Scholars to Storytellers: Writing Beyond the Academy, with John Ghazvinian, (A Faculty Workshop) 5/7
Faculty Workshop:
This four-hour seminar covers the basics of commercial publishing – how it differs from academic publishing, what to expect, the pros and cons of trade publishing, and some of the resources available for scholars wanting to make this transition. It also provides participants with practical, actionable advice about the nuts and bolts of writing a non-fiction book proposal for a commercial press and the process of finding an agent--including common pitfalls to avoid.
Workshop leader: John Ghazvinian. Ghazvinian has two decades of experience as a journalist and academic. He earned his doctorate in history at Oxford University and was the recipient of a "Public Scholar" fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities in 2016-2017. From 2018 to 2025, he served as Associate Director, Interim Director, and Executive Director of the Middle East Center at the University of Pennsylvania. He is founding director of “Scholars to Storytellers” – an initiative aimed at helping senior academics engage with general audiences.
