Want to Get Published?

If you have an article that you’re dying to get published, San Jose State University’s Laurie Putnam has several resources to help you.

Putnam, Laurie L. [San Jose (California) State University], Professional writing and publishing: Resources for librarians, C&RL News 70(4), April 2009, http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/publications/crlnews/2009/apr/prowritepublish.cfm

Writing and Publishing Resources for Librarians Who Write, San Jose State University Alumni News 11(1), article 5, 2009, http://slisgroups.sjsu.edu/alumni/newsletter/09Spring/alumnewsspring09.htm#article5

San Jose State University Library and Information Science Publications wiki_, http://slisapps.sjsu.edu/wikis/faculty/putnam/index.php/LIS_Publications_Wiki

Laurie Putnam’s LibraryWriting Bookmarks, Delicious, http://delicious.com/LibraryWriting

What I've Read Lately...and So Should You

Here are a few articles that I think you should be reading. Most are from a great issue of Information Outlook (Special Libraries Association’s magazine) on the future of the profession.

Oder, Norman, MLS: Hire Ground? Library Journal 134(10):44-46, 1 June 2009. Discusses how economics and new technology may lead to fewer degreed librarians being hired and used by libraries. “Consultant Joan Frye Williams tells libraries not to put their most skilled people at the desk requiring the most interaction with the public. ‘We need to separate intake, which does not require a master’s, from execution, which does,’ she says.” But can non-professionals do an adequate reference interview?

Frey, Thomas, Rethinking the Post-Recession Specialty Library, Information Outlook 13(4):15-19, June 2009.
“…libraries will begin to experiment with a version of the digital library I’ve termed ‘the electronic outpost.’ Electronic outposts will evolve over time around the core services most relevant to a particular user group. Here are some examples of new library functions: search command centers, podcast studios, vidcast studios, virtual world stations, gamer stations, mini-theaters, cyber cafes.” Only one of these—the first—is a typical library function of today.

Huffman, Karen, Deborah Hunt, Nerida Hart, and Daniel Lee, Adding Value, Going Global, and Serving Smaller Clients, Information Outlook 134(10):27-31, June 2009.
Four SLA members were asked “to share their views on (a) the most significant developments that will affect the industry and profession and (b) how SLA can best help them and their colleagues prepare for the future.” Hart (Land and Water Australia).“I believe libraries, as we now know them, will not exist; the need for information professionals, however, will grow. They will be co-located with their clients and work side by side with them on projects to obtain better outcomes for their parent organization.” (This is how she works—her organization has no library.) “We need to educate information professionals not to expect to be located in a physical library but to think outside what has been done in the past.”

Abram, Stephen, Blogging as a Special Librarian, Information Outlook 134(10):47-48, June 2009.
Advice for newbies to blogging. “We should all be communicating regularly with our users, colleagues, patrons, markets and just plain folks. Invest part of yourself and your personality in your blog. If you’re real and authentic, people will be attracted to your advice.”

Schacter, Debbie, Adjusting to Changes in User and Client Expectations, Information Outlook 134(10):55-57, June 2009.
“Will the world be without information professionals in the future? I doubt it. Will the nature of the work or our interactions with our customers be different? Undoubtedly.”

Latham, John, Reaching Those Who Search (and Fail) on Their Own, Information Outlook 134(10):59, June 2009.
“Even if you provide excellent service, it will only be apparent to those within your organization who have benefited from it. You have to get the word out to those within your organization who have not used your services—and especially to senior management.” An Outsell survey shows that the search failure of most information workers is nearly 40 percent.

Note: Is it my imagination or are there a lot more articles in Information Outlook from people outside the library world?—regular columns excepted. While it’s good to hear from others, why aren’t there more articles by SLA members? Aren’t we submitting them?

I’VE BEEN TELLING YOU THIS FOR YEARS!

SLA PR Director Cara Schatz cites an AP article by Melissa Kossler Dutton.

“According to the career experts they spoke to, if you take responsibility for your education and skills development by attending the 2009 SLA Annual Conference on your own dime, you will get the attention of management at your company, and do a lot to insulate yourself from the next round of lay-offs!

