Handbook for Academic Authors [Paperback]

Beth Luey (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521891981 | ISBN-13: 978-0521891981 | Publication Date: June 10, 2002 | Edition: 4

Are you trying to publish an article or monograph, revise a dissertation, create a new textbook, compile an anthology, or write a trade book? Should you sign the publishing contract you have been offered? Is it wise to publish in an electronic journal? How much can you expect to earn from your writing? What are your legal and ethical responsibilities as an author? What can you expect from your publisher? In the fourth edition of this widely recommended book, Beth Luey offers answers to these questions, as well as practical advice on negotiating a contract, preparing an electronic manuscript, seeking permission to reproduce text or artwork, choosing illustrations, and indexing. She also suggests ways to write clearly not only for one's peers but also for students and general readers. A chapter on the business side of publishing explains costs and pricing for print and electronic products. This edition brings advice to academic authors fully into the age of the Internet and the World Wide Web; both the text and the bibliography have been completely updated and a new chapter evaluates various electronic media for different kinds of publications and suggests ways for the technologically ambitious author to use them to best advantage. Beth Luey teaches and does research on the history of the book, scholarly publishing and current issues in authorship and reading at Arizona State University. She is the author (with Martha Broderson) of A Guide to Book Publisher Archives (Book Industry Study Group, 1996) and The Structure of International Publishing (Transaction Publishers, 1992).

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...should be required reading for scholar/authors, or would be authors...her book is a lucid and valuable primer that renders a needed service to academic authors and publishers alike." Scholarly Publishing

"Anyone from a graduate student to the still hyperkinetic producer (of textbooks or monographs or in between) can learn from this straightforward, sober, thorough, orderly, and practical guide, reinforced by classified, annotated, and evaluative bibliography." American Literature

"Put this book into the hands of most of the young writers you know. It is neither pedantic nor patronizing. It will help them think better about writing and publishing. It could be read with profit by all academics." Alan H. Brush, CBE Views (Council of Biology Editors)

Book Description

In the fourth edition of this widely recommended book, Beth Luey guides authors through every stage publication. This edition brings advice to academic authors fully into the age of the Internet and the World Wide Web. Both text and bibliography have been completely updated. A new chapter evaluates various electronic media for different kinds of publications and suggests ways for the technologically ambitious author to use them to best advantage.

Product Details

• Paperback: 340 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 4 edition (June 10, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521891981
• ISBN-13: 978-0521891981
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,112,784 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good advice for professors trying to publish academic books, September 5, 2004

By 

Mary McKinney "Ph.D. Psychologist and Coach" (www.successfulacademic.com) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Handbook for Academic Authors (Paperback)

This is a useful book, although I think that the title is somewhat misleading. The book covers a very specific topic: the many details of submitting and publishing an academic book. It does not cover writing for peer-review journals and thus will be rather unhelpful for the academics in fields where articles rather than books are the royal road to tenure.

What Luey covers, however, she covers very well. She comes to the topic with a wealth of experience -- true "insider's knowledge". She edited scholarly books and textbooks for a decade; she's taught scolarly editing and publishing; she even formed a small publishing company. All in all, as she puts it, she's been an "editor, indexer, publisher, production manager, and shipping clerk."

Luey covers the details of publishing scholarly books from start to finish, including specific types of books such as textbooks and multi-author collections of articles or essays. Financial details, such as royalties, are explained from the point of view of both author and publisher. Luey is very helpful in giving professors a sense of publishers' pressures and business considerations. She discusses how to consider which publisher is most appropriate for submitting a proposal as well as the form and mechanics of submissions. She describes contracts and tells what to look for before signing. She tells how to prepare the typescript and illustrations professionally. I thought that her explanation of why the prices of academic books varies was an interesting topic.

I am a professional counselor and coach to junior faculty and graduate students and I'm very glad to have found this book. I will definitely recommend it to the people I work with who are in the process of revising their dissertations to be published. Her explanations of how the content and style of a dissertation must be transformed in order to publish are excellent. This chapter, "Revising a Dissertation" and will be especially useful to junior academics in humanities and social science departments in which turning the dissertation into the first book is an expected prerequisite of tenure. If you are working on your first scholarly book Luey's advice will help you through the process.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent resource for all academic authors, January 27, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Handbook for Academic Authors (Paperback)

This is a well-written, entertaining look at academic publishing that is filled with valuable advice. Luey breaks down the processes involved in different kinds of academic publishing into steps that are easy to understand. What is particularly valuable is the perspective that she provides on how the publishing industry works, answering typical author questions such as "Why does it take so long to get a response?" and "Why do academic books cost so much/ make so little money?" Her practical information about how royalties work is worth the price of the book alone, as is the extremely helpful section on the difference between a dissertation and a book. Highly recommended for any academics worrying about publishing (and who isn't?).

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beth Luey - Handbook for Academic Authors, August 5, 2001

By 

Ralph Blumenau (London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Handbook for Academic Authors (Paperback)

Very comprehensive, especially, of course for the American market. I bought it because I wanted to have ideas about how to find a publisher after I had all but finished my book; but I wish I had seen it before I started writing, because it makes many technical points about how to prepare a typescript. It will take a fair amount of time to adjust my script to satisfy the technical requirements publishers apparently make.