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Understanding Interior Page Design and Formatting
So, you’re ready to publish your book! Now, whether you’re a first-time author or a seasoned veteran, you want the interior pages of your book to look professional and polished. There are of course countless online resources offering advice on this subject — but look...
The Beginning is the Hardest Part: A few Tips for Authors Working on Their First Book
“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” Ernest Hemingway might not have been in the clearest (or soberest) of mindsets when he said this, but any aspiring writer looking to sit down and compose their first book knows that...
Why Does One Bad Review Hurt More Than Five Excellent Ones, and How Can Authors Benefit from It?
There is a recent adage going around among authors that one bad review can hurt more than five excellent ones. But why is this the case, and how can authors turn this into an advantage? Perceived Quality Damage One way that bad reviews can hurt is the perceived...
Learning The Craft of Research
Book Review The latest update on a timelessly necessary subject and pursuit. The first edition of The Craft of Research, Fifth Edition (published by the University of Chicago Press) was published almost thirty years ago, and now a fully updated fifth edition helps new...
Ask for Permission, Not Forgiveness: A Rightslink Refresher and Creative Commons Update
If you author scholarly research papers, chances are you’ve needed to reproduce an image, table, graph, or figure. It doesn’t really matter what subject, whether the humanities or scientific research, authors will always plumb the depths of what has come before them...
Publishers Accept the Inevitable and Are Now Teaching LLMS: Is it the Right Move?
Artificial Intelligence is now a cornerstone of publishing whether authors want to admit it or not. AI tools and large language models (LLMs) are being used not just to write sections of manuscripts but also to help with the editing process and with the review process...
Technica’s Top Five Books Every Writer Should Have on their Shelf
Book Review As writers, it’s important to take time to immerse yourself in books that offer insights into the art, science, and emotions of writing, learning from those who have come before—from those who have made a point of sharing their experience and wisdom....
I Need Help Writing my Book!
If you’ve taken the plunge and made the decision to write a book, that on its own is a huge step. So, first and foremost, congratulations! The next steps in making your vision a reality can be intimidating at first. But they don’t have to be, especially after dividing...
Chilling Reads for a Spooktacular Holiday
With Friday the 13th creeping up just as we enter the holiday season, it’s the perfect time to whip up a list of books that sprinkle a little spookiness into the festive fun! So, grab your cocoa, turn on your favorite holiday playlist and cozy up under those...
Holiday Gift Guide for the Reader in Your Life
Hold onto your bookmarks, folks! It’s that magical season again—time to hunt for a quirky, one-of-a-kind gift for the bookworm in your life, and we’ve got your back! Wave goodbye to the boring old standbys like gift cards that scream “I couldn’t think of anything,”...
Holiday Gift Guide for the Writer in Your Life
The holiday season can be a busy time of year -- so busy you might not have had the time to think of the perfect gift to give the writer in your life! Don’t worry, Technica Editorial has got you covered. Whether it be a small trinket or a learning experience, we have...
Self-Publishing in 2024: Prize-Winning Contenders to Check Out
In the year 2024, I think we can safely say that self-publishing is here to stay. What was once seen as just a forum on the internet to publish niche genre work by lesser-known authors, self-publishing is now big business with many aspiring authors forgoing the traditional model completely and taking things into their own hands. If you are interested in...
It’s Time to Start that Great American Novel: Celebrate National Novel Writing Month
During the COVID lockdown, how many people thought they would finally sit down and write that novel that has been brimming in their brain for years. Some were able to accomplish this seemingly impossible task, but for most, the dream of writing the great American novel remains just that: a dream. There are plenty of reasons why writing that novel can seem...
Why Research Matters in Nonfiction Writing
Writing nonfiction is so much more than just weaving words on a page; it's a balancing act between storytelling and facts, creativity and credibility. At the heart of this type of writing lies its most essential element—research. In the world of nonfiction writing, research isn't just a tool; it's the compass that guides you, the writer, through the vast...
Celebrate World Smile Day with a Few Books that will Leave you Grinning
“Let’s put a smile on that face.” While Heath Ledger intones these words with dread in his legendary Oscar-winning performance as the Joker in The Dark Knight, it’s a phrase that shouldn’t inspire fear in people. In 1963, artist Harvey Ball created the iconic smiley face image, which has become a significant symbol good will ever since. As the image became...
Exploring the Forbidden Aisles of Banned Books!
Banned Books Week is “an annual event that highlights the value of free and open access to information.” Beginning in September of 1982, Banned Books Week was created in response to an unexpected surge in the number of challenges to books available in libraries, schools, and bookstores. The week aimed to promote exploration of challenged literature and...
I’ll Give You Proof!
At first glance, copy editing and proofing might seem like very similar tasks—and they do, indeed, have plenty in common. But a copy editor with a sharp eye for detail will recognize that these are entirely separate processes with entirely separate skill sets. On the one hand, copy editing jobs focus on meticulously reading every single sentence in an...
Can AI Be Responsible? The Case for Elsevier’s Scopus
If the scholarly publishing community has learned nothing else over the last 5 years, it’s that for better or worse, AI is here to stay. Peer reviewers are using it. Authors are using it. We’ve talked so much about the use of AI in scholarly publishing and the negative connotations it has, but is there a way to use AI “responsibly”? Elsevier seems to think...
Is There a Better Way to Incentivize Peer Review and Reverse the Peer Review Crisis?
Anyone who has worked in the peer review system knows that things are in a state of flux right now. It is a system that has seen a heavy, almost overwhelming, burden on mostly volunteer reviewers. A study in 2020 analyzing peer review across all academic journals estimated that globally reviewers spent close to 100 million hours working on reviews in 2020...
AI Detection Software is Hit or Miss According to Most Experts
For this year’s Peer Review Week, the theme selected was “Innovation and Technology in Peer Review”. We’ve spoken at length in recent posts about how AI and technology have changed the nature of peer review. We’ve specifically discussed ChatGPT’s growing role in peer review and how non-peer reviewed publications are increasingly using AI to write most if...
Get Ready for Peer Review Week 2024: Innovation Meets Technology from September 23-28, 2024!
The academic publishing landscape is undergoing significant changes, with a growing focus on author and research integrity, alongside the increasing integration of AI. There's mounting pressure for greater transparency and efficiency in peer review as publication volumes soar and reviewer numbers struggle to keep pace. This has spurred innovations aimed at...