‘…an employee who is willing to cover part of the expense is going to get the attention of management, said Ed Rigsbee, an expert in trade association conferences and president of Rigsbee Research Consulting Group in Los Angeles. "If someone is willing to spend a nickel of their own, I'm going to be more willing to listen," said Rigsbee, who believes employees should invest 5 percent of their income in professional development,’”

Just what I’ve been saying for years. YOU should pay for your own continuing professional education because 1) YOU are the one who benefits most from continuing professional education, not your employer and 2) it is part of being a professional. Yes, it’s nice if your employer helps, but the responsibility is still yours.

URLs:
SLA blog entry:http://slablogger.typepad.com/sla_blog/2009/04/pay-your-own-way-to-sla2009-and-get-the-attention-and-respect-of-your-boss.html
Original article: http://www.wral.com/lifestyles/story/4907133/

BOOK REVIEW: You Don't Look Like a Librarian!

Ruth Kneale is one of our profession’s premier observers of professional image both in our minds and the minds of our customers. In her book, You Don’t Look Like a Librarian: Shattering Stereotypes and Creating Positive New Images in the Internet Age, she gathers many of her observations as well as the result of several surveys she has conducted.

The first chapter, “Stereotypes? What Stereotypes?” lists many of the public perceptions of librarians. You know, and older woman with her hair in a bun, glasses, and sensible shoes, or a gay man with a bow tie—both stamping books and saying shhh a lot. There are also many reactions by librarians to these images. The second chapter looks at “Pop Culture and Librarians” and highlights some of the depictions of librarians in books, comics, movies, music, television, advertising, merchandise, etc. Although very interesting, most of us have seen all this before. (I did, however, order a bunch of the books about libarians from my local public library.)

Chapter three, “Breaking the Stereotype,” describes 14 librarians who defy the standard idea of a librarian: Stephen Abram, Amy Buckland, Laura Carscaddon, Andrew Evans, Abigail Goben, Amy Hale-Janeke, Jill Hurst-Wahl, Jill Jarrell, J. Parker Ladwig, Jenny Levine, Joseph Murphy, Joshua Neff, Kathleen Robertson, and Shannon Smith. There are also bits about (and links to) groups of image-breaking librarians: Bellydancing Librarians, Butt Kicking Librarians, Librarians on Facebook, the Laughing Librarian, Librarian Avengers, Library Society of the World, Library Underground, the Lipstick Librarian, Radical Librarians. the Warrior Librarian, and a group I never thought I’d join (but I just did)—Modified Librarians (librarians with tattoos). This is fascinating stuff, and I had a great time following all the links, but it still is not the best part of the book.

That comes in the last chapter, “Thoughts on the Future.” Here she looks into the ways in which the roles of librarians are changing and the changes in our skill sets that will be needed. She also covers the role of librarians in virtual worlds and the evolution of the library into a community space. In the section “Now What?” Kneale writes, “To combat the stereotypes, we need to step up what we’re already doing. This, though, is just the first step. What else can we do to change the stereotype? Most importantly: Don’t be afraid of change. Don’t be afraid of technology. Don’t be afraid if you role changes to become more collaborative with your patrons (come out from behind the desk?). Don’t be afraid of your IT department…. Don’t be afraid to try something technologically new or to play with a new tool; you never know what you might find and how it might benefit you. Embrace new learning. Accept new modes of interaction. Lastly, start using social networking tools….”

The last words in the book may be the most important. “If you take one message away from all of this, above all, be ‘loud and proud’ about being a librarian, whether you have the word ‘librarian’ in your job title or not. Speak up! Step out! Stay out there, or get out there, to educate, inform, and assist!”

The book has two appendices with the results of her various surveys on librarians’ view of public perception in the Internet Age and patrons’ views. There are lists of references and websites by chapter and an index.

Bottom line: You should read this book and take its message to heart. If we don’t change, we’ll become irrelevant and disappear altogether. Great job, Ruth!

Kneale is an astronomy librarian in Tucson, Arizona and describes herself as “a librarian in geek clothing.” Check out her column “Spectacles: How Pop Culture Views Librarians” in MLS: Marketing Library Services, her website (http://www.librarian-image.net) and blog, Random Musings from the Desert (http://desertlibrarian.blogspot.com).

Bibliographic Information:
Kneale, Ruth, You Don’t Look Like a Librarian: Shattering Stereotypes and Creating Positive New Images in the Internet Age, Medford, NJ: Information Today, Inc., 2009, ISBN 978-1-57387-366-6, US$29.50.

