Open Access: OA Books

Open Access

by Peter Suber

Understanding Open Access

by Lexi Rubow, Rachael Shen, Brianna Schofield, and the Samuelson Clinic

Open Access and the Humanities

by Martin Paul Eve

The Access Principle: The Case for Open Access to Research and Scholarship

by John Willinsky

Open access books can be challenging to publish due to the costs involved in publishing a book, but the good news is that OA models are emerging.  Some presses have a book processing charge (BPC), the equivalent of an article processing charge for OA journals.  However, BPCs are high and require some kind of subvention. 

Virginia Tech is one of several U.S. institutions participating in TOME (Toward an Open Monograph Ecosystem), which will support faculty publication of open access monographs by major university presses.  See the latest update (Feb. 2021) for more information, and contact Peter Potter, Director of Publishing Services in the University Libraries, if interested.  (The provost's office also offers subventions to support the publication of books by Virginia Tech faculty even if they are not made open access.)  In addition, Virginia Tech's University Libraries supports Knowledge Unlatched, which works with a number of scholarly publishers and does not require book authors to find funding.

Did you write a book chapter you would like to make OA?  Check your publishing agreement, or this list of Book Chapter Archiving Permissions.

Do you have a previously published book you would like to make OA?  Many book contracts contain a rights reversion clause.  Learn all about rights reversion from the Author's Alliance.

Do you want to create an open textbook? See Virginia Tech's guide to authoring open educational resources.

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