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Tyrannosaurus Monographis and Velociraptor Articlus: A Publishing Ecology

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Abstract

Academic historians generally consider the monograph sine qua non for successfully recognized historical scholarship. Indeed, the monograph is held up as the major unit of scholarly contribution for professional academic, promotion to tenure and further advancement in academia. Graduate education and the training of academic historians is oriented toward the practice of acculturating nascent academic historians to this Holy Grail. In some quarters of academia, to publish other than a monograph is tantamount to not achieving serious stature as a professional historian. However, most historical research is disseminated through shorter pieces of scholarship. This discussion focuses on the value characterized by the scholarly article and its intellectual significance to historical scholarship. Additionally, there needs to be an intellectual recalibration, of the significance of the article to the academic history profession without diminishing the corresponding significance of the monograph. A balanced ecology is desirable to navigate the publishing crisis in historical scholarship.

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  1. For larger appreciation, see Albert N. Greco; Clara E. Rodriquez; Robert M. Morton. The Culture and commerce of Publishing in the 21st Century (Stanford: Stanford Business Books, 2007). For in-depth discussion of scholarly publishing trends, consult these periodic discrete studies: Albert N. Greco, “The General Reader Market for University Press Books in the United States, 1990–99, with Projections for the Years 2000 to 2004,” Journal of Scholarly Publishing 32 (January 2001), 61–86; Albert N. Greco; Walter F O'Connor; Sharon Smith; Robert M Wharton, “The Price of University Press Books, 1989–2000.” Journal of Scholarly Publishing 35 (October 2003): 4–39; Albert N. Greco and Robert M. Wharton, “The Market Demand for University Press Books 2008–15.” Journal of Scholarly Publishing 42 (October 2010): 1–15; Jaclyn Simson, Albert N. Greco, “The Price and New Title Output of Scholarly Books: 2009–2016.” Publishing Research Quarterly 34 (June 2018): 218–237. From these studies history-publishing averages above 1,500 monographs on average per year, with declines in non-U.S. and North American subject areas. Fluctuations occur among university presses and scholarly trade presses. The numbers vary, but imprints sold rarely climbs above 400–550.

  2. Gordon Wood. “THE ART OF HISTORY: IN DEFENSE OF ACADEMIC HISTORY WRITING.” https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/april-2010/in-defense-of-academic-history-writing.

  3. Academic historians will venture into popular history writing, but often, such endeavours do not count toward academic promotion, or offer intellectual gravitas. Danielle McGuire, Andrew Miller, and T. J. Stiles. “Writing History for a Popular Audience: A Round Table Discussion.” The American Historianhttp://tah.oah.org/august-2016/writing-history-for-a-popular-audience-a-round-table-discussion/.

  4. Instructive to note is Margaret Stieg Dalton, ‘The Publishing Experiences of Historians,’ Journal of Scholarly Publishing 39, 3 (April 2008): 197–240.

  5. In some countries, the crisis for the academic historical profession is acute, where the book-length work is difficult to publish by either university press or scholarly trade press, see Christophe Prochasson, “Is There a "Crisis" of History in France?” Perspectives on Historyhttps://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/may-1998/is-there-a-crisis-of-history-in-france.

  6. For an early in-depth study consult, Robert F. Lane, The Place of American University Presses in Publishing (The University of Chicago, 1939).

  7. For an economic analysis, see Barbara, G. Haney Jones, The Restructuring of Scholarly Publishing in the United States, 1980–2001: a Resource-based Analysis of University Presses (Lewiston: Edwin Mellen Press, 2009).

  8. Still relevant today, an entire conference was dedicated to this problem for all humanities scholars: The specialized scholarly monograph in crisis, or, How can I get tenure if you won't publish my book? In Mary M. Case, Proceedings: Conference sponsored by American Council of Learned Societies, Association of American University Presses, and Association of Research Libraries, Washington, D.C. September 11–12, 1997.

