Tips for Turning a Dissertation Into a Book
This is a concise and really useful compilation of Tweets for a presentation on "How To Turn Your Dissertation Into a Book" by Ken Wissoker, Editorial Director at Duke University Press, delivered on Febuary 2, 2010 at Duke University.
The list is fantastic, and the mash-up sequence is fascinating--and I don't know where to begin giving credit. Ken (who happens to be my partner) gave the talk. Someone (Chris?) microblogged/tweeted it, FHI Twitter "follower" Matt Gold then compiled them, I believe, and then Christy in Australia put them together into her blog, and then I found out about it from an FHI post, and now I'm reblogging it here.
And you know what will come next--I'll be tweeting this reblog and also posting it to Facebook, and the process will continue.
I'm reblogging from the site "Christy's Corner of the Universe" Thanks to Ken, Chris, FHI, Matt, and Christy and to whomever else retweeted or reblogged or who will. This is useful. Pass it on.
So, this is what Web 2.0 Knowledge Sharing looks like. Take that, Jaron Lanier!
Tips on turning your dissertation into a book
By christy on February 3, 2010
In Twitter, I noticed Matt Gold (@mkgold) shared tweets being delivered by (@fhi_duke Franklin Humanities Institute). The tweeter was at a session about turning your dissertation into a book. The talk was by Ken Wissoker, the Editorial Director of Duke University Press (@kwissoker). I thought the info was great, and so Im posting here the tweets @fhi_duke delivered. Apparently Kens talk will be available in a podcast soon.
- Dissertations are highly contingent, written for specific committees & institutions for people who are obligated to read it! #1stbk
- In a diss, your committee can say so what you are really trying to say is in a book, you have to know from the get-go #1stbk
- In a book, emplotment & pacing are important knowing what the reader needs & why #1stbk
- A diss needs other theorists to justify its argument; In a bk, yr reader doesnt need to see how u parse theorists that theyve read #1stbk
- Thinking about audience: do you want it to be taught to u-grads? (that might dictate length) To circulate beyond your discipline? #1stbk
- A book published 5 years from now: how will it be read? On hand-held? The need to write with some uncertainty in mind #1stbk
- Duke Press published ~100 title/year 30 MSs are turned down each week but often this is a matter of FIT bet. book & press #1stbk
- At your professional meetings, pay attention to the strongest, most prolific presses write to editors ahead of time #1stbk
- Book proposals: dont start off discussing other peoples work! Make your work front & center #1stbk
- Book proposals should include chapter summaries & a sample chapter send BY MAIL, dont make the editor print the copies! #1stbk
- Be honest about where you are in the writing: whole MS, 2 chapters an interested editor will WANT you to send something #1stbk
- Editors sometimes send out dissertations in lieu of completed book MS to reviewers but rarely just excerpts #1stbk
- Book reviewers // test screening audiences reviewers will advise on whether arguments are convincing, what works/doesnt #1stbk
- Diss to #1stbk usually a 4-5 year process
- Writing groups can be great help w/ people who can model the audience youre interested in reaching #1stbk
- Cathy Davidson's blog
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some error above, I think
As an series editor, I don't want your paper. As a book reviewer before press, I don't want paper. I've dealt with editors at 5 different academic presses, none of them wanted paper. Send the proposal in email. Maybe Duke is different here, but I suspect that will change too. Paper makes a mess. We can read your proposal in email, decide what to do and do it very quickly, either reject, or take it to the next step. I don't have to run down the hall, make 5 copies and mail it to people, only to have them reject it, or lose it, etc.
Personally, I don't believe most dissertations, and I'm thinking 99% make good books and I suspect trying to turn dissertations into books is a downfall of many tenure bids. My advice is to... write 5-7 papers on a given topic, then transform those into your first book.
Paper versus Email: Ask, Don't Assume!
I think the larger point here is that there is wide variation and you should always ask your editor what he or she wants before acting. I have some editors who only want paper and some editors who only want email. The point is: don't assume. ASK!
yes always ask
but it did need a rebuttal, not everyone wants paper like Duke, in fact, Duke is the only place that I'm aware of currently that wants paper, but then i'm not in all the circles that all hastac members are.