Successfully Publishing New Technology-Level Text Materials

Christopher R Conty

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Conference: 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Publication Date: June 23, 2013
Start Date: June 23, 2013
End Date: June 26, 2013
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Issues in Engineering Technology Education
Tagged Division: Engineering Technology
Page Count: 26
Page Numbers: 23.1112.1 - 23.1112.26
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--22497
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/22497
Download Count: 388

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biography

Christopher R Conty Editor On Behalf of You

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Acquiring, developing & promoting technical textbooks & references -- hard copy & digital/ other media -- since 1974; previously for Charles E. Merrill (now Pearson), Delmar & West (both now Cengage), Elsevier, McGraw-Hill Career Education & Industrial Press.

Current role is as free-lance (independent) editor, placing would-be authors with 2 commercial academic publishers primarily. For Industrial Press, I acquire technology-level full length textbooks & help authors increase their odds of success by offering "pre-signing" development -- for which no fee is charged to the author, as publisher pays the fee. For Momentum Press, I recruit academic Collection Editors in Mfg. Processes, Mechanical, Industrial, Instrumentation, Design & Graphics Engineering; then collaborate with these CE's to develop their Collections by seeking academic author "experts" to write short (150-page) applied focused titles within larger subject areas -- Collections overall are for engineering libraries; individual titles in both digital & paperback formats are for advanced Engr. & Engr. Tech student purchase (via adoption or single copy) for research & course study.

Have set foot on over 1200 college campuses on 3 continents. Currently reside in Boston area. Chrisconty@aol.com. First joined ASEE in 1980; Psychology BA from Yale; expertise is academic publishing, not academia.

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Abstract

Successfully Publishing New Technology-Level Text Materials – Electronic & Print – in an Era of Publishers Not Signing & Professors Not Adopting Technology-Specific TitlesTechnology-level instructors have long had few if any textbooks & other teaching materials atthe appropriate level for their students (vs. engineering & technicians, especially for courses atthe sophomore/ junior-level or above, except in a few select courses – even then, one bookusually dominates, & no recently published alternative is available. Thus tech-level instructorsoften reluctantly adopt an engineering-level text with too few applications. Strangely, technician-level courses often also offer more text choices, but these can’t be adopted by an ABET program.Technology-level instructors are no less capable or willing to write a text than their engineering-level counterparts, nor are they any more discouraged from writing a text vs. focusing instead onpromotion, tenure, or other institutional & professional opportunities. Instead, the issue is thatfew if any new mid-to-upper-level technology-level textbooks are being signed by the largertraditional text publishers; instead, most publishers have ceased publishing entirely at this level,and those few remaining are almost exclusively focusing on revising those rare titles that sellwell enough to justify maintaining them; they’re not taking on new projects. The gradual shift toelectronic delivery of texts (as an alternative to print) is actually not a significant factor for this.This paper: (1) explores the reasons for this tech-level text dearth; (2) offers practical remedies. (1) Lists changes in the textbook publishing environment & in enrollments at individual ABET-accredited ET school programs that led to traditional textbook publishers not undertaking (signing & publishing) new mid-to-upper level tech-level text projects. (2) Lists steps (a) Technology-level textbook instructors could take in adoption decisions, & (b) would-be authors could take in preparing text proposals – to greatly increase the odds that new appropriately applied text materials would be signed by a commercial publisher, & then become successful – with “success” defined as getting published, being promoted effectively, & selling well enough that the publisher asks the author to revise it every few years (vs. being released prior to publication, buried [under-developed & under- promoted], put out of print, or reprinted but not revised.Three caveats: (a) This paper’s author’s experience is tech-level publishing (not teaching) & theauthor could benefit personally if more tech-level texts are signed & published, (b) financialreward for success (as defined) would almost exclusively benefit the academic author (while thispaper’s author’s #1 benefit for an author’s success would be reinforcing of reputation,); (c) mostfirst-time would-be commercial authors are not signed, & most signed are unsuccessful (notrevised). So while this paper’s author/ editor’s history suggests a possibility of doubling thoseodds for a text author who follows the paper’s author’s suggestions, no guarantee is made that:these odds from the past will continue in the future; that any given author will enjoy success.

Citation
Format

Conty, C. R. (2013, June), Successfully Publishing New Technology-Level Text Materials Paper presented at 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Atlanta, Georgia. 10.18260/1-2--22497

TY  - CPAPER
AB  -          Successfully Publishing New Technology-Level Text Materials –           Electronic &amp; Print – in an Era of Publishers Not Signing &amp;              Professors Not Adopting Technology-Specific TitlesTechnology-level instructors have long had few if any textbooks &amp; other teaching materials atthe appropriate level for their students (vs. engineering &amp; technicians, especially for courses atthe sophomore/ junior-level or above, except in a few select courses – even then, one bookusually dominates, &amp; no recently published alternative is available. Thus tech-level instructorsoften reluctantly adopt an engineering-level text with too few applications. Strangely, technician-level courses often also offer more text choices, but these can’t be adopted by an ABET program.Technology-level instructors are no less capable or willing to write a text than their engineering-level counterparts, nor are they any more discouraged from writing a text vs. focusing instead onpromotion, tenure, or other institutional &amp; professional opportunities. Instead, the issue is thatfew if any new mid-to-upper-level technology-level textbooks are being signed by the largertraditional text publishers; instead, most publishers have ceased publishing entirely at this level,and those few remaining are almost exclusively focusing on revising those rare titles that sellwell enough to justify maintaining them; they’re not taking on new projects. The gradual shift toelectronic delivery of texts (as an alternative to print) is actually not a significant factor for this.This paper: (1) explores the reasons for this tech-level text dearth; (2) offers practical remedies.   (1) Lists changes in the textbook publishing environment &amp; in enrollments at individual       ABET-accredited ET school programs that led to traditional textbook publishers not       undertaking (signing &amp; publishing) new mid-to-upper level tech-level text projects.   (2) Lists steps (a) Technology-level textbook instructors could take in adoption decisions, &amp;       (b) would-be authors could take in preparing text proposals – to greatly increase the odds       that new appropriately applied text materials would be signed by a commercial publisher,       &amp; then become successful – with “success” defined as getting published, being promoted       effectively, &amp; selling well enough that the publisher asks the author to revise it every few       years (vs. being released prior to publication, buried [under-developed &amp; under-       promoted], put out of print, or reprinted but not revised.Three caveats: (a) This paper’s author’s experience is tech-level publishing (not teaching) &amp; theauthor could benefit personally if more tech-level texts are signed &amp; published, (b) financialreward for success (as defined) would almost exclusively benefit the academic author (while thispaper’s author’s #1 benefit for an author’s success would be reinforcing of reputation,); (c) mostfirst-time would-be commercial authors are not signed, &amp; most signed are unsuccessful (notrevised). So while this paper’s author/ editor’s history suggests a possibility of doubling thoseodds for a text author who follows the paper’s author’s suggestions, no guarantee is made that:these odds from the past will continue in the future; that any given author will enjoy success.
AU  - Christopher R Conty
CY  - Atlanta, Georgia
DA  - 2013/06/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Successfully Publishing New Technology-Level Text Materials
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/22497
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--22497
ER  -