A couple of weeks ago, I reached out to winners of the 2016 TAA Textbook Awards and asked them to answer some questions about their textbook writing. I had so many great responses I decided to create a three-part series to share them. The first installment focused on why they decided to write their textbook, how they got started, and what they do to boost their confidence as a writer. This second installment in the three-part series focuses on how they fit writing time into their schedule, what software they use, what their favorite pedagogical elements are, and what involvement they have had in marketing their book.
6 Key takeaways from the TAA webinar, ‘Go on the (Virtual) Road to Promote Your Book’
Whether you are self-publishing or working with a major publisher, you will need to actively promote your textbooks and encourage faculty to adopt them, says Janet Salmons, an independent researcher, writer and consultant with Vision2Lead, Inc. In the April 13 TAA Webinar, “Go on the (Virtual) Road to Promote Your Book”, Salmons shared steps authors can take to launch their own virtual tour as a way to interact with present and future readers. Here are 6 key takeaways from the presentation:
Join us 4/13 for TAA Webinar, ‘Go on the (Virtual) Road to Promote Your Book’
Whether you are self-publishing or working with a major publisher, you will need to actively promote your textbooks and encourage faculty to adopt them. Traditionally, writers have taken book tours and given talks, but textbook publishers are unlikely to fund world travel. Why not offer a book tour online? Janet Salmons, PhD, author of Doing Qualitative Research Online and four previous books, did just that. While some “virtual book tours” simply place guest posts or advertisements on potential readers’ sites, Janet’s highly interactive approach includes webinars and online discussions with groups or classes.
How to build an academic brand online
If you Google your own name, are you happy with what the search results show about you and your work? If not, you may want to take steps to improve your online presence to better reflect your academic brand, which articulates your unique expertise and affects the way you are perceived both online and in the real world.
In a recent TAA webinar entitled, “Designing Your Online Presence to Communicate Your Academic Brand,” veteran higher ed blogger Lee Skallerup Bessette and academic branding coach Paula Thompson, both of Academic Coaching & Writing discussed ways to create or enhance your online presence to promote yourself and your work.
The most useful textbook & academic writing posts of the week: October 9, 2015
I think everyone needs to print this quote and tape it someplace clearly visible on his or her desk, computer, or writing space. Look at it every time you sit down to write. Quiet the voices of negativity and just write. You are capable of writing well, of writing that is worthy of others to read, you just have to believe it and shut down the voices that tell you otherwise! One of my favorite quotes, and one that fits perfectly here, was said by Muhammad Ali, “To be a great champion you must believe you are the best. If you’re not, pretend you are.” Believing in your abilities to write is half the hurdle. Once you believe that, getting words onto the page will become easier. Happy writing!
Featured Member Kathleen King – Motivation, marketing & the ‘easy fix’
Kathleen P. King, professor of Adult and Higher Education at the University of South Florida in Tampa, is an award winning author of 30 books, most recently 147 Tips for Emerging Scholars and The Professor’s Guide to Taming Technology, and more than 175 journal articles and research papers. She is known for her sessions and innovative topics and is a popular international keynote and conference speaker, mentor, and professor. King’s areas of research include instructional technology, faculty development, and mentoring. Here King shares what motivates her to write, tips on marketing your works, and the ‘easy fix’: