How to Turn Your Dissertation into a Book While Balancing Work and Life

Advice From Someone Who Has Done It

By Aubrey Huber, PhD Academic coach specializing in helping working professionals and faculty turn dissertations into publishable books, complete high-stakes academic projects, and meet career milestones without sacrificing work-life balance.

Turning your dissertation into a book takes time and effort, both of which are often in short supply when you’re working full time and trying to balance your life obligations. However, as a junior faculty member who needs to set up a writing trajectory, your dissertation can go a long way to set you up for tenure and promotion.

Here are some things I learned on my journey to turning my dissertation into a book, while trying to work and raise two kids.

#1. Review Feedback from Your Committee

Instead of feeling like you have to start from scratch to convert your dissertation into a book, use what you already have to save you time and strain. Your dissertation committee is made up of experts in your field. Take what they have said about your dissertation to heart. Use their feedback to revise your document for your discipline specific, or more general audience. Sometimes, like in my case, one of your committee members may even give you specific advice about how to revise your dissertation for publication including publication outlets.

#2. Familiarize Yourself with Different Presses

Academics can publish their work with a university press, academic press, or trade press. University presses are non-profit, university-affiliated presses emphasize peer review and academic credibility. Academic presses publish academic also require peer review and target niche audiences. Trade presses target broader audiences and emphasize accessibility and commercial success. To submit your book with a trade press, you may first have to query it with a literary agent who will shop your book for you. The content of your book, and expectations from your institution will help you decide where to submit a proposal for your book, or if you may want to query your book with an agent first. Talk to your Chair, mentor, and book writers in your department to learn the expectations for book writers where you work.

#3. Make Initial Inquiries

University and academic presses frequently have multiple editors specified by content areas or by series. When you are considering submitting to a specific press, consider writing an initial inquiry to the content area editor or series editor to see if they would be interested in receiving a proposal based on your topic.

In your message be sure to include a clear abstract of your dissertation-turned-book idea that includes your content area, specific topic, and particular features of the book. If the press is interested, you can go ahead and create a proposal. If not, you won’t have wasted your time creating a proposal that is not going to make it past the editor’s desk.

At this point, you also want to start articulating your project as a book, not a dissertation.

#4. Create a Clear Proposal

When developing your proposal, create a clear, legible document, that overviews your book and carefully follows the proposal guidelines laid out by the press. In your overview (and any sample chapters), you should transform your scholarship written in a particular context for the purposes of earning your doctoral degree, to a book that shows how your research has implications for a larger audience beyond your institution. In other words, how and why does this matter? And, to whom will this work be relevant/important?

Be sure to include courses that might use your book, and other books with which yours might be in conversation. Start by including common courses across your discipline, and books you cited in your dissertation.

#5. Organize Your Process

Keep track of where you send proposals, and feedback you receive to editors. Hold on to all drafts in case you want to go back to what you have written later (like when you need to write the blurb for the back of the book). This will save you time, and keep you organized. I found it helpful to keep track of my process on an excel document, and designate folders for my various materials.

In addition to saving and organizing your materials up front, when you receive that book contract, organize your time. Establish a routine so you are writing more days than not. Your dissertation was strong, it got you that Ph.D. — but it is going to need work to move it from original research to book-length project for a broader audience. Block off consistent time to write. Even 15 minutes a day will get you closer to your contracted deadline.

Whether you’re a new parent, like I was, or a new faculty in a new city, you have a lot on your plate. However, you also have an ace in your pocket — your dissertation. Don’t be afraid to use it. With some planning and concerted effort, you too can turn your dissertation into a book.

Aubrey Huber, PhD — Supporting busy professionals and faculty in rewriting, structuring, and publishing their dissertations. I help clients navigate the dissertation-to-book process efficiently while maintaining full-time work and life responsibilities.

Ready to start your academic project with guidance? Contact us today.