Jennifer Howard

It has been busy around here: a podcast about Google Book Search to record, two AAUP conferences to cover (profs and presses—the American Association of University Professors and the Association of American University Presses), two feature stories and a Hot Type column to wrap up, and a guest-blogging stint for Bookslut (this week—come visit). I’ve also got a couple of extra-curricular writing projects in different stages of development, plus the family, cats, house, and garden to tend to. The usual delightful madness. If somebody would go ahead and invent self-folding laundry, it would really help me out. If you follow… Read more...

It occurred to me the other day that it’s become refreshing to hear someone drop a good old-fashioned cliche. Put the cart before the horse. Make a mountain out of a molehill, please. Let the wheels come off the wagon. (Just don’t throw me under the bus.) Why? I think it has to do with the virtualization—ugly word, sorry—of everything. Spend too much time pondering abstractions like “knowledge production” and “the dissemination of research” and you begin to long for something concrete to hang onto. Phrases that used to feel worn smooth, like rubbed-out pennies, have texture again, if you… Read more...

1. You’re hungry. 2. You’re sleepy. 3. You have figured out what you’re having for dinner. 4. You haven’t figured out what you’re having for dinner. 5. You’ve read an article that every third person online has already read/blogged about/tweeted. 6. Your email/ISP/Web site/smartphone is giving you trouble. 7. It is raining where you are. 8. It has stopped raining where you are. 9. You’re getting a lot done! 10. You really could be getting more done. If you can point me toward a conversation, an article, a book or an idea I’m not likely to see otherwise, though, I… Read more...

When word got out in early May that Louisiana State University might slash its press’s subsidy as a result of the state’s budget contraction, Michael V. Martin, chancellor of the Baton Rouge campus, issued a brief written statement. For those who admire the press, it was not very reassuring: “We hope the governor and our legislature will provide sufficient funding to maintain support of LSU Press, as it is a very valuable asset to this university, the people of the state, and many beyond,” Mr. Martin said. “We face, however, extraordinary economic conditions, and we must protect the academic core… Read more...