How Do I Turn My Dissertation into a Book? 8 Things to Consider!
You’ve graduated! You have your PhD! Congratulations! But if you are thinking about turning your dissertation into a book, what do you do now? Before you get to that, try and take the time to acknowledge and celebrate the fact that you’ve written a dissertation! In academia, it’s really easy to rush onto the next task without stopping to recognize what you’ve just accomplished. Finishing your dissertation is a really big deal, and it may be the most difficult thing you ever write. So let this major accomplishment sink in and celebrate it.
Once you’re ready to move on, here are some of the things that were helpful to me as I went through this process, followed by some useful reading recommendations.
1
Remember that you don’t have to turn your dissertation into a book. Maybe you are so sick of the subject you just can’t stand it anymore. Or maybe you started another project late in your PhD and want to focus on that instead. Or maybe you now have a job that doesn’t require you to publish a book. Great! It’s totally possible to set your dissertation aside. If you are seriously considering this option (and working in academia), be sure to think about the following questions. First, can you afford to do this? What kind of faculty position do you have and what are the requirements for tenure (if you’re lucky enough to be in a tenure-track position)? Second, if you are in a position that doesn’t require a book for tenure, are you sure about that? Verify this with multiple people. Get it in writing from your chair. Third, if you’re thinking about a new project, do you have the time to write a different book? Remember that it can take well over a year after you submit your manuscript to a publisher for it to come out, often at least two years. Make sure the amount of time it will take you to write a new book fits with your professional goals.
I knew I wanted to turn my dissertation into a book, partly because I’d always wanted to write a book and also because I didn’t have another major project that I wanted to pursue. So I moved onto the next point.
2
Take some time away from the diss. This may not be possible for you, depending on your situation, but setting the dissertation aside for several months (or more) can be really valuable. First, you are tired! You just finished grad school. Breaks are healthy. Second, doing so will help you get some perspective on the dissertation. You’ve likely been working on it for so long that you almost can’t see it anymore. Write something else, work on a different project, plan some classes. Let yourself breathe.
I had a postdoc the year after I graduated so spent the fall writing a new article. By the time spring arrived I felt ready to look at my dissertation with fresh eyes and could more clearly identify what revisions I needed to prioritize.
3
Think about your audience. The audience for books is very different from that of dissertations. Dissertations are in a sense written for the members of the dissertation committee. This means they have to address these members’ specific concerns, their favorite literature, and sometimes their pet theories. If you want your book to be published, it has to appeal to a much broader audience. So start thinking about how you can rework your arguments and text to appeal to people outside of your narrow specialization. This can involve limiting jargon, explaining theory more clearly, and not heavily citing literature. Publishers (even scholarly ones) are looking for books that are readable and that will sell.
I found it helpful to imagine my audience as I revised. I thought about anthropologists and people in African studies, but also scholars of gender and slavery. I also tried to write a book that my mother, who is an educated reader, but not a specialist in anthropology, could read. Keeping her in mind helped me determine when my writing was too confusing or dense.
4
You are an expert! You aren’t really when you are writing a dissertation, or at least you don’t feel like one. But now you have your PhD and you likely know more about your specific topic that anyone else in the world. So write with authority and conviction. Remove language that downplays your contributions (“My research may shows”). Condense your literature reviews. In the dissertation these served to prove that you had read and engaged with the important literature. In a book, readers assume you have done that so primarily engage with the literature that is central to your argument.
As I revised my book I wrote the working argument for each chapter on a Post-It note and stuck it on the wall near my desk. Then I referred to these as I wrote to help me think through how literature related to my arguments and cut works that were extraneous.
5
Don’t publish too much from your book. It’s tempting to try and get journal articles out of many of your book chapters. Doing so is often necessary to land a job. But, if you want to publish your book, be careful not to publish the majority of it in journal form; editors often don’t want to publish a book (especially of a first-time author) if most of it is already out there in the world. My book is six substantial chapters (plus an introduction and conclusion). I published versions of two chapters as journal articles before the book came out. Another strategy is to take part of a chapter and expand it into a journal article. That way most of the chapter remains unpublished. (Note that if you are not planning to turn your dissertation into a book, definitely do turn as much of it as you can into articles.)
6
Do care about the writing. With some lucky exceptions, most graduate programs do not teach students how to write. In our coursework we’re taught to write long papers extremely quickly and, while dissertating, the main goal is often to just get it done, not to write in an engaging way. But editors want books that are readable and that ideally could be read by undergraduates and maybe even non-academic audiences. Again, this is partly because academic publishers do need to sell the books that they produce.
I found reading books on writing helpful. As I read other books for fun or research I also thought about what made them effective and then used that as inspiration in my own writing. Think about what you can do to draw readers in (for example, open chapters with colorful anecdotes from your research or pose interesting questions). I’ll give some suggestions of books to read on writing in a future blog post.
7
Your book can’t be too long. At a certain length, books (especially first books) become too expensive for publishers to publish. So you may have to dramatically shorten your dissertation. Be in touch with potential publishers to get a sense of what they are looking for and look at examples of dissertations that became books to get a sense of their lengths. The lengths of academic books vary, but many run between 80,000 and 100,000 words. As I revised my dissertation, I cut places that were redundant or that didn’t advance my argument. This dramatically reduced the book’s length.
8
Consider working with a developmental editor. I am a developmental editor so of course I think this is a good idea. But it is a good idea. Hiring an editor to read and evaluate your entire dissertation manuscript can save you lots of time and energy trying to figure out what you need to do to turn it into a book. This kind of editing involves looking at the big picture. They’ll evaluate your argument, advise on how to revise to appeal to a broader audience, and assess your structure, organization, voice, and use of sources. After finishing your dissertation, it’s hard to even see your book anymore so having fresh eyes upon it can be extremely valuable. Many of your readers (dissertation committee, graduate colleagues) are also very familiar with your book so may not be able to step back and suggest the kind of revisions you need.
I didn’t know that developmental editors existed until after my book was published, but I now know that working with an editor would have helped sharpen my argument as well as my engagement with theory. Contact me for a free consultation if you’d like to learn more about developmental editing. The Editorial Freelancers Association is also a great place to find all kinds of editors to support your work.
There’s a lot to think about when starting to revise your dissertation. These are just some places to start. I also recommend reading at least one book on this subject. William Germano’s From Dissertation to Book helps you to determine whether you do want to write a book and gives advice on how to begin thinking through the necessary revisions. Beth Luey’s Revising Your Dissertation: Advice from Leading Editors talks you through every stage of the process with different highly-experienced editors offering their advice. This book also has chapters specific to particular academic areas, including the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and art. I also suggest rereading some of your favorite books by academics, this time with an eye to what makes these books compelling and engaging reads.
Congratulations on having completed one of the most difficult steps in your academic career. As you embark on this next step, some careful planning and preparation can make your book writing experience much more pleasurable and enjoyable. Have fun!
