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In our most recent “how can we help you?” thread, a couple of readers posed book publishing. The first reader writes:
How do I choose between sending my book to OUP NY and OUP Oxford?
And the second writes:
Does uploading my dissertation to PhilPapers hurt my chances of getting it published as a book later?
Do readers have any helpful insights to share?
To the second query
.. why would a publisher want to publish a manuscript that is already available on line
Many dissertations are now published online by universities (e.g. on ProQuest or those institutions’ own platforms), and doing so is required in order to graduate. That would seem to rule out any book substantially based on a dissertation awarded by such an institution ever being published. It seems more reasonable to say that dissertations don’t count as prior publication in a substantial way, just as it’s perfectly acceptable to publish papers that start life as chapters of one’s dissertation.
Yes, most dissertations are published online these days, so the bare fact that a dissertation is available on the internet does not mean that one cannot publish a book that is based on it. My dissertation is available online through an institutional thesis repository, and I recently published a book that is based on it with a major press. However, publishing a dissertation as a book and publishing a book that is based on a dissertation are two different things. Most publishers are not interested in publishing dissertations as books, so if you are submitting a book proposal that is based on your dissertation, you’ll want to carefully explain how the project has evolved from the dissertation (which typically has a different purpose and a narrower audience than an academic book).
First, a dissertation being published (that is, made available) in an online repository like ProQuest or PhilPapers is different than its being published by a press. Being available in the former way doesn’t preclude its being published by a press.
That’s because, second, it is the rare dissertation that can be published as a book, “as is.” Dissertations are peculiar pieces of writings, typically not written to a philosophical audience in the way an academic book is. Most dissertations change significantly on the way to becoming a book. Its structure changes, the literature review changes (no longer are you writing for a committee), and often the argument changes, if not in substance at least in scope.
If you want to turn your dissertation into a book, at minimum, you will want to send a proposal and sample chapter to an academic press. Working with a developmental editor or having a book manuscript workshop are other ways to ensure your dissertation is suitable for being published (and read and engaged with).
For the last year or two, OUP Oxford is going through a reshuffling of acquisition editors as I recall. So that’s a potential reason for trying OUP NY. As to the other question, many presses don’t want to publish dissertations, even lightly revised ones. So posting it won’t hurt your chances, but those chances were probably low to begin with.
On OUP, some of their recently published books contain fairly egregious typographical/editorial errors.
I am only reporting a view that some (senior and older generation) people have said to me, not defending it: I’ve heard that OUP Oxford is better thought of by some as they publish fewer books /decline more manuscripts than OUP NY, and that a contract with OUP Oxford is better as they offer contracts later in the process after seeing more of the manuscript (and offer fewer contracts) than OUP NY, and so there is less chance of the manuscript being declined later on in the process. Not sure how widespread those views are (but I’ve heard both ideas from a few people independently of each other)
How can people tell the difference between OUP NY and OUP Oxford? Does this only matter when the book is under contract, so you can only show the contract as proof that you have something coming toward publication, but that it doesn’t matter too much once the book is actually published if the physical book only says OUP? What am I missing?
Question: if OUP Oxford is not interested in a book proposal, can one try OUP NY? Or is the route to OUP blocked?
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