PROFESSIONAL MATTERS: Improving the Profession: Ideas from Another One

Now that the last issue of The One-Person Library has been distributed, I will be posting longer selections on this blog--mostly articles I had written or collected but that never made into print. This is the first one--expect more once or twice a week.

Richard Weingardt, a structural engineer, made these suggestions for improving his profession. Just substitute “librarian,” “librarians,” and “librarianship” for “engineer,” “engineers,” and “engineering” to see how we can improve our own profession.

“Over the years, I’ve received hundreds of letters from readers, many of them insightful and revealing. More often than not, their comments underline the day-to-day concerns and dilemmas our profession is facing—where it’s headed and who will be populating it in the future. The issues on the minds of the younger engineers differ from those of the older, more experienced practitioners. Typically, the younger these engineers are…the more worried they feel about how best to advance technically and move up in their companies or departments. They’re also concerned whether they made the right career choice, about the future of structural engineering as a true profession, and about becoming leaders in the profession, industry, and society.
“Those out of college for several years and well into their careers, on the other hand, have more interest in addressing issues such as the ramifications of engineering increasingly being considered a commodity rather than an intellectual or professional service.
“Both younger and older engineers…have been concerned about the deterioration of the profession’s stature. They’re also concerned about the lack of recognition and appreciation for structural engineering and the achievements of its professionals.
“How can most of these items be positively dealt with? Increase the number of engineers of all ages and levels of experience who are active in the professional societies and involved in consequential leadership roles in industry and society. Just working at our jobs…and leaving the advancement and betterment of the profession to someone else is not the answer.
“Many intelligent and highly committed American structural engineers…are capable of forwarding the technical expertise of American engineering know-how. But to influence the direction of the American structural engineering industry…required honing one’s natural leaderships skills and identifying the paths to becoming a person whose advice non-engineers, as well as engineers, will seek out.
He further suggests establishing a structural engineering hall of fame, observing leaders in the field who are involved in advancing the professional and trying to do even more than they do, and finally,
“If you’re a seasoned engineer, commit to helping those following you to be the best they can be. In addition to having fun doing engineering work—something you love—expand your influence and range of deeds. Then, not only will time fly, so will your sense of accomplishment as a successful professional and as a human being and citizen of the world.
“Remember the words of John Ruskin: ‘The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get paid for it, but what they become by it.’”

adapted by Judith Siess, OPL Editor
from Weingardt, Richard G., How you can influence structural engineering’s future (Column: The View From Here), Structural Engineer December 2005, p. 50

DID YOU LIKE THIS? if not, let me know..........

WHAT DOES A LIBRARIAN DO? WHY DID YOU BECOME ONE?

Ivan Chew [National Library Board, Singapore] has written a bunch of good posts on what a librarian does and why he became one. They are all on his blog, Rambling Librarian: Incidental Thoughts of Singapore Liblogarian, and are worth saving for when you get a question from a customer or future library student.

He adds the following disclaimer: “I am not the only public service librarian around. What I do is not the definitive Public Librarian job scope. I do not blog everything about what I do as a public service librarian (which means there’s a whole lot more about public libraries that I’ve not blogged about here).”

Questions about becoming a librarian (September/October 2005):
1. A rambling introduction, http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2005/09/questions-about-becoming-librarian.html
2. What does a librarian do? http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2005/09/questions-about-becoming-librarian_27.html
3. How does one become a librarian? http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2005/10/questions-about-becoming-librarian.html
4. What makes a good (public service) librarian? http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2005/10/questions-about-becoming-librarian_11.html
5. Why do people choose to become librarians? http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2005/10/questions-about-becoming-librarian_12.html
6. Why I decided to work for library instead of a bookstore company? http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2005/10/questions-about-becoming-librarian_14.html
7. Why do people remain as librarians? http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2005/10/questions-about-becoming-librarian_16.html

What I would tell the librarians. (October 2006, “The library as a Business; Public Libraries and social media; What should libraries do, if books become digital?; How can libraries use social media to attract and engage young people?; Social media is a reality”), http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2007/10/what-i-would-tell-librarians.html

Being a Librarian vs. Job title=Librarian (April 2006), http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2006/04/being-librarian-vs-job-title-librarian.html

Professionalism is an attitude, not a definition (June 2004), http://ramblinglibrarian.blogspot.com/2004/06/professionalism-is-attitude-not.html

GETTING MANAGEMENT SUPPORT FOR PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

The Dear Ulla column in Impact: SLA Leadership & Management Division Bulletin has a good list of arguments to use on a manager that is not predisposed to let you attend conferences or participate in professional associations. If that’s your situation, you should definitely read Ulla de Stricker’s responses.

