The Piedmont Publishing Symposium is organized by Clemson University Press, Hub City Press, University of North Georgia Press, and University of South Carolina Press. This first-ever event will be held at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, May 28-29, 2025. During the planned day and a half of programming, we will offer eight sessions appealing to different constituencies: academic writers, non-academic writers, publishing professionals, and students and recent graduates who want to know more about publishing.
Day 1
8:30am-9:15am Registration
9:15am Welcome and Introductions
9:45am-10:45am Session 1: Writing an Academic Book Proposal with: Andrew Dorkin (Clemson UP) and Ehren Foley (University of South Carolina Press)
9:45am-10:45am Session 2: Open Access and Scholarly Publishing with: BJ Robinson (University of North Georgia Press), Corinne Guimont (Associate Director, Publishing & Digital Scholarship, Virginia Tech Publishing), and Gabriel Hankins (Clemson faculty with multiple OA publication projects)
10:45am-11:00am BREAK
11:00am-12:00pm Session 3: Introduction by Ash Smith, president of the SCWA. Book Production: An Introduction for Authors with: Corey Parson (University of North Georgia Press), Joell Smith-Borne (Managing Production Editor, Vanderbilt University Press), Katie Hannah (Director, University of Tennessee Press), Kate McMullen (Hub City Press)
12:00pm-1:30pm LUNCH
1:30pm-3:00pm Keynote Speaker: J. Elliott Casal, University of Memphis, Generative AI, Academic Publishing, and Conversations on Ethics: Perspectives from a Linguist
3:00pm-3:15pm BREAK
3:15pm-4:15pm Session 4: A Conversation with Rachel Hanson, author of The End of Tennessee; Dan Leach, author of Junah at the End of the World
3:15pm-4:15pm Session 5: How to Get into Publishing as a Career with: Katoya Fleming (University of North Carolina Wilmington); Drew Griffin (Clemson UP)
6:00pm-7:00pm Reception at Hub City Bookshop
Day 2
8:30am-9:00am Registration
9:00am-10:00am Session 6: Finding the Right Publisher for Your Project with: BJ Robinson (University of North Georgia Press), Meg Reid (Hub City Press), Michael McGandy (University of South Carolina Press), Alison Mero (Clemson University Press)
9:00am-10:00am Session 7: Understanding Bookselling in 2025 with: Lara Hrabota (W. W. Norton); Kala Saxon (readerthenblogger.com); Jim Scott (Judson Books)
10:00am-10:15pm BREAK
10:15am-11:45am Session 8: Marketing and publicity for your book with: Cathy Esposito (University of South Carolina Press); Alyson Sinclair (freelance book publicist)
12:00pm Closing Remarks
