Your book is finally out—congratulations. Good luck getting some ink from the ever-shrinking pool of review outlets.
If you happen to be an author affiliated with the University of Texas at Austin, though, promoting that book just got a little bit easier. Late last month, the university’s Office of Public Affairs started ShelfLife@Texas, a new blog devoted to books by the university’s professors, alumni, and staffers.
The university had noticed “declining opportunities for coverage of faculty books in traditional media,” according to Jennifer McAndrew, a public-affairs specialist who edits the blog. Plus, “we’re constantly getting requests from alumni wanting to reconnect with the literary life at the university,” she said.
The blog seemed like a good way to spread the word about university books and attract alumni readers at the same time. Many university presses have well-established blogs now, but Ms. McAndrew said she hadn’t yet heard of another university establishing its own litblog.
ShelfLife has a staff of 10 bloggers, most of them communications specialists from the College of Liberal Arts, the law and business schools, the Harry Ransom Center, and the university libraries. Every day the blog features a new book or runs a Q&A with an author or faculty expert, often pegged to some current twist in the zeitgeist.
Last week, for instance, it offered “Interview with a Vampire Expert,” a conversation with Thomas Garza, chairman of the Slavic-studies department. He shared some historical and literary perspective just in time for the opening of the teen-vamp flick Twilight, based on the popular book series by Stephanie Meyer.
It’s too early to say whether the blog will attract a big audience, but it’s already caught on with the university’s authors. “I have a big stack of books on my desk that are waiting for posts now,” Ms. McAndrew said. “And even publishers are starting to contact me.” —Jennifer Howard
