Day 2 at AHA

 On day two of the AHA/ASCH conferences, I attended two sessions. The first was entitled "Funding Your Research," from 10:30am to 12:00pm. The session was chaired by Laura Isabel Serna of the University of Southern California, and included two other panelists, Deborah Harkness of the University of Southern California, and Raul Ramos of the University of Houston.

Deborah Harkness and Laura Isabel Serna offered the following advice to graduate students and junior faculty:

• Start by applying for small grants
• Once earning one-month grants at specific archives, then try for three-month grants before attempting to apply for long-term NEH-sponsored fellowships
• Diversify your applications

Raul  Ramos followed up with some additional helpful hints:

• Mine "acknowledgement" sections in books for potential grants
• Make sure you read and follow the application requirements carefully
• When possible, review successful applications, noting the style and content
• Ask your colleagues to look over your application
• Attend your university's grant-writing seminars

While much of this advice may fall under the category of common sense, this panel reminded me of how important it is do as many things right as possible when applying for competitive grants.

The second session I attended was entitled "The Private Lives and Social Worlds of Eighteenth-Century Religious Women," from 2:30pm to 4:30pm. Bruce Hindmarsh of Regent College chaired the session and panelists included Phyllis Mack of Rutgers, Joanna Cruickshank of Deakin University, and Cindy Aalders, a PhD student at Lincoln College, Oxford.

This was an excellent session that drew from the expertise of many Methodist scholars in the room, including Dick Heitzenrater. I felt humbled as I reflected on my own knowledge of Methodism when compared to these distinguished scholars. Interestingly, all three panelists seemed to confirm that diary writing, from the perspective of many eighteenth-century women, was not a private affair. Rather, diaries were intended to be passed along to others within certain circles, and sometimes meant to be published. While it is known that John Wesley and George Whitefield intended that their diaries should be published, it has been assumed by many historians that women penned their thoughts in solitary confinement, intending to use their personal narratives for individualistic spiritual growth.

Now it's time to reflect on these sessions over more great New Orleans food!

First Day at AHA

Today, I arrived at New Orleans for the first day of the annual AHA/ASCH conferences.

After making my way to the hotel and settling in, I perused the book exhibit for an hour or so. I was surprised that Eerdmans did not reserve a booth this year. Eventually, I made my way to the NYU Press booth where I bought Ava Chamberlain's The Notorious Elizabeth Tuttle: Marriage, Murder, and Madness in the Family of Jonathan Edwards, recalling Doug Sweeney's review of it on the JEC blog. I also talked myself into buying David Swartz's The Moral Minority: The Evangelical Left in an Age of Conservativism after finding out from the UPenn Press representative that I could purchase the display copy at half the price provided that I wait until Saturday evening to pick it up. After visiting the book exhibit, I meandered down Bourbon Street where I enjoyed a bowl of delicious Gumbo.

Later that evening I attended a panel chaired by Bill Cronon (the current president of the AHA) on "The Public Practice of History in and for a Digital Age." This was an interesting session in which five other panelists spoke about the growing pains of the history profession (and publishing industry) in the current digital age.

Despite the rising popularity of e-books, I continue to purchase all my texts in print form. In fact, I purposely don't own a tablet or e-reader. I want to own physical books that I can see the cover, hold in my hands as I read, and, most importantly, highlight thoughout. This is how I learn, and I hope to continue this practice regardless of where the publishing industry is headed. That being said, I appreciated some of the innovative perspectives from the panelists about the ways that students learn today (utilizing Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube, for instance), and suggestions for how historians should write in this fast-pace environment.

I look forward to attending some of the ASCH sessions tomorrow, and eating more great food!