Thursday, February 04, 2010

Why publish?

is the question that Lawson Stone asked today. His wording of the question and the answer are worth repeating:

Why do scholarship anyhow? It sure isn’t for the money! Very few scholars make much money with their writing. The ones that do could make more moonlighting as refrigerator repairmen! And it’s not for the power either. That a few professors think you are cool because of some obscure article you wrote doesn’t get you free coffee, even in your own school! And believe it or not, people who go into scholarship thinking they can change it for the kingdom, make it a more friendly and positive place for faith, are often self-deceived. Scholarship is tribal, and those who think they can change the cynics, skeptics, relativists, and atheists with their brilliant arguments end up either giving up, or having their audience confined to those who already agree with them, whom they encourage and support...

So…why have I invested so much in restarting something for which there are not a lot of romantic, exciting reasons? It’s actually very important, and very simple.

Accountability.

In the classroom, we professors spout off our opinions and theories with a lot of authority. We typically persuade our students, who think we have a great “take” on this or that issue. But the simple fact is, very few students are equipped or inclined to offer serious resistance. They don’t know the biblical languages as well, they don’t know the cognate languages and literatures, they don’t know the history of research, in short, they just don’t know enough to be sure that what I or my colleagues is giving them is really worthwhile.

And popular publishing won’t help on that point. If I write an evangelical Christian book, published by an evangelical Christian publisher, sold in evangelical Christian bookstores…am I really putting my views before a critical, competent, potentially hostile audience for review?

<idle musing>
I think he has a very good answer. And, I might add, this is a big reason that self-publishing is looked down on in the academic community...
</idle musing>

2 comments:

Steve Wiggins said...

Interesting post. A lot also depends on the publisher chosen as well. Many well-respected publishers use cryptic imprints to publish less respectable stuff that will sell well. I agree that respectability is an important part of the equation, but publishers need to make money as well. It is a balancing act, I believe.

jps said...

Steve,

Yes, publishers need to make money, as you well know :( It is indeed a balancing act.

James