Thank you for supporting TAA through your membership. In this members-only section of the TAA website, you will find archives of the association's e-mail newsletter, TAA News Alert , and member print newsletter, The Academic Author; How-To articles on all aspects of authoring and publishing textbook and academic works; essays on writing; member profiles; teleconference recordings; a free online mentoring directory; member discounts on editing services, books and attorney fees; and information about TAA's grants program for academic authors. Use the links at the left to learn more about how your TAA membership can help you in your authoring efforts.

Feel free to contact TAA anytime you need help finding answers to your questions on writing, royalties, publishing, copyright, taxes, or other issues related to authoring textbook and academic materials.

We are here to serve you.

Contact:

Bradley Fahlman

updated 6/17/08

TAA member receives President's Medal from Human Anatomy & Physiology Society
TAA member Kevin Patton was awarded the Human Anatomy & Physiology Society's President's Medal on May 26, 2008 for exceptional services to HAPS and its mission of promoting excellence in teaching and learning of human anatomy and physiology. Click for more

Busy TAA People: Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson (North Mankato, MN) recently published an article in Gifted Child Today (2008, 31, 41-29) entitled, "Internet Strategies for gifted students." His latest book, Teaching and writing: Research-based strategies for teachers, tutors, parents, and paraprofessionals, Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, will be out in September 2009. He is also under contract to write a second edition of his social studies textbook, Making connections in elementary and middle school social studies, Thousand Oaks, CA, Sages.

updated 6/30/08

2008 Texty, McGuffey winners participate in Q&A during TAA Conference Awards Ceremony
Five of this year's Texty and McGuffey winners attended the TAA Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas held June 21 during the 2008 TAA Conference on Text and Academic Authoring. After being presented with their awards from TAA President John Wakefield, Texty winners Bradley D. Fahlman, author of Materials Chemistry; Charles Corbin, co-author of Fitness for Life: Middle School; Janet Belsky, author of Experiencing the Lifespan; and Jay Withgott, co-author of Environment: The Science Behind the Stories; and McGuffey winner Belverd E. Needles, co-author of Principles of Accounting, participated in a Q&A session with attendees. Click here

Making your work more visual
Communication law author Paul Siegel told an audience of textbook and academic authors during his 2008 TAA Conference session "Making Your Work More Visual," that he hired an art student on his campus to create original cartoons based on his ideas, that illustrated the points he made in his textbook, Communication Law in America. Download Paul's PowerPoint from the 2008 TAA Conference, which includes a slideshow of cartoons from his textbook: Click here (7.8 MB)

Websites enhance textbook materials for students
Chemistry author Karen Timberlake created a website for the seventh edition of her textbook, Chemistry: An Introduction to General, Inorganic and Biological Chemistry (now in its 10th edition) several years ago, before publishers entered the Internet and began adding online materials such as website supplements to textbook packages. At Timberlake's website, www.karentimberlake.com, students can access learning and teaching activities that complement both her chemistry classes for allied health and her Chemistry textbook, including... Click for more

Requesting and receiving feedback and how to use it effectively
We shall take it as a given that a good academic work is focused. I have trouble imagining a dissertation writer who wouldn't agree that their dissertation ought to be focused. But focus doesn't get enough attention early in the process. Yes, early in the process we are seeking to refine a focus by exploring a range of possibilities. All of these are important reasons not to focus too intently, too early. Read the entire article: Click for more

How to find a textbook publisher
If you have an idea for a new textbook a great way to start looking for a publisher is by attending your discipline's annual meeting -- which typically hosts book vendors -- where you may be able to make some good contacts with publishing companies, said Dr. Laura Taalman, a mathematics professor at James Madison University. Read the entire article: Click for more

Textbook author shares her experience working with literary agent
Dr. Cynthia Arem hired literary agent Michael Lennie of Lennie Literary & Authors Attorneys to negotiate the contract for her most recent book,  Conquering Writing Anxiety. He is also negotiating the terms for her Conquering Reading Anxiety book, which is in the proposal stage, and negotiating the terms for the third edition of her Conquering Math Anxiety: A Self-Help Workbook with CD, 2nd Edition, published by Brooks/Cole. Click for more

Tip for writing at home when you're not alone
Here's something Jane Karwoski, an adjunct professor of psychology at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, started recently that seems to really work to keep family members from interrupting her when she's writing at home: Click for more

updated 6/5/08

How to find a textbook publisher
If you have an idea for a new textbook a great way to start looking for a publisher is by attending your discipline's annual meeting -- which typically hosts book vendors -- where you may be able to make some good contacts with publishing companies, said Dr. Laura Taalman, a mathematics professor at James Madison University. Read the entire article: Click for more

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