Anybody want to write a text book?

[adonna]

Maybe this will be a little more up your cul de sac....


There's a group called ICDC Publishing looking for writers for textbooks for vocational schools. They suggest you go to their website, http://www.ICDCPublishing.com and get the writer's guidelines there. I don't know how much they are paying for writing textbooks, but it might not hurt to bop over there and see what they're looking for. They welcome query letters via email. The address is ICDCAuthors@yahoo.com

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My primary criteria for sharing these things are that they don't require you to be anywhere in particular (so the ones that require you to be living in Japan or Detroit I don't bother with) and that they look at least remotely interesting to someone, even if not to me.

[Redlass]

I'll throw this out: If you get a good publisher, textbook writing (for the college market) can be pretty lucrative. There are usually built-in sales on a biannual basis.

So if someone has the inclination, it could certainly be worthwhile.

[kurt_messick]

I used to work at a place that made software supplements for textbooks (I was variously the q.c. lackey, the q.c. manager, the equipment manager and a writer). This was in the late 80s/early 90s, when making such things was s till a highly specialised skill (even word processing was relatively 'new' in much of academia).

Textbooks were and are a big business. Highly competitive, at all levels, K-grad school. Textbooks at the college level generally require heavy credentials for credibility. However, for other levels, there's a lot that the 'average' person can do. Also, you can appeal to homeschoolers in many ways. I recommend pursuing textbook authoring if one wants to make a steady living writing.

[MrsNormanMaine[$]]

The text book my parents wrote (at the expense of much of their sanity in the early 80s) is now in its seventh edition and is keeping them in high style in their retirment. Not bad for an Oceanography text.

MNM

[Redlass]

Even at the college market, there's always ghost writing for those highly credentialed people who have no writing skills.

[adonna]

I did a little bit of inquiry and found out they'll pay either money up front or royalties. Not bad either way.