Publishing books by the end of Ph.D studies

[adel9216]

Hello,

I'm hearing that it is increasingly a plus to have published at least a book when applying to prof positions. I was wondering if University Presses are the way to go. Does publishing non-fiction books geared at the general public (but based on research topic) a waste of time if it is not with an University press?

I am asking because I am thinking of working on a book proposal, but I am very doubtful that a university press will want to publish me due to my lack of experience.

[traductio]

I'm hearing that it is increasingly a plus to have published at least a book when applying to prof positions.

Oh goodness, I hope not. I'm sure this is field-dependent (I'm in communication, where some departments look for books for tenure, others for articles), but having a book published to apply for assistant professor positions would be very difficult if you're still working on your dissertation. (I realize that the market in the humanities is terribly competitive -- perhaps the people applying for assistant prof positions have been out for a while, which is how they've had time to turn their dissertation into a book.)

On the other hand, having a book contract is increasingly common, at least in communication (although whether a search committee values that depends on the department).

I was wondering if University Presses are the way to go. Does publishing non-fiction books geared at the general public (but based on research topic) a waste of time if it is not with an University press?

I am asking because I am thinking of working on a book proposal, but I am very doubtful that a university press will want to publish me due to my lack of experience.

I think a university press or a scholarly commercial press (Routledge, etc.) would be the strongest option. That being said, I've read the books written by people while still in grad school (I mean, there are a few) -- I have yet to read one that was any good, or that wouldn't have benefited from the maturation process that comes with finishing a dissertation.

[Parasaurolophus]

What traductio said.

Expectations for job applications are certainly field-dependent. In mine (humanities-but-closer-to-social-science), nobody expects a book, but it is expected that, as an ABD or fresh PhD, you'll have at least one article in a top subfield or generalist journal, preferably many more. And since most applicants are several years out, it's not at all uncommon for them to have 5+, or 5+ and a book, etc. And in my field, the press rankings are pretty severe, and after OUP and CUP, they're not at all dominated by university presses. So that's something you'll have to pay attention to with your field, too. I have no idea what the press hierarchy is like for you.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about a book or book contract yet (unless it's normal for fresh PhDs in your field to have a book just after they finish, although that seems unlikely). Wait until you're further along in your dissertation, or when you're ready to pitch a postdoc project.

[Hegemony]

Commercial publishers are not easier to publish with than university presses — they are harder to publish with.  They want the book not only to be well-written and on a popular subject, but to have the potential to sell very widely.  University presses want the books to sell, but their definition of "selling well" is much more modest, and they will accept dense academic prose, unlike commercial publishers.

But a university press will not reject you for lack of experience. They will reject you, if they do, because your book MS is not strong enough.  (Of course, that can come from lack of experience.)

It is extremely uncommon for people new to the academic job market to have published a book.  Start with solid articles in good journals, and work up from there.

[larryc]

What is your field? Nearly every question in academia is field-dependent!

In history, it is by no means expected that you will have a book when applying for TT jobs. Indeed, I would rather see a book MS ready to go than a book, because a previously published book will not count towards tenure at my institution but one published while you are on contract with us will.

Academic presses mostly publish books by first-time authors. That is because a minority of authors ever publish a second book.