Published today
What started right here as a series of blog posts is published today as a book from CRC Press.
As you should know by now, this book is available to read free online at http://www.howtowriteaphd.org/
Of course, you can still access the blog posts which are curated together on a page here. But don't be surprised if the book is quite a bit different. This time last year, I had completed a first draft of this book - and actually the next one on publishing. After signing the deal with CRC Press and getting a manuscript due date on 30 April 2021, I found that I needed to rewrite the book from start to finish. This was, in part, because the original book I had written needed to be split into two, and because it turns out that a first draft is just that.
I received the copy edits and then proofs in July and August 2021. I was quite surprised at how much work was still needed on the copy edits. I had submitted the book in LaTex, and had quite a few formatting points that hadn't worked out well. By that time I had also signed another contract to submit the second book in August: How to publish in Biological Sciences. As you can imagine, August was a busy month. At this point though, I could make sure that the second book did not have the same problems as the first (and indeed I have already returned the copy edits on that and it was all good).
So, it turned out to be quite a bit more work to get the blog posts into the form of a book. The Bookdown (online) version is already growing and having chapters added. That's the really nice aspect of this guide book, that it can continue to evolve online. Please do take a look and see what you think. All contributions are welcome. If you can't find a section that you are looking for, let me know.
The book itself contains a long list of acknowledgements, but I feel that it is necessary to name some of those people here too. Firstly to my brother, Richard, who maintains this website and has rescued it from hackers and systems crashes over the years. My wife, Thalassa, has had to read (and correct) a lot of this book as blog posts, and also when I was rewriting it. All of the MeaseyLab folk who have been the source of great inspiration for many of the chapters, but for also discussing a lot of the topics in lab meetings and contributing so much to my understanding of the writing process. Lastly, to all the support I had from the CIB over the last 8 years, especially Christy who has been absolutely fantastic.
Curious to see what the book looks like?
You can see a preview of the book on Google Books. Just click this link
Measey J (2021) How to publish in Biological Sciences: a guide for the uninitiated. CRC Press, Boca Raton. ISBN: 9781032116419
Great to see this in hard copy!
