Submit Your Proposal for the 2025 TAA Virtual Conference Now!

Are you interested in presenting at the 2025 TAA Virtual Conference? Submit your proposal by October 13, 2024, for the chance to share your expertise. Attendees are textbook, academic and aspiring authors, as well as graduate students and industry professionals, all of which are eager to learn and grow in this industry.

The 2025 Textbook & Academic Authoring Conference will be held online June 6-7. We invite presenters, first-time to veteran-level, to submit a proposal.

2025 TAA Virtual Conference on Textbook & Academic Authoring Call for Proposals Now Open

The TAA Conference Committee invites proposals for its 2025 Textbook & Academic Authoring Conference, which will be held online June 6-7. Presenting at TAA’s 2025 Conference provides an opportunity to share your knowledge, experiences, and ideas with other textbook authors, academic authors, and industry professionals. The theme is “The Future is Now.” We welcome proposals from first-time and veteran presenters! The deadline for submitting a proposal is October 13, 2024.

Do Side Writing Projects Sideline Your Book Project?

By John Bond
Journal articles. Grant proposals. Book chapters. White papers. Blog posts for a friend. Contributions to the university newsletter. Alumni magazine articles.

There are lots of “opportunities” or requests from colleagues and friends to write. As you develop in your career, the number will increase, especially if you can deliver. On time and with the expected results. But there may come a day when you will have a contract for your own textbook or monograph. Then things will all be on your shoulders.

And the other writing request will keep on coming. Is this a good thing? Do they help or hinder the book project? As with most questions, the answer is that it depends.

My Day Off

This piece follows directly from last month’s on taking time off. The author explores why taking a day off is so hard and describes her attempt.

Finally, I decided to take a day off. I work at home and, as anyone knows who does, that means all the time. No boundaries, no borders, no warning bell blaring at 9:00 at night or security guard barking “Closing!” When you quit is dictated only by hunger, exhaustion, or an occasional family emergency.

Ironically, I’ve often published advice to others to stop work and smell the rest of life. And yet, the doctor can’t comply with her own prescription.

Want to Finish? Make Your Dissertation Your Priority

As you probably already know, writing a dissertation is different from anything you’ve ever done. This undertaking requires you to adjust, if not radically change, your lifestyle. If you ever really want to complete the dissertation, and in a timely manner (if that isn’t an oxymoron), you need to rethink your priorities.

You may have been used to putting family first (possibly after your full-time job). But rethink this priority. Heartless and psychologically suspect as this statement may sound, you can make it up to your family in many other ways—later (that’s another article). Or you may say “yes” to all kinds of non-school activities. Learn to say “not now” (also another article).

At this point in your graduate school life, you’re supposed to make the dissertation your major priority. In my longtime dissertation coaching of struggling doctoral candidates and dissertation writers, I’ve learned several techniques and related perspectives that will nudge you into making your dissertation a priority.

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).