Career Corner at Congress 2009

Publishing Your Scholarly Book

Publishing a book-length work remains the yardstick for tenure and promotion, and, increasingly, even for appointment within the academy. Learn how you can turn your research into a book published by a scholarly press in Canada.

Presenters: Jonathan Crago and Susan McIntosh, McGill-Queen's University Press and Emily Andrew and Elizabeth Whitten, UBC Press
Moderator: Kel Morin-Parsons, manager of the CFHSS Aid to Scholarly Publications Program

Approaching a publisher (6:16)

0:00 - 0:48    Introduction
0:48 - 2:12    Understand prospective publishers and find a good fit
2:12 - 3:57    Tips to construct a solid proposal
3:57 - 4:45    A proposal should prove your knowledge of the material
4:45 - 6:06    Ensure the correct editor is contacted

Approaching a publisher - Part Two (5:05)

0:00 - 1:34    Practical items to include in a proposal
1:34 - 3:08    Identify in the proposal what kinds of revisions can be made
3:08 - 4:57    Importance of being clear about submissions to other presses

Navigating peer review (8:26)


0:00 - 1:58    Overview, function and importance of peer review
1:58 - 3:00    Who is eligible to act as a peer reviewer?
3:00 - 3:46    How long will the peer review process last?
3:46 - 4:10    Do reviewers receive remuneration?
4:10 - 4:42    How many reviews are necessary?
4:42 - 6:08    How can authors respond to and engage reviewer comments?
6:08 - 8:15    How many rounds of peer review will occur?

Turning a thesis into a book (6:30)

0:00 - 1:15    Will editors read unrevised theses?
1:15 - 2:02    Why authors need to prove that they made revisions
2:02 - 2:46    Clues that theses are not properly revised
                            - Table of Contents (2:55)
                            - Introduction (3:30)
                            - Conclusion (4:06)
                            - Notes (4:38)
5:41 - 6:21    Why should the thesis be published as a book?

Helpful guides for scholarly authors (1:50)

 

Guides mentioned:

The Thesis and the Book: A Guide for First-Time Academic Authors (2nd edition)
edited by Eleanor Harman, Ian Montagnes, Siobhan McMenemy, and Chris Bucci

A Handbook for Academic Authors (4th edition)
by Beth Luey

From Dissertation to Book
by William Germano

Funding your scholarly publication (9:15)

0:00 - 0:43    The primary source of funding for scholarly books: The Aid to Scholarly Publication Program
0:43 - 2:14    Eligibility criteria for the ASPP
2:14 - 2:53    Who owns the grant money?
2:53 - 4:00    How far do grants go to covering costs?
4:29 - 7:12    Funding opportunies external to the ASPP
7:12 - 7:40    Who is responsible for indexing?
7:40 - 8:17    Do maps cost money to produce?
8:17 - 9:06    Manuscript preparation funding vs. publication subvention

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Comments on this Article

This is the most useful publication I have found in University Affairs. It is practical and goes to the point. Thank you for publishing these videos.

Posted by Olga, Sep 9, 2009 1:51 PM


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