Cengage and McGraw-Hill call it quits

On Monday, May 4, McGraw-Hill and Cengage separately made public the termination of their merger agreement that was announced just a year ago on May 1, 2019.

Both releases state that the decision to terminate was mutually reached, and both noted that the two publishers will part ways without financial liability to one another. McGraw-Hill CEO Simon Allen cited as the main reason for the termination that “…required divestitures would have made the merger uneconomical.” The Cengage announcement reflects that rationale and further asserts that the termination came about “due to a prolonged regulatory review process and the inability to agree to a divestitures package with the U.S. Department of Justice.”

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Most useful textbook and academic posts of the week: December 6, 2019

Philip Roth once said, “The road to hell is paved with works-in-progress.” Compared with the popular saying that references good intentions, from a writer’s perspective works-in-progress are certainly the physical remnants of our good, yet unfinished, intentions. But there are a lot of things competing with our time and making it difficult to finish those intended projects.

This week’s collection of articles seems to address some of those issues. For starters, there may be things you want to read that the full text may or may not be worth the time, or you may be managing a heavy teaching load, juggling multiple writing projects, or trying to select the right journal for your work. All well-intentioned, but perhaps resulting in works-in-progress on the highway to hell. Other good intentions in our industry come with their own potential problems or unintended consequences. Some of these are also addressed below, including: giving feedback on academic writing, accepting people with disabilities, blogging efforts, faculty authoring, open access initiatives, and publishing industry mergers.

Whatever path your writing takes you this week, set your mindset and destination for better. Find ways to finish the projects you start, especially those with your best of intentions, and explore new ways to accomplish your writing goals. Happy writing!

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The author’s life jacket: Surviving publishing mergers and acquisitions

For many veteran authors and publishing industry professionals, like TAA members Karen Morris and Steve Gillen, mergers and acquisitions are not new occurrences in academic publishing. However, in light of recent announcements, including the pending merger of industry-leaders Cengage and McGraw-Hill, many authors are concerned about their own survival options.  

In their 2019 Textbook & Academic Authoring Conference presentation, “Mergers and Acquisitions Among Publishers: Authors Need a Life Jacket”, Morris shared her experience as a survivor of mergers throughout her career and Gillen offered perspective on what a merger may mean to the individual author, what they can do to protect themselves, and what to do after the deal is announced.

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