From Dissertation to Book: A Roundtable on First-time Scholarly Publication

A session for HSS 2009

Format: Lunchtime roundtable and discussion

Organized by Roger Turner (University of Pennsylvania) and Jacqueline Wernimont (Brown University)

Dissertations are written to demonstrate advanced mastery of a discipline and as a first step toward participation in the scholarly community. The dissertation is often the first extended piece of scholarship produced by a student and it is likely to have been conceived and executed within constraints shaped by their institution and its faculty. Moving from dissertation to book involves shedding these constraints and revising the work to make it valuable to a broader readership. At this roundtable, editors from the University of Chicago Press, MIT Press, and Rutgers University Press will share their insights into particular issues in first-time scholarly publishing including: understanding the difference between a book and a dissertation, finding and working with an editor, submitting a manuscript, and the future of the print monograph in scholarly publication. In addition to participant presentations, there will be time devoted to discussing pre-submitted audience questions. This session is sponsored by the Graduate and Early Career Caucus and will be chaired by GECC co-chair Jacqueline Wernimont.

Roundtable Participants:
Karen Darling, University of Chicago Press.
Karen will address the importance of defining audience and how that affects the level of explanation, the narrative structure, and the book’s length, density, and voice.

Marguerite Avery, The MIT Press.
Marguerite will address the nature of the monograph series, the advantages and disadvantages to publishing within one as your first publication. She will also be discussing the possible futures of scholarly publishing and the role of print publications. A brief history of various media possibilities will provide some background to the issues prompting the shift away from print including the open access debate, changing reading and research habits of users, and enhanced capabilities of electronic publications.

Doreen Valentine, Rutgers University Press.
Doreen will address the process of approaching a press with a project, what presses look for in a proposal, and the author/editor relationship.