ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


In this issue:

Report on the Conference on Writ­
ing and Publishing for Librarians 177

Inside W ash in gton ..... 180
Twenty-Six CLR Fellows ... 182
News From the Field . . . . 184
ACRL New England Chapter: First 

E l e c t i o n  . . . . . . 198
ACRL and ALA Representatives at

Academic Ceremonies and Meet­
ings . . . . . . . 198

Additional ACRL Programs at S.F. 200
P e o p l e  ....... 201
Classified Advertising . . . . 205

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ISSN 0010-0870

C O L L E G E  
& R E S E A R C H  

L I B R

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A R

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I

w
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NO. 6 • JUNE 1975

Report on the Conference on Writing 
and Publishing for Librarians

Subm itted by 
Jen n ie M. Harreld. 
C atalog Librarian 

Boston C olleg e Library

The Conference on Writing and Publishing 
for Librarians held Friday, April 4, 1975, on 
the campus of Brandeis University in Waltham, 
Massachusetts, was sponsored by the New En­
gland Chapter of ACRL. In spite of a spring 
snowstorm, over 300 conference participants 
came from the six New England states, New 
York, Michigan, and Illinois. The conference 
was inspired by the May 24, 1974, Seminar on 
Writing and Publishing for Librarians devel­
oped for Harvard University librarians. Thomas 
H. Cahalan, founder of the ACRL New E n­
gland Chapter and assistant librarian for acqui­
sitions, Northeastern University Libraries, head­
ed the committee which planned a well-run 
conference. The program covered the writing, 
editing, publication, and use of library litera­
ture, with a focus on the significance and pur­
pose of journal articles and library news for 
college and research libraries.

The conference was introduced by its chair­
person, Patrick J. Wreath, head of acquisitions, 
Boston College Libraries, who said the purpose 
of the conference was to offer something con­
crete and something more conceptual. Wreath 
said the variety of library literature, despite its 
proliferation and other problems, serves both 
intellectual and utilitarian purposes and helps 
to define the state of the art.

The two speakers of the morning general ses­
sion approached the literature of librarianship 
from the standpoints of its authors and its users. 
Robert D. Stueart, dean, School of Library Sci­
ence, Simmons College, spoke on “Writing the 
Journal Article.” He mentioned that he intend­
ed his remarks for the novice. Stueart made the 
point that only a few library articles have had 
an influence outside the field. He questioned 
whether academic librarians’ salaries, status, 
and promotions are dependent on publishing 
or whether other criteria exist to create the cli­
mate to publish, such as ( 1 )  the desire to pub­
lish, ( 2 )  the appearance of the idea in the lit­
erature before, ( 3 )  the need to publish in or­
der to advance professionally, ( 4 )  the wish to 
relate results of research, ( 5 )  the desire to 
share a speech with a wider audience, ( 6 )  a 
real commitment to writing, and ( 7 )  a distinc­
tion between scholarly and “how-to-do-it” ar­
ticles. Stueart pointed out that studies have 
shown that release time is not necessarily an in­
hibiting factor in the decision to write and 
publish. Therefore, it may well be that those 
who do not write possibly do not know how or 
have no interest. The common incentive for 
librarians to write is to advance in rank, ten­
ure, and pay. Stueart reminded us that journal 
articles are a primary source of continuing edu­
cation for librarians. Finally, he mentioned 
several points on the technical aspects of writ­
ing.

In his lively remarks on “Using the Litera­
ture of Librarianship,” Samuel Goldstein, ed-



178

itor of C A L L , defended library literature 
against five typically negative cliches: ( 1 )  he 
questioned whether there were really too many 
library periodicals when few librarians regularly 
read as many as ten; ( 2 )  the visible impact of 
the information explosion has been a “dud” for 
the working librarian; ( 3 )  when they claim 
that “library literature stinks,” too frequently 
librarians expect to be entertained instead of 
informed; ( 4 )  librarians claiming that “library 
literature is not relevant to my needs” demon­
strate a low level of intellectual curiosity when, 
in fact, they could find relevance in the journals 
of distant regions or states; and ( 5 )  as for the 
charge that too much “rehashing” occurs in li­
brary literature, other literature refers to the 
practice as “variations on a theme.” Goldstein 
submitted that negative remarks result from 
people not having a personal commitment and 
that in library schools literature should be a 
“core subject, not a sore subject.” Chairperson 
Wreath offered the comment that there is a 
dearth of good writing which is stimulating, in­
formative, and insightful.

In  the next part of the program, librarians 
had an opportunity to participate actively at 
one of the four special sessions.

