| | Who Are We?
Students, libraries and teachers rightly decry
the high cost of textbooks and educational materials. Melvin & Leigh,
Publishers was founded in the belief that this situation is intolerable, and
that we can do better. We seek to meet students' need for affordable
educational books by emphasizing content, not expensive packaging.
How Can We Do That?
We can produce books with superior content by
attracting authors who believe in our mission, who have a demonstrated ability
to produce the best work in an engaging manner, and who are willing to assist us in implementing an effective marketing campaign. We believe such superior authors deserve superior royalties
and we are committed to providing royalties at least equal to the royalties
provided by our competitors. We are a publisher by and for educators and
students.
We keep our costs lower than the large
textbook publishers in several ways: - We rely on state-of-the-art technology to
prepare materials drawing on our network of production and design
professionals, reducing fixed costs.
- Our marketing is based on delivering
complimentary desk copies of our books to those who teach the courses for
which our publications are intended, rather than relying on salespeople
who call on instructors in their offices. In this way we directly put our
books and materials into the hands of educators without the expense of
sales-force salaries, benefits and travel costs.
- Our emphasis is on subject matter
content, written in a readable and engaging way. We do not seek to distract
from dry, disconnected bullet-point lists of topics with expensive
cartoons, newspaper clippings and lots of color on the page. Our
books are for college courses, and we are confident that these students
prefer printed text that is engaging and informative, rather than
paying for costly efforts to make the material look like a children’s
picture book.
Who Is Behind Melvin
& Leigh?
The President and
Publisher of Melvin & Leigh is Harry Briggs, longtime Executive Editor at
M.E. Sharpe, Inc. and former Acquisitions Editor at Sage Publications. Harry is best
known for building award-winning, best-selling portfolios of textbooks
and scholarly books in Public Administration, Management, and Marketing/Advertising.
His long career has included both grass-roots and managerial positions in
editorial, sales, and marketing functions.
"We had the pleasure of publishing two books with Harry Briggs: Emotional Labor: Putting the Service in Public Service (2008), and Emotional Labor and Crisis Response: Working on the Razor's Edge (2012). His gentle, steady hand and market savvy provided guidance during the manuscript proposal process, throughout production, and for years following publication through his efforts to continually publicize our work. His efforts on our behalf resulted in one of our books being translated into Mandarin and published in China. From the germ of an idea to long after each book was in print, his knowledge of content, marketing, and intended audience informed our work from beginning to end. We are just wild about Harry." —Mary Guy (University of Colorado Denver), Meredith Newman (Florida International University), and Sharon Mastracci (University of Illinois Chicago) “Towering above all
other editors in my career and in my work with many publishers is Harry Briggs.
His deep understanding of the material
is highly uncommon. His supportiveness
is both helpful and encouraging. And the
quality of the final product in terms of physical layout is always superior.
Given the choice, I always choose to work with Harry before anyone else.”
—Monty Van Wart, CSU
San Bernardino and Visiting Professor, University of Hong Kong
(author of Dynamics of Leadership in Public Service and
Leadership in Public Organizations) “We would highly recommend Harry Briggs to any potential
author. Harry helped guide our advertising texts which included: Advertising
Media Planning: A Brand Management Approach, Advertising Account Planning:
Planning and Managing an IMC Campaign and Advertising and Public Relations Research. All became leaders in
their respective niche due to Harry’s support.
Harry will give you the personal support you need coupled with a wealth
of marketplace knowledge. He is simply the best editor in the business.” —Larry Kelley (University of Houston), Donald Jugenheimer, and Kim Sheehan (University of Oregon)
"In our work with Harry Briggs over many years (and
several books), we have found him to be the consummate publications professional.
He knows the world of academic books and journals inside-out, he is skillful in
bringing out the best in authors and their work, and he does it all with grace,
style, finesse, and good-natured diplomacy. You'll enjoy working with him and
especially enjoy the results of your collaboration." —Robert and Janet Denhardt, both at the University of
Southern California (authors of The New Public Service)
"Decades of productive collaborations with Harry Briggs have
convinced me that he is clearly the leading publisher in our field. I have had
the advantages of his sound advice, scholarly integrity, imaginative
initiatives and visionary marketing. His mentoring has been essential is
helping me build an internationally recognized journal; a leading international
textbook that is being translated into several languages; and an ambitious
series of practitioner-oriented handbooks. I owe a great deal to his
confidence in my proposals and his competence in bringing them to fruition.
Scores of authors are equally appreciative. His new venture, Melvin and
Leigh--out in front of public concerns about the costs of higher education—is
clearly the first publisher to consider as a strategic partner for a successful
text." —Marc Holzer, Rutgers University-Newark (Editor in Chief, Public Performance and
Management Review; Co-author, Public Administration: An Introduction; Series
Editor, Public Solutions Handbooks)
___________________________ Melvin & Leigh, Publishers | | | | |
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