The following is a guest post by Gianna Mosser, director of Vanderbilt University Press.
As we look forward to a new decade, Vanderbilt University Press also has the pleasure and occasion to celebrate eighty years of publishing. Founded in 1940, VUP was originally a platform for literary writers affiliated with the university, similar to many university presses incorporated at the time. Today, VUP’s authors circle the globe and write on topics even farther ranging, from history to Latin American studies to public health to urban studies. We also have a mission-driven approach to publishing books on the region and its cultural communities.
We have been reflecting so much this past year on the type of publisher we want to be. In order to know where you want to go, you have to know where you come from. I have had a steep hill to climb in learning an entire new (to me) backlist, but the knowledgeable staff and faculty have pointed me in the right directions. In order to assist me and anyone previously unfamiliar with VUP, we have decided 2020 will be a year of book love. Every day our office is open, the staff will share via social media one book or historic milestone in the long and storied career of this publishing house. Many will be glorious; some require closer scrutiny. It is in our collective attention to these books that we find inspiration. We will carry on the tradition of publishing works that expand the university’s mission to an engaged readership. I look forward to learning together about our past and pursuing a future where the books you love are the books we make.
Gianna Mosser
Director, VUP
In order to view or participate in the 2020 festivities, follow us on Twitter (@VanderbiltUP), Facebook (@VanderbiltUP), Instagram (@vanderbiltuniversitypress), and subscribe to our blog. Different platforms lend themselves to different types of content, so it is best to sign up for the whole kit and kaboodle if you don’t want to miss anything.
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