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The Appalachian Consortium Press"Our press is the most important resource we have for fueling the enthusiasm of our people for their cultural and historical traditions and for encouraging the participation of our many colleges and universities in Appalachia in curricular development and research." --Dr. Cratis Williams |
The Appalachian Consortium Press is a division of the Appalachian Consortium. Members of the Publications Committee are appointed by the member institutions and agencies of the Consortium.
Since its inception in 1973, the Press has printed and or distributed over 90 books, recording, and videos about Southern Appalachia. A special effort has been made to increase the public's awareness and understanding of the Appalachian way of life.
Appalachian Consortium Press publications explore
the political, social, and economic issues and concerns of the minorities
in Southern Appalachia. Books on music, oral history, poetry and photography
have received widespread acclaim, and the Consortium Press's histories
and reference works have become an indispensable part of reference libraries
and schools throughout the region.
The Appalachian Consortium came into being some 30 years ago when several education, service, and governmental bodies banded together to further one overriding mutual interest, which was to advance the cause of Southern Appalachia and its people through scholarship, education, and preservation of native culture. The Press exists to help serve all these ends; therefore our main requirement of any manuscript is that it must concern Appalachia in some significant way. Fiscal and other realities, however, force certain more practical considerations.
For instance, anyone who submits a manuscript should be aware that the role of the “publications board” is served by a standing Editorial Board, composed of professional academics and administrators who teach English and history, who maintain archives, who help to direct centers of Appalachian Studies. These people donate their time. The reading and evaluating of manuscripts is done in addition to their regular jobs. This, combined with the fact that the Consortium and its standing committees normally meet only three times a year (though most active committees have extra meetings), means that it might take up to a year for your manuscript to undergo the evaluation process. It is most important that you be aware of and accept this fact.
The prescribed process is to give a copy of a manuscript to two readers. If the two readers agree either on acceptance or rejection, the whole committee then votes, normally to accept the recommendation of the two readers; if the two disagree, a third reader becomes necessary. (In reality, however, most manuscripts that have come before us in recent years have been seen by all or most members of the Editorial Board.)
Say, then, that the Editorial Board has accepted a manuscript; do we then rush it into print? Unfortunately, no. Printing books is expensive. Governmental agencies and private foundations have become less free with money in recent years, as everybody knows by now. The Appalachian Consortium Press is dependent on a modest budget allocated from the overall budget of the Consortium. From this amount we must draw money both to print new titles and reprint existing titles which have proved to be in steady demand. The choices are very tough sometimes. For a prospective author whose work has been accepted in principal, our financial constraints, along with staff limitations which are in turn a function of these constraints, can mean long and sometimes frustrating delays in publication.
If you find that you can accept the conditions set forth here, we look forward to seeing your manuscript.
Consortium Press Book List and Order Form
For information about the Appalachian Consortium, please contact:
Dr. Patricia D. Beaver, Director
Center for Appalachian Studies
Appalachian State University
ASU Box 32018
Boone, NC 28608-2018
Phone: 828-262-4089
Fax: 828-262-4087
Email: beaverpd@appstate.edu