URL: http://sla-divisions.typepad.com/sla_lmd/2008/09/dear-ulla-3.html

MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS NOT ALWAYS PROFESSIONAL WHEN BLOGGING

Four scholars at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia recently published an article in the online Journal of General Internal Medicine, Content of Weblogs Written by Health Professionals. They identified 271 blogs with medical content apparently written by doctors or nurses and reviewed five entries per blog from 2006 to see how often blog authors commented about patients, violated patient privacy, or displayed a lack of professionalism. Over half the authors provided enough information to show who they were. Nearly half described individual patients (16 percent positively and 18 percent negatively). Less than one-fifth of them included enough information for patients to identify themselves and three blogs had recognizable photographs of patients.

The investigators concluded that “Blogs are a growing part of the public face of the health professions. They offer physicians and nurses the opportunity to share their narratives. They also risk revealing confidential information or, in their tone or content, risk reflecting poorly on the blog authors and their professions. The health professions should assume some responsibility for helping authors and readers negotiate these challenges.”

URL: http://www.pharmalot.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/medical-blogs.pdf

USING GOVERNMENT MONEY TO RECRUIT NEW LIBRARIANS--WORTH THE MONEY?

There’s a very interesting article in the most recent issue of the MLA newsletter about the US Government’s funding of various projects to recruit more people into librarianship. As part of the Laura Bush 21^st Century Librarians Program, the Institute of Museum and Library Services has handed out over seven million dollars in grants to various library schools. I can’t help but wonder if this will help.

The University of Illinois, Syracuse University, and University of Pittsburgh have received nearly a million dollars “to increase the diversity of and access to LIS course offerings.” The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was awarded over a million dollars; first “to study the career patterns of LIS graduates” (only in North Carolina) and then “to recruit 2 cohorts of medical students into a new dual-degree master’s program” (LIS at UNC and a medical degree from Duke University). Johns Hopkins University and seven other academic medical libraries are collaborating “to increase the number of underrepresented minorities entering the health information professions.” The University of Arizona recruited “48 Native American and Hispanic students to a master’s LIS program as part of its Knowledge River Initiative” and “to help [24 Native American and Hispanic high school students] develop valuable abilities such as leadership, professional contribution and community service…[and] opportunities to interact with library leaders.” Simmons College has received money “to establish a unique doctoral program in management leadership…to prepare 15 full-time posts for LIS students working to move into senior leadership.” The American Library Association’s Office for Diversity was given money “to double the number of underrepresented master’s in library science students from 105 to 210 in its Spectrum Initiative program.” Vanderbilt University had 15 students in a “model internship program.” Texas A&M University received money “to pilot a recruitment and teaching model to recruit 10 diverse undergraduate students into health sciences librarianship.”

So, there’s money for minorities, for studying the careers of librarians, a new doctoral program, and even for high schoolers. But, does any of this actually add to the profession? Are we creating new librarian for positions that don’t exist (because the boomers aren’t retiring because of the poor economy)? Will these new librarians make a difference? Will the pre-librarians actually enter the profession—and find jobs—and make a difference?

What are we getting for our money? Is this the right way to go about adding to and improving the profession? What do you think?

Citation: Shoevel, Evelyn, Recruitment of Librarians for the 21^st Century: An Institute of Museum and Library Services Initiative, MLA News (405):15-16, May 2008.

WRITING FOR THE PROFESSION—LONG POST

On 10 July, Stephen Abram and I did a one-hour webinar for the SirsiDynix Institute. The podcast is available at http://www.sirsidynixinstitute.com/archive.php. You can also download the slides.

There were some unanswered questions at the end of the event. Abram posted his answers on his blog, Stephen’s Lighthouse (http://stephenslighthouse.sirsidynix.com/archives/2007/07/the_sdi_session.html). Here are mine. I have deleted some that will make no sense to someone who hasn’t heard the podcast.)

2. What are the roles of library oriented listservs in writing for the profession?

First, remember that “listserv” is a trademarked program—use “electronic list” instead.

