Writing It!
The Podcast About Academics & Writing
About the show
"Writing It! The Podcast About Academics & Writing" dives deep into the world of academic writing and publishing. Join us for conversations with academics and editors as we discuss challenges, strategies, and insights from our writing lives. As we share our experiences and helpful hacks, we make the process of writing and getting published a bit more transparent and a bit less overwhelming.
Episodes
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Episode 16: When you need lots of images in your book
January 29th, 2024 | 37 mins 39 secs
book events, book launches, book prices, book promotion, bookstores, comics history, fellowships, images, lgbtq history, permissions, publicists, second book
We’re speaking with UF English Professor Margaret Galvan about writing a book with lots of images; how to find a press that can accommodate image-rich manuscripts; what a book publicist will actually do for you; how to cultivate a relationship with your publicist and editor; how to be thoughtful about book promotion; when and why to apply for a fellowship for book two; the importance of finding colleagues and friends who will get excited about your book; and handling the details of getting a manuscript ready for production.
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Episode 15: The Path to a Pulitzer
January 16th, 2024 | 46 mins 22 secs
award, book editors, literary agents, macdowell, pulitzer, rejections, trade publishers
Today we’re speaking with Pulitzer Prize winning scholar, Jack E. Davis, who is a UF professor of history and the Rothman Family Chair in the Humanities specializing in environmental history and sustainability studies. Jack talks with us about writing for a broader audience; what makes writing fun for him; the not-so-easy task of finding an agent; what it’s like to be an academic with a fellowship at MacDowell; and the experience of winning a Pulitzer.
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Episode 14: What’s so important about your book’s meta-data? Understanding publishing from the perspective of a university press
January 2nd, 2024 | 1 hr 5 mins
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, acquisitions editor, agents, associate professor, book covers, book launches, book markets, book price, book promotion, book publicity, book publishing, book reviews, book-writing, co-authorship, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, developmental editor, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, honorariums, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, manuscript editing, marketing, meta-data, networking, non-academic job applications, non-fiction, non-traditional academic, peer-review, personal statement, post-tenure, publicity, publishing, publishing timelines, religious studies, revision, revisions, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, teaching statements, trade division, trade press, women's history, writing, writing academic book, writing biography, writing coach, writing feedback, writing groups, writing styles, “crossover books”
Today we’re speaking with UF Press Editor in chief, Stephanye Hunter and UF Press Marketing Manager, Rachel Doll. Among our many topics, we discuss recent changes in the academic publishing world; important considerations in titling your book; what you can reasonably ask/expect of your editor; how to think about writing an op-ed, before book publication; what kind of publicity you can do on your own—and at what point—before publication; what kind of book events are most appropriate for your academic book; how a press decides if yours is a “crossover book”; what to consider when making suggestions for your book cover; What is meta-data?
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Episode 13: Why publish with a ‘trade division’ of an academic press?
December 18th, 2023 | 47 mins 57 secs
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, agents, associate professor, book launches, book markets, book promotion, book publishing, book reviews, book-writing, co-authorship, cold war history, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, developmental editor, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, honorariums, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, manuscript editing, marketing, networking, non-academic job applications, non-fiction, non-traditional academic, peer-review, personal statement, post-tenure, publicity, religious studies, revision, revisions, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, teaching statements, the rosenbergs, trade division, trade press, women's history, writing, writing academic book, writing biography, writing coach, writing feedback, writing groups, writing styles
Today we speak with Martin Siegel, author of the recently published, Judgement and Mercy: The Turbulent Life and Times of the Judge Who Condemned the Rosenbergs about writing a biography over many years, and publishing with the trade division of an academic press.
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Episode 12: The Truth About Book Promotion with Sandra Fox
December 4th, 2023 | 34 mins 35 secs
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, associate professor, book launches, book markets, book promotion, book publishing, book-writing, co-authorship, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, developmental editor, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, honorariums, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, manuscript editing, marketing, networking, non-academic job applications, non-fiction, peer-review, personal statement, post-tenure, publicity, religious studies, revision, revisions, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, teaching statements, trade press, women's history, writing, writing academic book, writing coach, writing feedback, writing groups, writing styles
We talk with Sandra Fox about what a first-time author can do to promote her book; what to expect from the publisher; and how best to use the affiliations and connections you have to spread the word about your book. We talk about honorariums, book price, op-eds, and book contracts.
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Episode 11: Figuring out how to write the post-tenure book
November 20th, 2023 | 59 mins 56 secs
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, associate professor, book markets, book publishing, book-writing, co-authorship, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, developmental editor, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, manuscript editing, networking, non-academic job applications, non-fiction, peer-review, personal statement, post-tenure, religious studies, revision, revisions, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, teaching statements, trade press, women's history, writing, writing academic book, writing coach, writing feedback, writing groups, writing styles
Yale professor Elli Stern talks with us about figuring out what kind of writing we want to do after tenure—and the importance of building a team of friends and colleagues who can read drafts and provide valuable feedback.
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Episode 10: Getting Unstuck in our Academic Writing with Gillian Steinberg
November 6th, 2023 | 41 mins 14 secs
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, associate professor, book publishing, book-writing, co-authorship, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, developmental editor, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, manuscript editing, networking, non-academic job applications. teaching statements, non-fiction, peer-review, personal statement, religious studies, revisions, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, women's history, writing, writing academic book, writing coach
A conversation with developmental editor/writing coach, Gillian Steinberg about replacing negative voices about writing with positive ones and strategies for improving our writing process.
