Publishing a Scholarly Book

Abstract

Irving Rockwood is president and founder of Irving Rockwood and Associates, Inc., an independent agency and book packaging firm specializing in the social sciences and projects developed by academic authors. Mr. Rockwood holds a B.A. and M.A. in political science and did additional graduate work toward a Ph.D. at Northwestern-where he was a university fellow-before entering book publishing. He has served as an acquisitions editor for Houghton Mifflin, D.C. Heath, University of Wisconsin Press, and most recently Longman Inc. He is an active member of the American Political Science Association. Further, there are differences among publishers of scholarly books. Some commonly issue paperback reprints of their hardcover publications. Others seldom do so. Some are linked to an extensive international distribution network while others concentrate on the domestic market. And virtually all have distinctive subject matter interests. All of which is to say that there are significant differences among scholarly book publishers, differences which should be taken into account when selecting potential publishers for one's book.