I consider the lists still to be viable formats. Stephen thinks they are antiques, superceded by blogs and wikis, etc. However, I get a lot of information from them I subscribe to about 15 of them, including sla-dsol—the one sponsored by the Solo Librarians Division of the Special Libraries Association. But I subscribe to over 70 blogs, so…

What’s written on the lists is definitely a part of the literature and part of sharing and passing on information within the profession.

3. How do you get around vetting constraints? The Director of my library has asked that all writing that we do needs to be vetted by her. I would prefer not to have to take comments and edits from someone not directly involved with the article topic.

I’ve never faced this situation. I would find out if everyone in the parent organization is subject to the same constraints. If so, you’re stuck. If not, point this out to her and get the policy changed.

In the meantime, you could write on your own time and speak as an individual, not as a representative of the organization. She shouldn’t be able to muzzle you completely. You may not be able to write articles, but you can blog—from home. Just say that you are a librarian at xyz type of institution and put no details in that could identify you.

Personally, if I faced this situation, I’d be looking for another job. I don’t like people looking over my shoulder and I hate “censorship” in whatever format it appears.

4. (We did a section on “How” to write.) “How” to me means “how to find the time?” Can you share some of how you both manage this? (I’m a Mom of a 71/2 year old—difficult just to balance work--but would love to find time to start writing!

It’s a bit hard for me to answer, since I am childless (except for my 53-year-old—my husband—and 2 cats) and most of my writing happened after I quit my 40-hour-per-week job. But writing, like everything else, requires the following:

Commitment: if you really want to write, you’ll find the time.

Good time management techniques: don’t procrastinate, limit interruptions, etc. (Blatant plug warning! For more on time management, see my book, Time Management, Planning and Prioritization for Librarians, Scarecrow Press, 2002, ISBN 0-8108-4438-9—or available from me).

Patience: don’t start with a book; start with a blog posting, an article for the newsletter of your professional organization—or OPL. Something small. Once it gets easier, and your child gets bigger, you can try the tougher stuff.

5. My concern about all of the blog content is how it will be preserved for the future; so much of our exciting discourse these days published in blogs and I’m afraid it will all be lost.

Yup, that is probably what will happen—unfortunately. Some bloggers are collecting their posts into books, both self-published and commercial, but most of it will go away. I wish that weren’t true, but we have to face reality; no one is archiving the Web.

But don’t let that stop you from blogging. Before the information disappears, it will have informed, helped, or improved the profession.

6. What if your employer won’t let you use your real name for a personal blog?

You can use a pseudonym or be anonymous, but how can the employer control what you do on your own time? I’d ask the higher ups if this is “kosher” and try to get it changed.

7. Would you recommend a para professional to write when the opportunity presents itself?

Of course. Many (most?) paras have as much or more to give back to the profession. You are the ones down in the trenches doing the dirty work and probably have more direct customer contact than most of the professionals. Write, and write often.

(You are planning to go to library school someday and earn the “big” bucks, right?)

9. What are some of the best RSS Aggregators?

I don’t know about best, but I use Google Reader. It’s easy, free, and being improved on a regular basis. Unfortunately, there is no real customer support, but you can ask questions of other users on their forums—but I haven’t encountered any problems. You can always ask other librarians (on the lists) for their advice.

10. What are some of the pitfalls you’ve encountered in writing for scholarly publications?

I’ve only done this twice. Why? To put it bluntly, they’re a pain in the butt. The article will be sent out for peer review and that take a while. It may be rejected, sometimes without even saying why or giving you a chance to rewrite. There’s a terribly long time-lag from when you write the article to when it’s published—like a book, only even longer sometimes. You almost always have to transfer copyright to the publisher (which I refuse to do). And you often have to pay for reprints of your own article.

However, if you are a faculty member, you have to do it to get tenure and promotion. Note that many faculty stop writing after they are made professors—guess why?

11. When writing an article, how do you find the best periodical to publish in? Looking at the magazine publishing schedule and their topics per issue is useful, but how do you target the most appropriate periodical for publishing?

It should be relatively obvious where your article is appropriate. Get a list of library journals (Emerald and Haworth have a zillion of them) and pick one. I’d try for one that is widely read; that you would read.

Even better, however, would be to choose a periodical that your users (or better yet, those who fund your library) read. We spend too much time and energy talking to ourselves—we need to talk to them!

(I told Abram, president-elect of SLA, that I won’t be happy until I see ads or articles by and about special librarians in Time, Fortune, Business Week, Journal of the American Medical Association, American Bar Association Journal, and the like. Let’s see if he delivers….)

