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Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: January 3, 2020

“The best way to predict the future is to create it.” ~Peter DruckerWelcome to 2020! This week I want you to consider what your vision for the new year and new decade is. What does that vision look like for your individual writing goals on textbook and academic projects? What does that look like for the publishing industry at large? How can you plan now to accomplish those goals in the coming days, months, and years?

This week’s collection of articles begins with a look back on 2019, looks at the difference between free and OER when discussing textbooks, offers suggestion on how to select the right planning and project management tools, and considers the abolition of academic prizes. As we begin this new year of textbook and academic writing, I encourage you to remember the words of Peter Drucker, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” Happy Writing!

2019 was…

… the year of the book series. So I thought a little end of year discussion about book series might be in order. Book series require a very particular kind of editorial work.

Free textbooks for law students

Legal scholars are increasingly adopting and creating free textbooks in an attempt to increase affordability for students. But are these textbooks considered open educational resources?

How to find your planning and project management tools

With so many software applications out there and planners in all forms and shapes possible, how do we select the right tools? Of course, there’s no direct solution to this. My own project management and planning tools change as my needs change, or as I learn how to work better – and yours will change as well. To get started with the basic parts, however, let’s have a look at your needs in different categories and the possible solutions.

Let’s abolish academic prizes

They feed an individualist ethos in a time when the fantasy of the self-reliant individual, isolated from all community, support and connection, is doing more damage than good both within and beyond the academy, Michael J. Kramer writes.

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