Gregory J. Privitera, PhD, Professor of Psychology at St. Bonaventure University and author of Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences (3e), Essential Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences (2e), and Research Methods for the Behavioral Sciences (3e), said that in his experience, one big way to kill/challenge a chance with a publisher is to come to them with a fully written book: “At least in the textbook publishing space, editors want room for the development of a project. So, they prefer a few sample chapters and a proposal, over a fully written book–with some exceptions, such as if that book was published already, but the author is ‘shopping’ for a new publisher to print the book.”
Registration is Now Open for the 2024 TAA Conference in Nashville: Let’s Meet Up!
TAA is excited to announce that the 2024 Textbook & Academic Authoring Conference will be back in-person and we’ll be in Nashville!
Join us in Music City for lots of “author talk” – music to our ears!
Learn how to turn up the volume on your textbook or academic writing at this annual conference that features General, Textbook and Academic Tracks, mentoring by veteran authors and industry professionals, and lots of networking opportunities!
We can’t wait to see ya’ll there!
Register early to take advantage of discounted rates and book your hotel room before we sell out.
We promise a program rich in content, focused on emerging trends, changes in the publishing world, and connecting with other authors.
Submit a Proposal for the 2024 TAA Conference on Textbook & Academic Authoring
The Textbook & Academic Authors Association Conference Committee invites proposals for its 2024 Textbook & Academic Authoring Conference in Nashville, June 21-22, “Author Talk. Music to Our Ears.”
Presenting at TAA’s 2024 TAA Conference on Textbook & Academic Authoring provides an opportunity to share your knowledge, experiences, and ideas with other textbook authors, academic authors, and industry professionals.
The goals of this year’s program:
- Explore and exchange ideas on the future of the textbook and academic authoring and publishing industry, especially emerging trends like AI.
- Share successful writing tips and strategies and inspire you to complete your writing projects.
- Promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in academic and educational materials.
- Sessions will take place in three different tracks: General, Textbook, and Academic. Preference will be given to sessions that incorporate innovative and interactive elements.
We welcome proposals from first-time and veteran presenters! The deadline for submitting a proposal is October 15, 2023 (Look for Call for Proposals link at top of site).
TAA’s Textbook Awards Are Coming Back!
The TAA Textbook Awards are coming back, and we’ll begin accepting nominations on September 1. Get ready to apply! We’ll be accepting nominations for the following awards:
McGuffey Longevity Award – to recognize long-standing textbooks and learning materials that have been in print for at least 15 years.
Textbook Excellence Award – to recognize excellence in current textbooks and learning materials.
Most Promising New Textbook Award – to recognize promising textbooks and learning materials in their first edition.
Exploring diversity in science textbooks
When Kathy Burleson, a senior lecturer of biology at Hamline University, was preparing to teach a course on the biology of women, she was surprised that she couldn’t find any images of the female muscular system to use for the class. “I got really curious about the discrepancies in how women’s and men’s bodies are portrayed across anatomy and physiology textbooks,” she said. To learn more, she embarked on a research project in 2016 with the goal of helping to close diversity gaps in STEM.“Textbook images tell us a story about science and who belongs in science,” she said. “My hope is that, informed from interviews and data, we can give textbook publishers something to think about.”
Busy TAA People: TAA member’s book goes completely digital
The 5th edition of TAA Council Vice President Paul Krieger’s book, A Visual Analogy Guide to Human Anatomy & Physiology, published by Top Hat, is being transformed into a completely digital and interactive book. The new book cover was completed in March 2023. The new edition will be released September 2023. Congratulations Paul!