12. There are plenty of librarian blogs out there. I’ve noticed a fair bit of overlap (e.g., who doesn’t link to CommonCraft videos?) What are ways to market your blog and differentiate it from the others (if you’re not a “mover and a shaker” who is known in library circles)?

Overlap is not necessarily bad. Everyone doesn’t follow 70 blogs like I do, or 700 like Abram does. The more places a piece of information or debate appears, the better, I say. The object is to get the information out there. There’s a lot of overlap in books, too.

The best way to market your blog is by writing something people want to read. It will be found by other bloggers and passed on. You can also write to some of the more influential bloggers and tell them you have a blog—they’ll publicize it for you. That’s how I found out about a neat new blog from Nina Platt, Strategic Librarian—I read about it on Stephen’s Lighthouse.

You differentiate yourself by having something different to say. If you don’t have a ‘voice” or “point-of-view” that is different, you probably shouldn’t be blogging.

(What are CommonCraft videos? I guess I’m “out of the loop.”)

13. How do you overcome the attitudes of a “disinterested” patron audience? Is there a good way to market to the “disinterested” so that the role of the library and librarians, as well as new technologies, are highlighted?

The way to market to anyone is frequently, in different formats, at different time, in different voices. I once read that it takes seeing and “ad” eight times before the average person takes action. Your “disinterested” audience just may not need what you have—right now. But tell them anyway—eventually they will get the idea.

Send out electronic newsletters, print newsletter, and emails. Put marketing information in various places in your library. Put the same flyers in the cafeteria or break rooms, even in the rest rooms. Carry them with you. Create different marketing pieces for different audiences.

(Blatant plug alert 2! Check out my book, The Visible Librarian: Asserting Your Value With Marketing and Advocacy, ALA Editions, 2003, ISBN 0-8389-0848-9, for more marketing tips.)

14. I am the PR person for the library. I write press releases which sometimes is like writing for a black hole because I often write good news and the newspaper is interested in bad news. How can I make this work better? I also write our library newsletter.

Ask if you can have a weekly/bi-weekly/monthly column. Give up on the big newspaper in town and get published in the smaller, regional ones—if you have any. They are much more likely to pay attention to your press releases. (I sent press releases about a local Meals on Wheels group to the big daily paper, a county daily, and a regional weekly. The regional weekly printed the release almost untouched. The county daily sent a reporter and photographer and did a front page story. The big daily ignored me completely.)

Also, make the headline and first paragraph relevant to what’s going on in the community, not in the library. Write about something that the people need, not what the library has.

15. Is there a format to follow for proposals and queries to publishers?

Most publishers have a proposal form and guidelines somewhere on their website. Otherwise, call and ask for one. If you use their form you improve your chances of a positive response.

16. If you think you might need funding for a potential research article, which is better to do first: get the funding/grant or get the article proposal approved?

I’d get the funding, write up the research, then find a place to publish. You should be able to find a journal that’s interested, just maybe not the one you had in mind at first.

17. A colleague and I are planning on writing an article on Library Blog readership. What way would you suggest to approach blog writers for assistance in writing the survey for the study?

Pick out a couple of bloggers you respect and ask for their advice. Find out what questions they would like to know the answers to. Then pick out some more, run those questions by them, and ask if there are any more questions you should include. Repeat until you have a good-sized list. Then delete half the questions (a long survey will not be filled out).

I can’t give more advice without knowing what you’re trying to accomplish. Feel free to ask me off-line (via email).

18. Why do you recommend Lulu.com as a self-publisher over others? Is it from personal experience?

We didn’t mean to recommend it. It was just an example and, frankly, I just mentioned it so you’d know why you couldn’t find Walt Crawford’s latest book at the bookstore. (Balanced Libraries: Thoughts on Continuity and Change, http://www.lulu.com/content/737992)

19. I was wondering about finding collaborators for articles, I’m a new solo librarian.

Pick out someone who you admire and think would add to the article, then ask. If he or she says “no,” ask someone else. Repeat until you’re successful.

20. Many academics write for general audiences in places like Harper’s, New Yorker, etc. Is there a place for librarians to do this? Or examples of librarian’s do this?

