Welcome to Getting Started in Library Publishing! The curriculum is a suite of synchronous and asynchronous professional development offerings for librarians. This dynamic, extensible, multimedia curriculum is intended to empower librarians to meet local demands to launch and/or enhance scholarly publishing activities.
The content in this course series was adapted from the Library Publishing Curriculum developed by the Educopia Institute and the Library Publishing Coalition (LPC), in partnership with the Public Knowledge Project (PKP), NASIG, and BlueSky to BluePrint. The content was adapted under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license.
The initial curriculum was released in 2018 and included four modules that address major competencies in library publishing: Content, Impact, Policy, and Sustainability. Each module has been authored by field experts, and each is roughly the equivalent of a 12 hour “course.” This PKP School adaptation of the Curriculum was published in 2020.
In 2021 the Library Publishing Coalition formed an editorial board that would steer future iterations of the curriculum. In response to the need for a more beginner-friendly approach, the Editorial Board chose to develop an introduction which frames the rest of the curriculum for those new to library publishing. The introduction course provides a clear, entry-level overview of the basics, covering the essentials of who, what, when, where, and why in library publishing. It’s designed to give newcomers a solid foundation before diving into the more detailed aspects of the field. The LPC launched the Introduction module in 2024 and adapted for PKP School the same year.
We’re delighted to partner with the LPC to offer this self-paced version of the curriculum introduction and help more librarians and publishing professionals get started in this vital area.
Except where otherwise indicated, content in the Getting Started in Library Publishing series (as well as original content adapted from the Library Publishing Curriculum) is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) 4.0 license. You are free to share, adopt, or adapt the materials. We encourage broad adoption of these materials for teaching and other professional development purposes, and invite you to customize them for your own needs.
What will you learn?
Throughout these courses on Getting Started in Library Publishing, you will discover detailed information on several topics related to launching and running a library publishing program. Below is an outline the four core courses in the Getting Started in Library Publishing series, and what to expect from each.
Attracting, Selecting, and Disseminating Content for your Library Publishing Program
The types of content supported by your library publishing program will define the overall strategy, aims, and scope for your program. Library publishing programs publish academic journals, long-form scholarship such as monographs, conference proceedings, educational materials, multimodal content, and more. They might publish work by members of their campus communities, such as students, faculty, and staff, and in some cases they may seek content from members of the wider community, as well. The type of program you choose will define the work that your program does, and may change over time. This will impact many other aspects of your program – such as strategic planning, finances, staffing, policies, and more.
In the Content course, we’ll explore different types of content strategies, the steps for gathering information from stakeholders, and approaches for crafting mission and vision statements to define your program (Module 1). Next, we’ll look at what the proposal, submission, and production process might look like as you begin recruiting content for your program (Module 2). Module 3 will take a closer look at publishing long-form scholarship, and Module 4 will look closely at journal publishing. Module 5 explores the opportunity to publish educational materials such as Open Educational Resources (OER), and the options to involve students in the publishing process through Open Pedagogy. Finally, Module 6 looks at publishing multi-modal content, including platforms and workflows to consider.
Building and Measuring Impact for your Library Publishing Program
Before launching your library publishing program, you’ll want to think about the impact that your program will have, how you will measure results, and what types of external factors will have an impact on your program. You might consider how your program will contribute to the broader objectives of your library and institution; develop goals and objectives; develop strategies for reaching potential audiences and getting the word out about your services and publications; and find ways to measure the overall impact that your program has in the community – information which you can then use in an iterative process of developing new goals and objectives to remain relevant and current.
In the Impact course, you’ll learn about current trends that are making an impact on library publishing and could influence your program’s strategy (module 1). You’ll also learn about the steps you can take to identify and align your program with organization objectives, and how to develop a strategic plan and manageable goals for your program (module 2). In module 3 you will discover strategies for assessing your program and measuring the overall impact. Finally, you’ll find strategies for enhancing the impact of your library publishing program through discovery and accessibility (module 4), outreach, engagement, and collaboration (module 5), marketing, promotion, and publicity (module 6) and social networking (module 7).
Sustainability of Your Library Publishing Program
Library publishing programs are developed and run through a variety of business models. Some programs are funded entirely through their library’s operations budget, and may function as mission-driven programs focused on providing a service to library users – similar to other services, such as reference and collections services, offered by the library. Other programs may be responsible for generating revenue from publications to recover a portion or all of the costs associated with running the programs. Others may take a different approach – such as relying on grant funding or other “soft money” to sustain the program. Regardless of how your program is funded, there are other factors to consider, such as how your program will be staffed, who will have oversight of the program’s governance, and how you will ensure long-term preservation of the content you publish.
The Sustainability course contains answers to many of the issues mentioned above. Depending on how your program is financed, you may want to become familiar with some business basics – discussed in Module 1 – to learn about managing the various costs and venue types involved in running your program. In Module 2 we’ll take a deeper dive into financing for your program, including planning and reporting finances, and involving necessary stakeholders in financial decisions. Module 3 looks at staffing for your library publishing program, including position types, job descriptions and hiring, diversity and equity in hiring, and politics and governance for overseeing program operations. Finally, Module 4 explores issues of digital preservation to ensure that the content your program publishes remains available and accessible over the long-term.
Policies for Library Publishing
Clear and intentional policies are essential for the success of a library publishing program. As you work closely with authors and editors, you will need to clearly outline the services and expectations for all parties. For example, you may expect or require journal editors to publish using a Creative Commons license, to allow authors to retain copyright to their work, and to confirm with authors that they have permission to use third-party materials. These and other expectations may lead to the development of various agreements – legal and otherwise – that can be negotiated and signed between authors, editors, and publishing program staff. Your program’s policies will also lay the groundwork for the practices you follow in support of your program’s goals and objectives. For example, you may develop a diversity policy to actively and intentionally address inequities and biases in the publishing process. And you may develop a digital preservation policy to ensure that your content will remain available as technologies and formats change over time.
In the Policies course, we’ll start by looking at copyright issues related to library publishing in Module 1. While this content is mostly based on copyright laws in the US and Canada, it offers ideas on what to look for when learning about copyright in other jurisdictions, as well. In Module 2 we will look at different types of agreements that your program might use when negotiating services and expectations with authors and editors. In Module 3 we will examine issues of diversity and inclusion in scholarly publishing, and the steps for developing a diversity policy to address these issues in your program. We’ll wrap up our courses with Module 4, which discusses digital preservation policies for your library publishing program.
We hope you enjoy these courses and find them helpful in developing and sustaining a successful and impactful library publishing program!
