited collections, etc., will be considered for this funding.

The application consists of

1) A cover letter indicating that the applicant has a completed manuscript

2) A provisional or final contract

3) An abstract of the book,

4) A sample chapter

The successful applicant will be required to

1) send to the MSA Treasurer A) a completed MSA FBA Form and B) an invoice or invoices from the press for costs incurred during the application year and/or the subsequent year — for this year’s program, either 2020 or 2021.

2) acknowledge the support of “the Milton Society of America First Book Assistance Program” in the publication.

Applications should be sent by June 1 of the year in which the grant will be awarded to the MSA Secretary, Eric Song (esong1@swarthmore.edu). Applicants will be notified by November 15.