1. “Staff Newsletters”— Mary J . Cronin, ad­
ministrative assistant and editor of F ocus, Bos­
ton Public Library, and Elizabeth P. Mitchell, 
editorial librarian, Harvard University, led a 
session covering the purpose, content, and au­
dience of staff newsletters. Discussion ranged 
from planning to production and emphasized 
the thinking and writing that go into newslet­
ters. Session leaders pointed out that each li­
brary situation is very different, so the purpose 
and content of individual newsletters will vary 
widely.

2. “State and Regional Journals and News­
letters”— Adelaide C. Gardner, editor, New 
England Library Association N ew sletter, in­
troduced this two-part session. First, three ed­
itors discussed the objectives and policies, 
priorities and deadlines, and relevance of their 
respective publications. Susan Rabinowitz, 
member, research staff, P roceedings in Print, 
edits the Special Libraries Association Boston 
Chapter N ew s Bulletin. Jane M. Lopes, librari­
an, Boston City Hospital School of Nursing L i­
brary, edits the Bay State Librarian, official 
journal of the Massachusetts Library Associa­
tion. Mary C. Spillane, editorial assistant, Mas­
sachusetts Library Extension Bureau, edits that 
bureau’s N ewsletter. In the second part of the 
session, Joseph G. Sakey, director, Cambridge 
Public Libraries and president, New England 
Library Association, proposed that at least three 
regional organizations might combine their 
costs and efforts into one R egional Library 
N ew sletter fo r  N ew  England. Anne Conway, 
University of Massachusetts, Amherst, led a

panel/audience discussion of Sakey’s proposal.
3. “Library Publications for Your Communi­

ty”— This session on the need for communica­
tion with faculty and students, the use of news­
letters to the faculty, acquisitions lists, library 
guides and handbooks, and other publications, 
was led by Miranda J . Beaven, principal refer­
ence librarian, Yale University Library, and 
Sherrie S. Bergman, college librarian, Wheaton 
College, and coordinator, ALA/SRRT Clearing­
house. The purpose of such publications is to 
establish good relations with faculty and stu­
dents and to alert them to what the library has 
to offer. It is important to keep the content sim­
ple because too much information will “turn 
off” or confuse potential readers.

4. “Research and Scholarly Publishing by L i­
brarians”— Timothy W . Sineath, assistant pro­
fessor, School of Library Science, Simmons Col­
lege, and Kenneth E . Carpenter, Kress Library 
of Business and Economics, Harvard Universi­
ty, conducted this popular session on research 
and publishing by librarians for the academic 
community. Sineath discussed factors contrib­
uting negatively and positively to scholarly re­
search of this type. Carpenter addressed him­
self to sources of topics in general and why 
librarians are best able to produce scholarly 
bibliographies. He also brought up the issue 
of staff development and hoped the increasing 
needs of making collections accessible would 
stimulate a greater emphasis on staff develop­
ment of this nature.

News items for inclusion in C&RL News should be 
sent to  M ery Frances Collins, Assistant Director of 
Libraries for Technical Services, University Library 
ULB-35A, State University o f New  York a t A lban y, 
1400 W ashington A ve., A lbany, N Y  12222. A d v e r­
tising (including classified ads) should be sent to  
Leona Swiech, A dvertising O ffic e , A m erican Li­
brary Association, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 
60611. Production and circulation m atters are han­
d le d  by A L A  C e ntral Production Unit, a t the 
abo ve address.
News e d ito r: M ary Frances Collins, Assistant D i­
rector o f Libraries fo r Technical Services, State 
University o f New  York at A lban y, A lb an y. As­
sociate News ed ito r: Anne D owling, Assistant Li­
b rarian, Acquisitions D epartm ent, Library, State 
University o f New  York a t A lb a n y . Editor: Rich­
ard  D. Johnson, M iln e Library, State University 
C o lleg e, O neonta, New  York 13820. President, 
A C R L : H . W illia m  A xford. Executive Secretary, 
A C RL: Beverly P. Lynch.
C o lle g e  & Research Libraries is published by the 
Association o f C o lle g e  and Research Libraries, a 
division of the A m erican Library Association, 17 
times yearly— 6 bim onthly journal issues and I I  
monthly (com binin g July-August) News issues— at 
1201 -O5 Bluff St., Fulton, M O  65251. Subscription, 
$15.00 a year, or to  members of the division, 
$7.50, included in dues. Second-class postage p aid  
a t Fulton, Missouri 65251.
©  Am erican Librarγ Association 1975. A ll m aterial 
in this journal subject to copyright by the A m e ri­
can Library Association may be photocopied for 
the noncom mercial purpose o f scientific or educa­
tional advancem ent.



