ASK UP
The online resource Ask UP continues to demystify how university presses work. Since 2020, the collection of frequently asked questions has detailed common scholarly publishing practices among university presses around the globe, although specific procedures and policies may vary from press to press. Created and fueled by the AUPresses Faculty Outreach Committee, the site also offers illustrations of the lifecycle of a book and suggests resources for further reading on such topics as academic career advancement, writing and style, publishing and scholarly communication, copyright and intellectual property, and preparing materials for publication.
SUNY Press, Texas Tech University Press, and MIT Press hosted the site during the past year, curating and answering new questions. University of Wisconsin Press began hosting in spring 2025.
Sharing a featured Ask UP FAQ every week on social media platforms Bluesky and Facebook has been part of the Association’s strategy to attract and inform a wide audience.
PUBLISHING SESSIONS
During the past year, the Faculty Outreach Committee has continued to work with scholarly associations and administrators to present publishing information sessions:
- For the University of Missouri in fall 2024, organized by Committee member Jennifer Keegan (LSU) in collaboration with the university’s Assistant Dean of Professional Development and Leadership,
- At the 2025 Modern Language Association conference, organized by Committee co-chair Anne Savarese (Princeton).
OTHER AUTHOR RESOURCES
The Association published the latest edition of its Subject Area Grid in January 2025, marking the return of a resource highly valued by prospective authors, researchers, librarians, bibliographers, and publishers. Available as a free, downloadable spreadsheet, it tracks member presses’ editorial activity—current acquisitions interest as well as backlist availability—in 130 subject areas and can be sorted by subject or publisher.
The AUPresses Resources web page offers additional materials and tools for authors seeking publishers, in addition to helpful tools such as the Permissions FAQ, the Peer Review Best Practices Handbook, and Digital Art Submission Guidelines.
AUPresses continues to be a contributing organization of the Think. Check. Submit. project, an international initiative that helps researchers identify trusted journals and book publishers for their research, offering a range of tools and practical resources.