[Now that I’ve got your attention I might remind you that books are never free, just as they are never singular: they are always collective products with both visible and invisible costs, benefits, and consequences in the world. In other words — support open-access publishing!]
A quick note to the SJU English community about two new open-access books recently published by the mad geniuses at Punctum Books. The 975 Doctoral Research Seminar will read both books, but other readers of this blog might be interested in them also. We at St. John’s would love to expand our shared conversations about writing, scholarship, New York, and the many other things these books explore — including the ocean!
How We Write is a collaborative book edited by U. of Toronto medievalist Suzanne Conklin Akbari. It features thirteen essays by academics of many different kinds, from grad students to senior professors, admitting to the real truths of their writing experiences. It’s not a book of advice but an experiment in shared exposure. Writing is a messy process, and this book shares the mess. 
Oceanic New York, edited by Steve Mentz, started as a symposium at St. John’s in October 2013. The book is a collaboration between eighteen writers and artists who think together about the relationship between the Ocean and New York City. It features many SJU voices, including three faculty members — Steve Mentz and G. Ganter from English, and Elizabeth Albert from DNY/ICS — and, to our great pleasure and pride, three recent MA graduates from our department: Bailey Robertson, Dean Kritikos, and Matt Zazzarino. Plus many other wonderful voices and images! (I especially love the cover, designed for the book by artist Marina Zurkow, which may or may not represent on some symbolic level my commute to campus.)
Download both for free, or order inexpensive paperbacks, and while you’re at it support open-access publishing and Punctum Books.
Leave a Reply