In the immortal words of Charlie Brown

AAUGH!

I just got an e-mail from an editorial person at a very decent press (not Oxford or Cambridge decent, but they publish a lot in my subfield), asking me if I had time to meet with hir at Kalamazoo about any publishing projects I might have.

Obviously such a meeting wouldn't guarantee anything, and certainly wouldn't eliminate the need to, oh, WRITE A BOOK MANUSCRIPT, but still, I can't help but think, Where were you last year??*

*Okay, honestly? I don't think this. Obviously publishing is my responsibility, and nothing was stopping me from contacting publishers myself prior to this, if I'd felt in a position to shop the manuscript around. Still, the timing amuses me. And it's amazing how difficult it is to write back and say, Sorry, I'm leaving the field. Not because I'm reluctant to tell people, but it's amazing how deeply-rooted the academic instinct that says OOOH! POSSIBLE PUBLICATION!! has become.

Comments

[Dr. Virago]

Oh maaaaaan, that *is* a frustrating case of too little, too late. I understand completely. Even with all the decisions you've made in the last year that have been good and right for you, an e-mail like that can strike a nerve.

[Seeking Solace]

Yeah, that does kinda bite.

[LK]

I can relate to this all too well.

[life_of_a_fool]

And now my first response is "that's great! You can write a book! You've got, what, 4 or 5 months before law school will begin. . ."

[Janice]

You know, if they had a popular publishing arm, it might be fun to write something for the trade market before you head off into the sunset of law school. . . .

*slaps self silly*

[Ancrene Wiseass]

Sooo frustrating.

On the other hand, though, what a great endorsement of your work! Congrats.

[af]

That's very cool, and it could be great, but bear in mind that some publishers just make a bunch of contacts at these conferences with people who sound interesting, so it doesn't mean they are sold on you. I had this happen a couple of years ago and the dissertation book? Still no publisher. (Of course this is mainly my fault.)

I say this not to diminish your excitement - it is quite cool - but perhaps to diminish the "aughhness" in your response.

[Susan]

I also know someone who reworked the diss. manuscript after law school : )
But I like the idea of writing the book you could write if you weren't worrying about academic reviewers.

[Notorious Ph.D]

Send them my way?

Only half-joking. I've got serious publisher anxiety, and a deadline on Friday. Care to read a chapter MS? ;-)

[prof]

This is an ideal time to write an article or chapter for an edited volume, on your research. 12-15 pages. You have 4 months of free time and you are so lucky for this opportunity!

[New Kid on the Hallway]

Yes, can I say that I *did* actually think, Hmm, I wonder how quickly I could get the ms done?? (And af, I completely agree, this doesn't guarantee a thing and chances are better that nothing would come of it than not, so it's not that "aaugh!" after all, but it still made me laugh.) I do NOT think, though, that trying to pursue this on top of law school would be a very good idea! (I don't think they have a "popular" arm exactly, but even if they did, my diss-turned-book actually *is* the book I want to write! though I don't think I can quite disassociate from academic reviewers yet, so who knows.) As for the article/chapter for an edited volume - well, unless I proposed a volume I doubt they'd be very interested in one lone submission from me! (I actually do have a revise-and-resubmit that I've considered finishing over the summer, but partly because it's actually about legal stuff, so it would still be valuable for the transition.)

[New Kid on the Hallway]

Oh, Notorious, if you're serious, I would read a chapter... (and I'd send them your way, but I don't think they publish much on your neck of the woods!)

[Historiann]

Why not take a meeting? It's only a cup of coffee, and you're not going to be asked to sign a contract right then and there.

You could publish your book while doing law school--but it will be a LOT of work, and it may take you back to places your brain doesn't really want (or need) to go. And book production is surprisingly time-consuming and grueling--I kept sending it off to the publisher, and it kept washing back up on my doorstep with alarming efficiency five weeks later asking for copy-editing approval, then page proofs, then cover approval, then etc. etc. etc.

Then again, publishing your book would be a triumphant way of leaving the historical profession, as well as a great service to other scholars who will be able to read and cite the freshest and best version of your work (rather than looking up your dissertation, which only the most determined grad students will do.) Putting your book in-between covers will also be kind of a nice f-you to anyone whom you feel misjudged you or underestimated you as a scholar. (Is there any such thing as a grudge-book?) Publishing my book really helped me move on from past disappointments and rages.

[Belle]

They're buying coffee; they're talking pubs. You have a summer to turn out a book... what is wrong with this picture????

[New Kid on the Hallway]

Heh, the problem with the picture of a summer to turn out a book is: my summer is only June, July, and August, since I teach through the beginning of June, and classes start the end of August; we're going to move sometime in June as well (just within town, but still, plenty of work); and I seriously haven't touched the book ms since probably Jan or Feb 2007. Last spring was a heavy teaching semester for me, then I got fired, then my dad died, then I taught summer school, then I moved across the country, then I studied for the LSAT, took the LSAT, and wrote law school applications; I finally got done with all that in February and started thinking about the paper I present next week. So maybe I'm underestimating myself, but I don't have a lot of faith in my ability to turn what I had into a book in the space of 3 months (especially since I'm sure some annoying people have published stuff on the topic between now and when I last looked at it!). It probably helps to know it took me 5 years to write the dissertation - I am not Speedy Gonzales.

But the other thing is that while I love Historiann's idea of a f-you book (LOVE it), I also don't want to have competing loyalties in law school. If I'm doing law school, I want to DO law school - I want that to be my priority and where all my energy goes. That's not to say I don't want to continue to write - and if somehow I managed to put myself in a position to write medieval legal history, well hey! that would be cool! But my diss-turned-book isn't legal history, and while I'm sure the legal profession would think it was cool that I was published, it won't advance me in that profession. So I'd rather save my energy to ace my first-year classes ;-) and then when I start taking classes where I write papers rather than just take exams, I can turn my energy to writing legal articles.

On the one hand, yeah, it's a little sad simply to leave behind something I've spent so much work on; on the other hand, if I drive myself nuts trying to finish a book and let it take time/energy away from my new field, then academia will have won. ;-)

(Which isn't to say that I won't maybe try to cannibalize a couple of articles over the summer...)