IS IT HARDER TO PUBLISH ACADEMIC BOOKS IN THE DIGITAL AGE?Dana Beth Weinberg, PhDProfessor of Sociology and Director of the MA Program in Data Analytics and Applied Social ResearchQueens College-CUNYhttp://danabethweinberg.com
Eastern Sociological Society Digital Mini ConferenceMarch 17, 2016
Scholarly Needs and Publishers’ Decision-Making
• How has the book market and digital disruption affected academic publishers’ decisions about the kinds of books and authors in which to invest?
Academic Publishing and Academic Jobs
• Hiring, tenure, and promotion• Dissemination of scholarship• Peer review publication outlet
Academic Publishing and the Book Industry
• Niche books with relatively small audiences• Reputation for intellectual quality• Potential competition from trade publishers for more
popular types of titles
Major Changes in Publishing from Digitization
• Ebooks, reprints, and print on demand (POD)• Indie publishers and indie authors• Distribution• Retailers• Electronic journals, archives, and changing role of the
college library• Discoverability of books
The Book ExplosionBowker’s Books in Print (ISBNs)
Original Titles 2002-2012
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 20120
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
Titles in Print
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 0
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
Titles in Ebook Only
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 20120
50,000
100,000
150,000
200,000
250,000
300,000
350,000
All Titles
B5 Publisher Large Publisher University or Academic Press
Institutional Publisher Traditional Audiobook Publisher
Self-Published Author Unmatched
BUT Some Things Have Changed Less
Academic and University Press Titles
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 20120
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
9,377 9,353 10,184 10,349 11,657 10,643 11,589
18,98715,409 13,987 13,088
2,018 2,427 2,312 3,5743,068
2,8463,100
3,529
5,3994,034
3,594
Titles Published 2002-2012
Print Ebook Only
Pursuing more popular topics?• Analysis of trends in academic publishers’ titles by BISAC
heading showed no steady trend changes by subject.
Academic and University Presses
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
4,7185,402
5,9606,910 7,032 7,056
6,232 6,467
13,187
8,539
6,9926,055
Titles by Seasoned and Debut Authors 2007-2012
seasoned author debut author
*With the data starting in 2002, debut authors are defined starting in 2007 as having their first book published in the reporting year.
Conclusions• Academic publishers are publishing more titles now than
in the early 2000s. Some of these new titles may be reprints or ebook versions of previously published works.
• They are publishing steadily in the same subject areas, suggesting that they are staying to their established niche markets rather than pursuing more popular subjects.
• There may be a slight decline both proportionately and overall in opportunities for new authors to publish. This is a trend to watch.