Publishing information resources: Books & articles

If you need help, please contact Megan Sorenson, Liaison Librarian for Publishing and the School of Interactive Arts + Technology (SIAT) at 778.782.7588 or msorenso@sfu.ca or Ask a librarian


For general guidance, help, or tips on doing your assignments, the guide to start your research gives an overview of the research process and includes ideas about where to look for information.

Books

To find print books and ebooks, journals, articles, background sources, and more, search our Library Catalogue.

If you're new to searching all of our Library resources, start with the Library Catalogue search guide.

To look for relevant resources more systematically, try searching by subject with these kinds of subject headings related to Publishing:

Using Subject Headings

If you find a book that is relevant to your research, you can use the subject headings for that book to find other related resources. A book is usually given several subject headings, and each heading is linked to lists of other resources about the same topic.

For example: from the subject heading search above for Book design, one of the results is The mind of the book : pictorial title pages by Alastair Fowler. Scrolling down the record page for this book, there are links to several subjects, including Title pages -- History and Colophons. Clicking these subject links takes you to lists of other resources on the same topic.

New books for Publishing are updated monthly on the page for Selected new books and other items purchased by the Library.

Journal Articles

Start with our guide on how to find journal articles at the SFU library. If you have a specific citation already, try our guide to find the full text of an article from an article citation.

Databases

To find magazine or journal articles, try any of the databases in Publishing that the Library has access to. Here's a small sample of databases, with the kinds of information you could find in them:

Business Source Complete
A good (mostly American) source for business journals, including Publishers Weekly, and contains Datamonitor reports on the publishing industry.

CBCA Complete
A major Canadian index for articles on the publishing industry, and it covers the print version of Quill & Quire.

MLA International Bibliography
Has some content on the history of printing and publishing, besides articles and essays on literature from around the world.

Online Journals

The Library also has subscriptions to several journals, magazines and newsletters that could be relevant to Publishing. Here are just a few of the many titles we have online:

Book history
A publication of The Society for the History of Authorship, Reading and Publishing, Inc (SHARP).

Independent publisher
A monthly trade publication for independent publishers and booksellers

Journal of electronic publishing
On publishing trends and practices from the perspectives of publishers, scholars, students, and others

Journal of scholarly publishing
Investigates the world of academic publishing and the role that technology plays

Journal of the early book society for the study of manuscripts and printing history
History of the book, and the shift from manuscripts to printing

Kirkus reviews
One of the oldest book review publications, it also provides industry news and trends

Logos: The journal of the world book community
International research on book publishing, authors, and readers

M2 Best Books
Publishing industry news and events

Print [website] [online & print]
This magazine is an online authority on graphic, interactive, and brand design and their influences on visual culture; it includes sections on typography, print design, interactive design, branding and design theory, etc.

Printing History
Academic articles about the history of printing, publishing, typography, paper, and more

Publishing Research Quarterly
Previously the Book research quarterly, with peer-reviewed articles on everything related to the publishing industry

Publisher's Weekly
Contains US publishing industry news, book reviews, and bestseller lists, as well as coverage of the British book trade.

Studies in Bibliography
Articles on the study of manuscripts and the history of publishing

Print Magazines

You can browse print magazines in the current journals section at Belzberg Library in the downtown Vancouver campus - just head up the stairs in the Library and follow the map:

Amphora

BC bookworld

Broken pencil

The devil’s artisan (DA)
An award-winning and beautifully produced 'journal of the printing arts' in Canada

Fellowship of American bibliophilic societies
A newsletter brought out twice a year, with older issues available in the online archive

London review of books

The New York review of books

The publishers weekly

Quill & quire
Canadian book industry news magazine

TLS: the Times literary supplement

Uppercase
A beautifully produced Canadian magazine on arts and crafts