179

Throughout the conference, librarians had 
opportunities to visit the exhibit of library pub­
lications compiled by Marilyn Grant, assistant 
science librarian, Boston College Science L i­
brary. Many examples of writing and publish­
ing by librarians, including national publica­
tions, the alternative press, and all of the types 
covered by the special sessions, were available 
for browsing.

The afternoon session presented editors of 
three major, national publications of importance 
to academic librarians. This afforded a special 
opportunity for those present to gain an in­
sight into the realm of library editing and pub­
lishing.

From his experiences as associate editor of 
L ibrary Journal, Karl Nyren spoke on the “Gen­
eral Library Periodical.” He said the editor of 
a national journal must publish articles ranging 
from those purely factual to those expressing 
strong opinions. It is the responsibility of the 
editor to try for an appealing mix of all articles. 
Editors of national journals are also aware of 
various pressures from advertisers or parent as­
sociations. Nyren related three qualities he 
thought good periodicals should possess: ( 1 )  
readability— a good format has the means to 
invite the reader and hold his or her attention;
( 2 )  comprehensiveness— he would like to see 
an annual accountability of how well general 
periodicals do their job of bringing librarians 
all the information they require; ( 3 )  signifi­
cance— editors must keep a continuous stream 
of information flowing which will be of interest 
to a wide range of librarians.

Richard D. Johnson, editor, C ollege & R e­
search Libraries, opened his remarks on “Aca­
demic Library Articles” with the history of C ol­
le g e & R esearch Libraries. Scholarly essays 
are now preferred, but the value of practical 
articles continues to be recognized. Johnson 
then described the process he and his editorial 
board undergo to select the thirty-six to forty 
articles that appear annually from 150 or so 
manuscripts received. With few exceptions, 
manuscripts are unsolicited, and each is serious­
ly considered. In an acceptable manuscript, the 
editor looks for the following: ( 1 )  a length of
2,000 to 5,000 words; ( 2 )  two typed, double­
spaced copies following the University of Chi­
cago A Manual o f  Style with references on sep­
arate sheets at the end; ( 3 )  headings in the ar­
ticle supplied by the author; ( 4 )  tables, ready 
for the camera, on separate sheets; ( 5 )  no pic­
tures; ( 6 )  subject content— if the subject is 
more appropriate for another journal, it will be 
sent there; overworked subjects are governance 
of libraries and academic status; ( 7 )  type—  
surveys should avoid sloppy questionnaires; li­
brary school term papers must be revised and 
submitted as formal manuscripts; master’s 
theses and dissertations can be developed into

acceptable articles; and ( 8 )  an author must 
avoid treating his subject as if it existed in a 
vacuum.

Mary Frances Collins, editor of C ollege & 
R esearch Libraries News, spoke to the audience 
on “Academic Library News.” She emphasized 
the sources of news about academic libraries 
such as the ACRL executive secretary’s office, 
the public relations offices of larger academic 
institutions, and hopefully, information from 
ACRL chapters across the country. Collins 
plans for the C olleg e & R esearch L ibraries 
N ew s to become a forum for academic librar­
ians on issues like faculty status and collective 
bargaining. Also, monthly columns by profes­
sionals should provoke exchanges of news and 
opinions. She welcomes newsworthy items from 
libraries and local ACRL chapters.

The conference was concluded by a lively 
panel discussion period which unified the day’s 
proceedings. Panelists Wolfgang M. Freitag, 
head librarian, Fine Arts Library, Harvard Uni­
versity, and Patricia G. Schuman, editor, L i­
brary/Education Book Program, R. R. Bowker 
Co., directed questions of the audience and of 
their own to the speakers of the general ses­
sions. This period of the conference produced 
comment and sparked debate on a number of 
issues including: the place and significance of 
alternative library publications, the censorship 
by library administrations of unfavorable ar­
ticles, and an atmosphere in which librarians 
are encouraged to write and publish. Further 
discussion touched upon the rights of authors 
who publish in journals, the lack of investiga­
tive follow-up of library news, and the empha­
sis of a technical literature to the exclusion of 
theoretical or humanistic inquiry. The questions 
raised during the final session of the confer­
ence demonstrated the continuing interest in 
the many aspects of writing and publishing. It 
is clear that these issues should receive further 
public discussion. Those who had been hesitant 
to publish were greatly encouraged by the con­
ference, and all who attended came away with 
new insights about the relevance of library lit­
erature to their individual jobs and to their pro­
fession. The Goldfarb Library of Brandeis Uni­
versity hosted a social hour at the conclusion 
of the conference. ■■

ACRL Membership

April 30, 1975 .................. .................. 8,543

April 30, 1974 .................. .................. 12,015

April 30, 1973 .................. .................. 11,404