Writing a Textbook Is Good for You

Abstract

This chapter explores the challenges and opportunities offered by writing textbooks. Drawing on the author’s own experience of writing and editing over ten books, the chapter demonstrates how textbook writing should be considered an important part of an academic’s career. The chapter argues that writing textbooks needs to be viewed once again as an important aspect of a political science academic’s contribution to the discipline and that promotion criteria within universities should attach just as much importance to textbook writing as writing articles for publication in academic journals. The reason for this is twofold. First, at a time when there is a general decline in trust in politics across the world, it is more important than ever to communicate and discuss these issues to as wide an audience as possible, including both undergraduate students and the general public. Second, writing a textbook requires the writer to explain complex points clearly to a general audience. This is quite different from journal writing, which can sometimes be impenetrable to the non-academic.