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Episode 09: How to tell your academic story in applications: Special issue for job market/fellowship/graduate school application season
October 23rd, 2023 | 48 mins 32 secs
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, associate professor, book publishing, book-writing, co-authorship, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, networking, non-academic job applications. teaching statements, non-fiction, peer-review, personal statement, religious studies, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, women's history, writing
Karen Kelsky, of “The Professor Is In” speaks with us about academic job applications and academics applying for non-academic jobs. WE also talk about academic fellowship applications and graduate school applications.
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Episode 08: Writing as a practice for self-understanding
October 9th, 2023 | 50 mins 22 secs
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, activism within higher ed., associate professor, book publishing, book-writing, co-authorship, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, deanships, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, higher ed administration, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, networking, non-academic job applications. teaching statements, non-fiction, oprah, peer-review, personal statement, popular culture, religious studies, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, women's history, writing, writing as a practice
A conversation with Yale University Lex Hixon Professor of Religious Studies and American Studies and Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean of Humanities, Kathryn Lofton about the purposes and challenges of writing while working in higher education administration.
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Episode 07: Finally! Insightful, concrete advice for your job market writing materials
September 26th, 2023 | 50 mins 47 secs
academia, academic careers, academic job applications, academic job market, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, associate professor, book publishing, book-writing, co-authorship, cover letter, cover letters, creative non-fiction, creative writing, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, full professor, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, networking, non-academic job applications. teaching statements, non-fiction, peer-review, personal statement, religious studies, sample chapter, second book, social media, teaching statement, women's history, writing
Jeff Kopstein, Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Irvine, talks with us about putting together a compelling application for academic jobs. We talk not only about assistant professorship applications, but about the shift in tone and content for associate and full professorship applications.
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Episode 06: Behind-the-Scenes of a First Book & a New Journal
September 11th, 2023 | 1 hr 12 mins
academia, academic careers, academic journal, academic monograph, academic presses, academic publishing, book publishing, book-writing, co-authorship, creative non-fiction, creative writing, dissertation, editing, editor, editors, first book, jewish studies, journal articles, literary agents, literary non-fiction, non-fiction, peer-review, religious studies, second book, women's history, writing
Today, Professor Jenny Caplan talks with us about her process of turning dissertation into book, and what she learned about writing along the way. Also, Professor Sarah Imhoff talks with us about starting a new academic journal; what it means to be on an editorial board; co-authoring; and her tips for writing a better journal article.
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Episode 05: An Editor's Perspective - Elaine Maisner, UNC Press
August 28th, 2023 | 1 hr 59 secs
academia, academic careers, academic monograph, academic publishing, book publishing, creative non-fiction, creative writing, editing, editors, jewish studies, literary agents, literary non-fiction, non-fiction, religious studies, women's history, writing
Having worked in academic publishing for almost 40 years, Elaine Maisner shares wisdom from the field about finding the right press and how authors can best present their work to book editors.
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Episode 04: "What is it all for?" The challenge of finding a writing motivation after the first book with Professor Martin Kavka
August 14th, 2023 | 42 mins 41 secs
academia, academic careers, academic publishing, book publicity, book publishing, creative non-fiction, creative writing, dissertation, edited volumes, editing, editors, jewish studies, literary agents, literary non-fiction, non-fiction, publishing, religious studies, second book, tenure and promotion, university presses, women's history, writing, writing motivation, writing schedules
Martin Kavka, a professor at FSU, talks with us about finding the motivation to write; the role of friendships in academic writing; and revising the rules of tenure and promotion to better accommodate the non-book writers among us.
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Episode 03: An Editor’s Perspective - Jennifer Banks
July 31st, 2023 | 43 mins 55 secs
academia, academic careers, academic publishing, book publicity, book publishing, creative non-fiction, creative writing, dissertation, editing, editors, jewish studies, literary agents, literary non-fiction, non-fiction, publishing, religious studies, university presses, women's history, writing, writing schedules
Yale University Press Senior Editor Jennifer Banks talks with us about how editing helped her understand what kind of book she wanted to write. Banks also talks about best practices for approaching an editor with your book manuscript. And, once your book has gone through the review process, what to keep in mind while writing your response to readers’ reports.
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Episode 02: Unlearning Academic Writing Tics and Reaching a Broader Audience
July 17th, 2023 | 58 mins 8 secs
academia, academic careers, academic publishing, book publishing, creative non-fiction, creative writing, editing, jewish studies, literary agents, literary non-fiction, non-fiction, religious studies, women's history, writing
Today we're speaking with two scholars about writing for a "beyond the academy" audience.
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Episode 01: Choosing Literary Non-Fiction... And All That Comes With It
July 1st, 2023 | 55 mins 56 secs
academia, academic careers, academic publishing, book publishing, creative non-fiction, creative writing, literary agents, literary non-fiction, writing
Our guest this week is Maggie Doherty, English Ph.D., teacher, New Yorker writer, and author of The Equivalents: A Story of Art, Female Friendship, and Liberation in the 1960s (https://maggiedohertyauthor.com). Doherty tells us about discovering her writing path in literary non-fiction after embarking on a doctorate in English. In addition to sharing her experiences with book proposals, agents, and writing deadlines, Doherty discusses the pragmatic considerations in choosing to write trade-press, non-fiction, and the challenges of creating a career around writing and teaching.