Members Offer Advice for Writing as a Team

Emily Griffith and Mara Blake

At a recent meeting, a graduate student reacted to the idea of collaborative book writing with surprise: “Why would anyone want to write a book as a team? That sounds so hard.” 

Have you ever considered writing a book? Perhaps you feel like it would be easier to write a book with other people, or maybe your topic would benefit from multiple perspectives. On the other hand, group projects can be difficult to navigate successfully. Having just published a book with a team of seven authors, we hope our experiences and advice can help other group book projects succeed.

Why Write a Book as a Team?

Writing a book as a team allows for multiple perspectives and experiences to inform the content of one book. This can be particularly useful in situations in which you’re providing guidance or advice for an audience with varied needs. For example, to write the manual Graduate Students in Data Science Consulting: A Blueprint for Success, we had to consider that colleges and universities vary widely in their approach to graduate student appointments, administrative homes, and funding models. A team of authors from multiple institutions can generate guidance that encompasses multiple perspectives that address this range of needs.

Choosing a Format

An early decision when writing a book as a team is whether to have individual authors contribute individual chapters with no unified voice or to write a single text together in one unified voice.

An edited volume or compilation of individual chapters, contributed by separate authors with no unified voice, can be easier to complete than a book written more cooperatively. However, there may be disagreements or unintentional overlap between chapters. We suggest this approach when the goal is to showcase diversity of thought on a topic or issue.

On the other hand, a book with a unified voice may result in a more coherent message with a stronger perspective—but this may require more coordination between authors on vocabulary, themes, and perspectives. It also requires intentional editing by one or two lead authors that agree on the writing style. This kind of work may bring some challenges specific to the format. This was the style we used for our manual, and setting aside time early in the process to agree on a common vocabulary was incredibly helpful. In either case, we strongly recommend identifying one or two lead authors to keep the project moving to completion.

Identifying Authors

The second decision to make is who comprises the author team. If you’re writing an edited volume, one way to recruit authors is via a call for chapter proposals. Widely circulating such a request is a great option to consider.

Whether you’re selecting specific authors or making decisions based on a call for proposals, we encourage you to consider the different perspectives you wish to present and select authors who can meaningfully contribute in those ways. This could mean including authors from both private and public universities or including authors from small liberal arts colleges and research universities.

Equally important is having a team that works well together. A committee of strong people is not necessarily a strong committee, and we cannot overstate the importance of choosing a team that will work together in a positive way.

Proposed Ideal Schedule

We recommend trying to work quickly. One difficulty that arose during the writing of Graduate Students in Data Science Consulting: A Blueprint for Success was that authors moved to new jobs during the writing process. While it is impossible to prevent your author team from progressing in their careers, we do think that a shorter writing timeline can minimize the disruption of job changes.

We had great success with a writing timeline that involved virtual pre-work (both asynchronous and synchronous) that led to an in-person meeting. Our author team had five virtual meetings with tasks in between. By the time we held an in-person writing retreat, we had a complete outline of the book and an accepted book proposal.

Holding an in-person meeting is, from our perspective, a critical step for getting the bulk of the writing done. We spent one and a half days together working on the manuscript. We found it helpful to start by developing a common vocabulary, then work in a cycle of individual time (1–1.5 hours), review, feedback (0.5–1 hour), and group discussion. During the individual working time, we assigned authors to take the lead on specific chapters. This process started with developing an outline, agreeing on the outline, then adding more text in each round. We also assigned first-round editors, allowed time for breaks, and built in time for authors to work individually. This process was relatively successful.

On reflection, we believe our project would have benefitted from a second in-person meeting toward the end of the writing process. Coordinating the review of the final manuscript for consistent language and tone, while working virtually, proved difficult. Having a short, perhaps even one-day, in-person meeting would have allowed us to share that work more evenly across the author team.

Importance of Team Lead(s)

Having one or two lead authors is important throughout the writing process. During the final stages of preparing a manuscript for publication, it is critically important to have a lead author or two, who take initiative and responsibility for the final manuscript. Such authors will keep the project moving, put the files in the correct formats, and ensure that the manuscript is completed to the publisher’s requirements. The lead author(s) can also coordinate the review and proofing process and ensure requested revisions are completed. We cannot overstate the importance of having one or two authors who will push the manuscript to completion. We found this work had a series of steps with quick turnaround times, but long breaks in between, which made it difficult to coordinate virtually.

Alignment with the Publication Process

An additional benefit of the schedule outlined above is that it aligns with the publication process. The online pre-meetings will allow for the drafting and submitting of a book proposal. Once it is accepted, the in-person writing retreat is where the bulk of the drafting process can occur. While a second in-person meeting would be a great way to finalize a manuscript, we were able to complete it with virtual meetings. Responses to reviews can be coordinated virtually, as well, although that may prove more difficult as time passes.

Overall, we found writing a book as a team to be rewarding, and we are very proud of our finished product. We hope these tips are useful for people embarking on their own writing projects.

Emily Griffith

North Carolina State University

Griffith is a professor of the practice and associate head in the department of statistics at North Carolina State University and director of consulting at the North Carolina State Data Science Academy. She is an active member of the ASA North Carolina Chapter and serves as the District 5 vice chair to the Council of Chapters Governing Board.

Mara Blake

North Carolina State University

Blake is the head of data science services at North Carolina State University, where she provides data and visualization expertise to faculty and staff. She earned her master’s in information science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and held previous positions at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Michigan.