Harvard University Press: Not Your Average Publisher

Take a look at a Harvard University Press book.

Chances are good it's attractive, streamlined and slickly published. It looks less like an academic book than the latest offering from Simon and Schuster.

Unlike many other university presses, Harvard University Press (HU Press) books aren't bound with blank covers or printed on scratchy paper. That's because of a marriage of economics and university support that has made HU Press one of the country's more successful university presses since 1913, according to Financial Director William A. Lindsay.

"Our mission is spreading knowledge," Lindsay said. "You're not going to do that if you don't attract people, so we work hard to keep our books looking good."

The HU Press display room in Holyoke Center looks like your average strip mall bookstore--clean, quiet, well stocked with the latest offerings. But the process a book goes through to get the official stamp of Harvard University is vastly different than in a commercial enterprise.

For one thing, authors don't feel the same pressure to sell lots of books. HU Press is a nonprofit business, and academic books aren't expected to sell much at all.

"There's no money to be made publishing scholarly books," Lindsay said. Lindsay's job is to make sure the press breaks even every year, not to keep track of what's hot.

Still, with a $17 million budget and 150 titles a year, that's no easy job. Especially when you're trying to subsidize those titles.

"Most of what we publish is very expensive to produce, due to the small number of copies we make," Lindsay said. "We still charge less than most other university presses, but that's because of our fortunate economic situation."

That fortunate situation translates to a $6.5 million endowment from the Belknap family and the financial backbone of Harvard University, which supports the press as long as it remains economically solvent.

The endowment funds go towards improving the quality of HU Press books, said HU Press Director William P. Sisler. In addition, all books published under the Belknap imprint are subsidized.

"Without that endowment, we would have a muchtougher time producing the high quality books thispress is known for," Sisler said.

HU Press is also feeling the effects of arobust economy for academic books. As studentscontinue to pour into universities, the demand foracademic books continues to grow.

According to Douglas Arthur, an equity analystat Morgan Stanley, higher education enrollment isscheduled to increase at an annual rate of 1.3percent over the next ten years.

Academic book publishers have already felt thatincrease--total domestic net sales grew at anaverage annual rate of 12.8 percent from 1994 to1996, Arthur said.

HU Press publishes primarily in the humanities,social sciences and sciences. Since the Pressalready subsidizes the cost of its books, Harvardstudents do not receive extra discounts--butLindsay says it's rare an undergraduate would beusing an HU Press book anyway.

"Most of our books are sold in graduate schoolbookstores," Lindsay said.

Harvard students do get the convenience of theHolyoke Center display room, where damaged booksare sold for rock-bottom prices.

The press attracts authors through thetraditional publishing routes: unsolicitedmanuscripts, personal contacts and now, agents.

"More and more scholars have agents torepresent their work," Sisler said. "We've had toadjust for this new aspect in the business."

In addition, Harvard University Press editorstour universities to talk to scholars, scourscholarly journals for promising works indevelopment and attend professional academicconferences to meet with scholars and professors.

Once HU Press editors decide on a title,there's one more step to publication approval--theBoard of Syndics.

"If the books are going to carry the Harvardname, the University wants to be sure itrepresents the Harvard name," Sisler said.

The Board of Syndics, a 12-member facultycommittee, meets monthly to issue the officialUniversity stamp of approval. Sisler, who chairsthe board, says the University generally agrees tothe Press' decisions.

"The University is hands off," Sisler said. "Wetypically pick books that reflect the academicheft of the University, and they're usually happywith our choices."

That's partly because so many of the Press'choices are from the University itself. Harvardprofessors author about 33 percent of the Press'books each year, according to Sisler.

Harvard professors say they appreciate manythings about HU Press--including the convenienceand individual attention their works receive.

"You get to be a part of the process from startto finish," said Cabot Professor of EnglishLiterature and Professor of Afro-American StudiesWerner Sollors.