Hmmm. The only example of librarians in the “mainstream” media that comes to mind is the wonderful article in Inc. on Highsmith and its librarian (The Smartest Little Company in America (http://www.inc.com/magazine/19990101/707.html). But I don’t read Harper’s, New Yorker, etc.

SLA LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT BLOG

This blog is the Division’s “forum for sharing leadership and management experience, tips, and resources among members,” but you can look at it even if you aren’t a member.

URL: http://sla-divisions.typepad.com/sla_lmd/

GETTING PUBLISHED 101

Rachel Singer Gordon has written a nice "step-by-step approach to professional writing for students, faculty, researchers, practising librarians and information professionals" for Emerald's librarylink program. It's not exhaustive, but pretty good.

URL: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/librarylink

MORE THINGS YOU SHOULD READ

Breeding, Marshall, Technology for the Next Generation, Computers in Libraries 26(10):18-20, November/December 2006.
Selection: “Although millennials approach things differently, I don’t necessarily believe that we must create interfaces just for them. The progress required in the library Web presence to satisfy the millennials will be well-appreciated by all. We do need to understand that millennials have less of a tolerance for slow, nonintuitive, and unattractive Web sites and will quickly turn to other sources if the library’s doesn’t meet their expectations.”

McAlister, Moyra, Gen Y, inCite (Australian Library and Information Association) 27(10):16, October 2006.
Selection: “For a number of reasons we need to understand and attract Gen Y [millennials]. As managers, we need to attract Gen y because of the shrinking available pool of workers and the ageing population. As employers we are looking for a more complex skill set—because of their varied experience, Gen Y often has this skill set. As service providers, we need to appeal to Gen Y because what is attractive to Gen Y today is attractive to everyone tomorrow.”

Abram, Stephen, Books! Are They Still Important in Special Libraries? Information Outlook (Special Libraries Association) 10(10):40-42, October 2006.
Selection: “The episodic mode of learning is great, especially for adult learners who have a foundation of knowledge on which to build further depth. However, trying to learn a complex topic or new professional competency doesn’t lend itself to this … mode of learning. There are times when we need to learn things in order. So, when one of our clients needs to approach a topic from scratch, we start to think in terms of a format that guides and selects the content in a rational order: a book.” Abram goes on to list new modes of creating booklists—recommenders.

Wilson, Alane, 10 Hot Trends, It’s all good, 3 November 2006, http://scanblog.blogspot.com/2006/11/10-hot-trends.html
Selection: 1. Customer made, 2. Geo-awareness, 3. Thing connection (anytime, anywhere), 4. Virtual worlds—and more.

WHAT WE'RE REALLY ABOUT...

New skills, new services, new opportunities, by Jill Stover [Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, USA], Library Marketing: Thinking Outside the Book, 18 October 2006

URL: http://librarymarketing.blogspot.com/2006/10/new-skills-new-services-new.html

Stover always has great ideas..here is her take on what business we're really in. (Don't forget to read her entire post....)

"Librarians, I've argued, aren't in the information warehousing business - we're in the improving people's lives business. We help people find, evaluate, and use information so that they can accomplish those things that are meaningful to them. Those "things" could be learning a new skill, completing major research projects, learning about a new or personally interesting topic, finding employment, doing self-exploration, filling in the family tree, communicating with friends, creating works of art or any one of countless activities that enrich patrons' lives. How exactly we go about our life-improvement business is changing. Patrons want and expect different things from us and they have more alternatives than they did in the past. These changes may be a little scary because they create a lot of uncertainty, but they are also incredibly exciting because they give us the opportunity to find new ways to apply our talents and resources. And we're not the only ones doing a lot of introspection these days.

"John Jantsch of the Duct Tape Marketing blog, offers the following bit of advice (http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/weblog.php?id=P762), 'This principle is one that every business can and should think long and hard about. How can you become more valuable to your clients. What can you offer to do, even if it's not really your job, that would help them be more successful, get better results, solve more problems. Do that, and you will find the universe will make you more successful in the process.'

"We're not alone in confronting the question of how to redefine ourselves given the realities of the modern marketplace. Some of what we've always done will remain, but I believe that librarians will have to develop new skills (like marketing?) and uncover new opportunities to turn our stuff into meaning for patrons. We will have to become adept at finding ways of helping our patrons be successful in their pursuits. Doing so means that we will have to leave our comfort zones, continually refresh our skills, and become indispensable partners with our patrons. Our success, it seems, is directly linked to our patrons' success."