  9. It is still a daunting task to publish a revised dissertation with a university press, see Jean-Pierre V. M. Hérubel, “Humanities and Social Science Dissertations Published by University Presses: 2010–2014, Exploratory Observations,” Publishing Research Quarterly 33 (December 2017): 445–455; Jean-Pierre V. M. Hérubel, “Bibliographic and Scholarly Considerations of Revised History Dissertations [RD’s] Published by University Presses,” Publishing Research Quarterly 34 (2018): 22–31; Edward A. Goedeken; Jean-Pierre V. M. Hérubel, “Two Sides of the Same Coin? Trade and University Press Publishing of Revised Dissertations, 2007–2016: Some Observations,” Publishing Research Quarterly 34 (2018): 170–206.

  10. Paul A. Kramer, “History in a Time of Crisis.” The Chronicle of Higher Education, February 19, 2017. https://www.chronicle.com/article/History-in-a-Time-of-Crisis/239208.

  11. For a discussion of narrative monographic presentation in a age of other electronic formats, see Ann Rigney, “When the Monograph is no longer the Medium: Historical Narrative in the Online Age.” History and Theory, Theme Issue 49 (December 2010: 100–117. An interesting counter to this is, Jennifer W. Thompson, “The Death of the Scholarly Monograph in the Humanities? Citation Patterns in Literary Scholarship,” Libri 52 (Sept. 2002): 121–36.

  12. For bell-weather report on this situation, consult Leigh Estabrook, with Bijan Warner, The Book as the Gold Standard for Tenure and Promotion in the Humanistic Disciplines (Chicago: Committee on Institutional Cooperation, 2007). The following report offers innovative approaches for literary scholars, specifically for literature and language studies, Report of the MLA Task Force on Evaluating Scholarship for Tenure and Promotion, MLA Task Force on Evaluating Scholarship for Tenure and Promotion, (New York: Modern Language Association, 2006).

  13. Ylva Lindholm-Romantschuk. Scholarly Book Reviewing in the Social Sciences and Humanities: The Flow of Ideas Within and Among Disciplines(Westport: Greenwood Press, 1998). The importance of book reviewing for history is analyzed vis-a-via multidisciplinary information flow. For earlier, but instructive approaches to book reviewing see, Steven R. Kirby,"Reviewing United States History Monographs: A Bibliometric Survey," Collection Building 11 (1991): 13–18; Paula Wheeler Carlo & Allen Natowitz, “Choice Book Reviews in American History, Geography, and Area Studies: An Analysis for 1988–1993,” Library Acquisitions: Practice & Theory 19 (1995): 153–165; and a later study Allen Natowitz and Paula Wheeler Carlo, “Evaluating Review Content for Book Selection: An Analysis of American History Reviews in Choice, American Historical Review, and Journal of American History,” College & Research Libraries 58 (1997): 322–335.

  14. America: History and Life, http://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/search/basic?vid=0&sid=1f405a0d-a52a-4971-a424-94738a973bc4%40sdc-v-sessmgr02; and, Historical Abstracts, http://web.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/search/basic?vid=0&sid=c69bb690-7279-4712-a51b-2eb6b781df2c%40pdc-v-sessmgr05. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

  15. Ulrichsweb, http://ulrichsweb.serialssolutions.com/retrieved October 17, 2018.

  16. Journals such as Historical Methods: A Journal of Quantitative and Interdisciplinary History covers historical topics and techniques that would not easily find a home in a monographic study, requiring marketability. This journal “reaches an international audience of historians and other social scientists concerned with historical problems. It explores interdisciplinary approaches to new data sources, new approaches to older questions and material, and practical discussions of computer and statistical methodology, data collection, and sampling procedures. In addition to its longtime interest in quantitative approaches to historical questions, Historical Methods also emphasizes a variety of other issues such as methods for interpreting visual information and the rhetoric of social scientific history.” https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/vhim20/current. Retrieved October 19, 2018.

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  1. Libraries and School of Information Studies, Purdue University, 504 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN, 47907-2058, USA

    Jean-Pierre V. M. Hérubel

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Hérubel, JP.V.M. Tyrannosaurus Monographis and Velociraptor Articlus: A Publishing Ecology. Pub Res Q 35, 213–222 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12109-019-09648-6

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