Sollors' recent publications with HU Pressinclude The Return of Thematic Criticism, TheBlack Columbiad, and the paperback edition ofNeither Black Nor White But Both.

"You can see the book as it's being published,make sure all the galleys are correct, be incontact quickly if something goes wrong--these arethe little things that matter," Sollors added.

Sollors also said the Press' small number oftitles makes it possible to get lots of individualattention and guidance.

For some Harvard professors, however, thepublishing needs of the press do not fit theirparticular research.

"I do think it's correct to say it's been thatfor some time Harvard University Press haspublished little or no political philosophy on theconservative side," said Keenan Professor ofGovernment Harvey C. Mansfield Jr. '53.

Mansfield's last collaboration with HU Presswas in 1978, with The Spirit of Liberalism.

"In my experience there's no true love betweenauthor and publisher," Mansfield said

"Without that endowment, we would have a muchtougher time producing the high quality books thispress is known for," Sisler said.

HU Press is also feeling the effects of arobust economy for academic books. As studentscontinue to pour into universities, the demand foracademic books continues to grow.

According to Douglas Arthur, an equity analystat Morgan Stanley, higher education enrollment isscheduled to increase at an annual rate of 1.3percent over the next ten years.

Academic book publishers have already felt thatincrease--total domestic net sales grew at anaverage annual rate of 12.8 percent from 1994 to1996, Arthur said.

HU Press publishes primarily in the humanities,social sciences and sciences. Since the Pressalready subsidizes the cost of its books, Harvardstudents do not receive extra discounts--butLindsay says it's rare an undergraduate would beusing an HU Press book anyway.

"Most of our books are sold in graduate schoolbookstores," Lindsay said.

Harvard students do get the convenience of theHolyoke Center display room, where damaged booksare sold for rock-bottom prices.

The press attracts authors through thetraditional publishing routes: unsolicitedmanuscripts, personal contacts and now, agents.

"More and more scholars have agents torepresent their work," Sisler said. "We've had toadjust for this new aspect in the business."

In addition, Harvard University Press editorstour universities to talk to scholars, scourscholarly journals for promising works indevelopment and attend professional academicconferences to meet with scholars and professors.

Once HU Press editors decide on a title,there's one more step to publication approval--theBoard of Syndics.

"If the books are going to carry the Harvardname, the University wants to be sure itrepresents the Harvard name," Sisler said.

The Board of Syndics, a 12-member facultycommittee, meets monthly to issue the officialUniversity stamp of approval. Sisler, who chairsthe board, says the University generally agrees tothe Press' decisions.

"The University is hands off," Sisler said. "Wetypically pick books that reflect the academicheft of the University, and they're usually happywith our choices."

That's partly because so many of the Press'choices are from the University itself. Harvardprofessors author about 33 percent of the Press'books each year, according to Sisler.

Harvard professors say they appreciate manythings about HU Press--including the convenienceand individual attention their works receive.

"You get to be a part of the process from startto finish," said Cabot Professor of EnglishLiterature and Professor of Afro-American StudiesWerner Sollors.

Sollors' recent publications with HU Pressinclude The Return of Thematic Criticism, TheBlack Columbiad, and the paperback edition ofNeither Black Nor White But Both.

"You can see the book as it's being published,make sure all the galleys are correct, be incontact quickly if something goes wrong--these arethe little things that matter," Sollors added.

Sollors also said the Press' small number oftitles makes it possible to get lots of individualattention and guidance.

For some Harvard professors, however, thepublishing needs of the press do not fit theirparticular research.

"I do think it's correct to say it's been thatfor some time Harvard University Press haspublished little or no political philosophy on theconservative side," said Keenan Professor ofGovernment Harvey C. Mansfield Jr. '53.

Mansfield's last collaboration with HU Presswas in 1978, with The Spirit of Liberalism.

"In my experience there's no true love betweenauthor and publisher," Mansfield said