Panel: New Publications
Expanding Micronesia’s Literary Canon Through Community-Based Publishing
By Victoria-Lola M. Leon Guerrero
Managing Editor, University of Guam Press
Abstract: Since its revival in 2015, the University of Guam Press has greatly expanded the number and types of books in the literary canon about the Mariana Islands. The Press has an open call for manuscripts and all submissions are reviewed by a panel of subject and genre specific experts. The Press also partners with academic programs, other institutions and community organizations on book projects and seeks out grant funding for publications that directly meet expressed community needs. At the heart of these efforts is a mission to advance regional scholarship, develop cultural literacy, and increase accessibility to knowledge about the region by providing high-quality publishing services. As a result, the Press continues to publish successful books while also supporting a growing writing community through writing workshops and other services aimed at helping local authors achieve their publishing goals. This presentation will examine the value of these types of community-driven publishing efforts and the critical need to make books written about the Mariana Islands available to the peoples of the Mariana Islands.
The mission of the University of Guam Press (UOG Press) is to advance Micronesian scholarship, develop cultural literacy, and expand accessibility to knowledge about the western Pacific region by providing high-quality, peer-reviewed publishing services.
UOG Press publishes an array of academic and literary books and journals with a specific focus on the unique history, environment, peoples, cultures, and languages of the Micronesian Islands. As a community-driven publisher, UOG Press strives to increase the availability of exceptional scholarly and literary texts that can be used as learning resources about Guam and Micronesia for people and institutions in the region and throughout the world.
Since its revival in June 2015, UOG Press has published over 20 titles, built community partnerships across Micronesia, and won two Independent Publisher Book Awards for two publications – Lina’la’: Portraits of Life at Litekyan (2018) and CHamoru Legends: A Gathering of Stories (2019).
