Publishers want authors to participate in the marketing and promotion of their new book. But many times authors are novices in publicizing their work. Join us Wednesday, March 16, 2022, 2-3 p.m. EST for “Book Marketing and Social Media by Authors: Do’s and Don’ts” presented by publishing Consultant John Bond, who will examine author marketing and social media efforts done right and done wrong. He will look at best practices for promoting their book, as well as explaining why some efforts are time consuming and produce little results. Real life examples will illustrate how authors can smartly and efficiently work with the publisher to market their work; social media included. An extended question and answer period will follow the presentation.
Scholars, balance between humility and self-respect
Whether you’re a doctoral student wrestling with the drafts of your dissertation or an academic author wrestling with the drafts of your article or book, you probably have encountered, or will, the often-intimidating presence and feedback of your chair or editor. As with any interpersonal relationship, it’s advisable to steer between abject obeisance and independent arrogance. Neither will get you what you want—approval of your dissertation or publication of your scholarly work.
In my academic editing and coaching profession, I suggest to clients that an optimum way to establish and maintain a good working relationship is a combination of humility and self-respect. Whatever your past accomplishments, humility before the perceived power of the chair or editor is required. Not that you must kowtow; they’ll know you’re toadying. Some students and authors have stellar long-term experience, titles, and positions, and likely make more annually than their chairs or editors, not to mention owning lavish summer homes. Nevertheless, humility is called for with the dissertation chair or editor. Not easy, I know.
Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: February 25, 2022
Judy Reeves once said, “Probably the most important thing I’ve learned is that if I don’t make the time to do the writing, the writing won’t get done.” Are you making time for your writing? If not, what is holding you back?
Many of the common issues writers face – it’s hard, how do you finish, copy editing, self publishing considerations, open access, and marketing and reviews – are all covered in this week’s collection of articles from around the web.
This week, make time for your writing and get it done. Happy writing!
Tips for anxious writers: Use exploratory writing
An anxious writer once told me “I made some notes and organized my thoughts but didn’t get any writing done.” She was feeling anxiety, shame, and a sense of failure about not adding to her manuscript. But that narrow view of what counts as “writing,” doesn’t recognize the value of some activities that are valuable parts of the writing process. In the previous post, I argued that all types of writing—email to friends, social media posts, etc.—can contribute to your skill as a writer. In this post, I’m following a related idea—another idea about what does and does not count as “writing” and what does (or does not) help you make progress on a manuscript. You can do important academic work without adding a single word to a manuscript if you are using writing as a tool to explore ideas.
Laughing and learning: Cartoons as powerful textbook teaching tools
Dear Valuable Textbook Authors,
No, this isn’t spamming! I honestly think what you do is very valuable. Transmitting the hard-earned knowledge in your fields of study to a new generation is the only way that kind of knowledge will continue to be accumulated for a better smarter world.
Really, I’m absolutely blown away by the smarts and dedication of anyone who writes a textbook. Even the definition of a textbook is daunting:
“A book used as a standard work for the study of a particular subject”. Wow, that is a high standard, and kudos to you who strive to meet it especially now when getting published is more challenging than ever.
Published textbook authors invited to take TAA’s 2022 Textbook Contracts & Royalties Survey
Are you curious what royalty rates other textbook authors are receiving for print and digital books? What about what they’ve been able to negotiate regarding first right of refusal, the sunset clause, or royalties for bulk, wholesale and foreign editions?
If you are a published textbook author, we invite you to participate in TAA’s 2022 Textbook Contract & Royalties Survey, which aims to provide a look into the range of royalties and contract options offered for print and digital textbooks.