author notes Archives - Page 4 of 4

By Christopher Heaney November 09, 2016

Jamestown, Peru?

Today’s post comes from Christopher Heaney, Assistant Professor, Penn State, 2016-2018 Barra Postdoctoral Fellow, McNeil Center for Early American Studies, and WMQ author (October). “Do we really need a ‘Peruvian Atlantic’ … ?” asked Reader B. For the sake of my argument, I couldn’t help but agree. The original subtitle of what became my essay in this fall’s issue of the… Read More

#VastEarlyAmerica 9 min read

By Samuel Fisher November 02, 2016

The Notes You Don’t Play

Some Reflections on Vastness and the Word Count by Samuel Fisher, WMQ author (October 2016) I suppose it’s safe to say that the vastness of early America is a bit of a preoccupation in these parts. Big, expansive frameworks are the norm now; that much we know. The hard part comes when we try to actually put them to… Read More

WMQ 8 min read

By Michael D. Breidenbach September 07, 2016

Beginning and Ending with Footnotes

In today’s post, WMQ author Michael D. Breidenbach (July 2016) reflects on the beginning and end of historical writing. by Michael D. Breidenbach An unavoidable task in historical writing is beginning and ending within particular time periods, dates, or moments. But while a published article denotes its end—the publication date—historical writing often does not admit of a beginning. The genesis of an… Read More

WMQ 5 min read

By Kirsten Fischer August 17, 2016

How I learned to stop worrying and love Reader D

by Kirsten Fischer In today’s post, WMQ author Kirsten Fischer (July 2016) delves into her relationship with Reader D and how their interaction ultimately influenced her piece. Powerful intellectual opposition to one’s ideas is a disturbing, provoking, and very useful thing. That’s what I learned from Reader D, the anonymous reviewer who went to great lengths to refute the arguments… Read More

WMQ 6 min read

By Keith Pluymers August 03, 2016

An old topic made new--iron in America

In this week’s post, Keith Pluymers (July 2016) describes the shifts in perspective that led him to reconsider a well-worn topic and ultimately to publish his first piece in the William and Mary Quarterly. by Keith Pluymers In 2013 while on a Mellon Research Fellowship at the Virginia Historical Society, a combination of archival discovery and a fortuitous meeting with a… Read More

WMQ 7 min read

By Justin Roberts May 19, 2016

Familiar Sources and Forgotten Colonies

WMQ author Justin Roberts reflects on the unexpected route that led him to the article on British plantation management in Barbados that appears in the April issue. by Justin Roberts As I was writing my first book about British Atlantic plantation management in the late eighteenth century, I found myself burrowing back further in time with my research questions. As I… Read More

WMQ 7 min read

By Josh Piker May 10, 2016

The Five-Reader Problem

by Josh Piker It will, I suspect, come as no surprise to hear that the relationship between authors and those scholars who serve as readers for article manuscripts is an ambivalent one. I try to recruit five readers’ reports for each essay that goes out for peer review. A not insignificant part of my job consists of finding ways… Read More

WMQ 11 min read

By Susanah Shaw Romney April 28, 2016

5,000 more words

In today’s post, WMQ author Susanah Shaw Romney (April 2016) answers the following: “WMQ articles are capped at 10,000 words (plus notes). If you had 5,000 more words to play with, how would the article be different?” by Susanah Shaw Romney This article started out as a paper I submitted to the WMQ-EMSI Workshop on Women in Early America. The paper I wrote then… Read More

WMQ 6 min read

By Miles P. Grier April 19, 2016

No Second Fiddle

In today’s post, WMQ author Miles P. Grier (January 2016) reflects on the editing process at the William and Mary Quarterly and how his background as a literary scholar affected that experience. I ain’t gonna play no second fiddle / Cause I’m used to playing lead —Perry Bradford by Miles P. Grier In a 2008 Forum, published simultaneously in… Read More

WMQ 9 min read

By Emma Hart March 15, 2016

The “offal” difficulties of writing readable economic history

WMQ author (January 2016) Emma Hart looks at the difficulty of writing economic history. (She also kicks it off with a pretty good pun. How often does “offal” get to feature in jokes of any kind?) After two decades in the business, I realize that my historical interests are not the most popular preoccupations, even among specialists. I’m fascinated by… Read More

WMQ 7 min read

Jamestown, Peru?

The Notes You Don’t Play

Beginning and Ending with Footnotes

How I learned to stop worrying and love Reader D

An old topic made new--iron in America

Familiar Sources and Forgotten Colonies

The Five-Reader Problem

5,000 more words

No Second Fiddle

The “offal” difficulties of writing readable economic history

Recent Posts

Peer Review for the Born-Digital?

BJ Lillis

Patrick Barker

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Jamestown, Peru?

The Notes You Don’t Play

Beginning and Ending with Footnotes

How I learned to stop worrying and love Reader D

An old topic made new--iron in America

Familiar Sources and Forgotten Colonies

The Five-Reader Problem

5,000 more words

No Second Fiddle

The “offal” difficulties of writing readable economic history

Recent Posts

Peer Review for the Born-Digital?

BJ Lillis

Patrick Barker

Subscribe to the Blog

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