For most academics, publishing is crucial, whether to get tenure, secure a promotion, or ensure a good standing in their discipline. But how to find the time to publish with all the other demands that the profession comes with? While there is no simple answer to this question, setting up a publishing pipeline can help.
Because there is a lot of ground to cover when it comes to publishing pipelines, I have divided this piece into two posts. The first part covers what a publishing pipeline is and what it can do for you. I also provide an overview of other academics’ publishing pipelines.
What Is a Publishing Pipeline
If you haven’t heard of the term before, a publishing pipeline is essentially a long-term plan for the “progression of papers from the idea stage to the publication stage” (Matthew J. Lebo). The idea behind the pipeline is to always have multiple pieces – articles, conference papers, book chapters, or full manuscripts – at different levels of completion in motion because publishing takes time. According to Katelyn E. Knox and Allison van Deventer, co-authors of the Dissertation-to-Book Workbook, turning a PhD dissertation into a book usually requires “a minimum of 1.5 years (24 months is more common) from the time you submit your complete manuscript to an academic publisher to the time your academic book is published” (quote source). Journal articles may be shorter in length, but still take at least several months and often up to year or more get published.
What a Publishing Pipeline Can Do for You
The idea of publishing pipeline is that if you set it up carefully, by the time one piece of your writing makes it into print or is uploaded online, you don’t have to go back to the starting line. Rather, you will already have several ideas to develop further, data you are analysing for a book chapter, a journal article or two currently under peer review, and/or a manuscript that just needs some quick finishing touches.
Having a well-oiled pipeline means that you are much more likely to reach your publishing and therefore also career goals. But before talking about goals – which I will do in Part 2 – let’s look at some other academics’ publishing pipelines.
Some Examples of Publishing Pipelines
Many scholars have written about how they manage their writing and publishing. Here is an overview of some particularly helpful publishing pipeline examples:
1) Managing Your Research Pipeline (April 2016)
“The most important lesson I want to convey is that tenure should be approached with careful planning and a strategy for success.”
Author: Prof. Matthew J. Lebo (Western University)
Field/discipline: Political Science
Lebo’s article provides an excellent introduction to the publishing pipeline. His system is designed for a tenure-track assistant professor who has 5-6 years to achieve a certain number of publications. Lebo suggests using a dry-erase board to track projects over 8 stages, starting from an “idea” (stage 7) and working towards a paper being “accepted” (stage 0). While Lebo’s pipeline is for journal articles, he explains how to adapt it for books or a dissertation. Additionally, he provides tips on moving between the different stages and how rejected pieces fit into the pipeline. Finally, he also talks about work habits.
2) My Writing Productivity Pipeline (June 2016)
“A tracking system helps you analyze where to focus your efforts and gives you a reason to celebrate when a manuscript moves from one category to the next.”
Author: Prof. Erin Marie Furtak (University of Colorado at Boulder)
Field/discipline: STEM Education
Furtak’s publishing pipeline is analog, but can be adapted to a digital format: she uses a daily planner with Post-it notes. Her system consists of 11 manuscript categories (i.e., stages), ranging from “conceiving new ideas” to “in press and published.” Each project is written on a sticky note and moved along as it advances through the pipeline. Furtak also provides advice on what to do when the pipeline gets clogged and how to handle rejections. She also notes that she used this system both pre- and post tenure.
Note: Furtak also offers a 4-week seminar titled “Building a Publishing Pipeline,” which is available for NCFDD members.
3) The Publication Pipeline from Bristol Clear (February 2020)
“[Y]ou end up with a pipeline that allows you to keep adding regular publications to your CV, work on both large (long-term) and small (short-term) projects in tandem, maintain a bank of ideas that you can pull from as you like, and make space for the inevitable interruptions that come from the publication stage.”
Written by an unidentified author, this post from Bristol Clear (a blog maintained by the University of Bristol) features a diagram that nicely visualises the publishing pipeline as 3 main areas – preparation, writing, and publication – that flow into each other (sometimes in both directions). It’s not so much a detailed plan that the author shares as an invitation to create your own system. You may also find the list of common problems and links to further resources useful. If you prefer publishing pipeline examples with more details, keep reading.
4) Nicole Brown’s The Research Pipeline (February 2020)
“I have seen the research pipeline being used as a word document, handwritten notes, but also on a whiteboard with post-it notes. People tend to have their own process and details.”
Author: Dr. Nicole Brown (UCL, London South Bank University)
Field/discipline: Sociology, education
Brown’s pipeline consists of 10 parts, which she explains briefly. Helpfully, she uses questions to guide the reader and shares a template for download. There are no bells and whistles here, but a straightforward system that will work for those looking for something simple to help them organise their writing projects.
5) Publishing Pipelines and Productive Procrastination (April 2020)
“My publishing pipeline…reminds me that my work is important, that I do enough, and that I have ideas worth putting out in the world.”
Author: Assoc. Prof. Jennifer Kelly (University of California, Santa Cruz)
Field/discipline: Feminist studies, critical race and ethnic studies
Kelly explains how she arrived at her 15-stage publishing pipeline by exploring different tactics – digital calendars, time blocking, weekly and semester plans – to make time for writing. Her approach goes beyond just publishing as she uses a physical planner to reserve time for writing, teaching, meals, self care, and more. There is also colour coding, movable Post-its, and an Excel spreadsheet. It’s clearly not a plan for minimalists but for those who like “detailed, thorough, and color-coordinated organization schemes.”
Note: Kelly shares links to several resources, including Furtak’s article and webinar.
6) Joey Stanley’s Research Pipeline (January 2024)
“[W]ith this system I force myself to think about my research all the time. Even if I’m teaching three courses a semester, I still see the papers on my wall every day, and I still evaluate each project once a month. Especially since I do a fair amount of collaborative work, I’m surprised at what progress can be made during a busy teaching semester.”
Author: Asst. Prof. Joey Stanley (Brigham Young University)
Field/discipline: Linguistics
Stanley uses Lebo’s pipeline as the basis for his pipeline and leans heavily into the point system. His approach is highly organised, data-oriented, and visual. It’s also too complex to explain in a single paragraph but includes: monthly check-ins, a master document for logging various aspects of each project, two spreadsheets (one for tracking each project’s point history, one for just tracking points), and physical printouts for the office wall.
The Next Step
Now that you have hopefully found some inspiration in these publishing pipeline examples, it’s time to start thinking about how you might set up your own system to write and publish – which is what I talk about in the second part of How to Set Up a Publishing Pipeline That Works for You: Your Plan.