Contemporary Authors
Biographical reference work published by Gale Cengage
Country | United States |
---|---|
Language | English |
Discipline | Reference |
Publisher | Gale |
Published | 1962 - present |
Contemporary Authors is a reference work that has been published by Gale since 1962. The work provides short biographies and bibliographies of contemporary and near-contemporary writers and is a major source of information on over 116,000 living and deceased authors from around the world. [1] The work is a standard in libraries and has been honored by the American Library Association as a distinguished reference title. [2]
Content
Entries in Contemporary Authors consist of a biography of the writer and bibliographies of their work and secondary sources covering it. [3] Along with featuring biographies of fiction and nonfiction writers, Contemporary Authors also includes authors who write for newspapers, magazines, motion pictures, TV, and theater. [4]
Writing need not be a person's primary occupation for them to be covered in Contemporary Authors ; Martin Luther King Jr. and Bear Bryant have entries even though they are not mainly known as writers. [5] The series focuses on people who have published in English, but sometimes includes writers in other languages whose works have been translated. [6] Contemporary Authors is not selective about whom it includes. [7] However, according to Gale, authors whose works have been published only by vanity presses are generally excluded. [7]
Most biographical data published in Contemporary Authors comes from questionnaire responses. [8] Its staff may also conduct independent research if an entry's subject does not respond to questions. [9] Some entries contain a "Sidelights" section where writers can offer personal commentary on their life or work. [10]
Publication
The first edition of Contemporary Authors was released in 1962 [11] [12] and has since become a standard in libraries. [2] As of 1990, it was published twice per year. [3]
Contemporary Authors has been published in five different series, each assigned its own entry in the International Standard Serial Number database: the original series, not otherwise named; first revision; new revision; permanent; and autobiography series. [8] Some of its iterations group multiple volumes into a single printed book. [12] As of 2002, it was published both in print and on CD-ROM. [6]
Gale also provides an online version of Contemporary Authors , which includes updates to previously published biographies, expanded entries, award listings, and other information. [13] The online entries are also cross-referenced to other Gale online works, such as the Dictionary of Literary Biography. [14]
Reception
In 1985, American Library Association named Contemporary Authors one of the "most distinguished reference titles" of the preceding 25 years. [2]
References
- ↑ Guide to Reference in Essential General Reference and Library Science Sources edited by Jo Bell Whitlatch and Susan E. Searing, American Library Association, 2014.
- 1 2 3 Nicholas, Margaret Irby (1994). Handbook of Reference Sources and Services for Small and Medium-Sized Libraries . Texas State Library. p. 40 . ISBN 9780788131431 . ERIC ED377845.
- 1 2 Marcuse, Michael J. (1990). A Reference Guide for English Studies . University of California Press . p. 364 . ISBN 0-520-05161-0 . OCLC 14241434 .
- ↑ The Research Process Books & Beyond by Myrtle S. Bolner and Gayle A. Poirier, Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 2004, page 320.
- ↑ Bopp, Richard E.; Smith, Linda C., eds. (1991). Reference and Information Services: An Introduction . Libraries Unlimited. pp. 309–310 . ISBN 0-87287-788-4 . OCLC 23383904 .
- 1 2 Harner, James L. (2002). Literary Research Guide: An Annotated Listing of Reference Sources in English Literary Studies (4th ed.). Modern Language Association . pp. 83–84 . ISBN 0-87352-982-0 . OCLC 48691433 .
- 1 2 Olevnik, Peter P. (1993). American Higher Education: A Guide to Reference Sources . Greenwood Publishing Group . p. 168 . ISBN 0-313-27749-4 . OCLC 28181051 .
- 1 2 Jones, Joseph (2005). Reference Sources for Canadian Literary Studies . Toronto: University of Toronto Press . pp. 230–231 . ISBN 0-8020-8740-X . OCLC 55146976 .
- ↑ Wick, Robert L.; Mood, Terry Ann, eds. (1998). ARBA Guide to Biographical Resources, 1986–1997 . Libraries Unlimited. p. 229 . ISBN 0-585-13333-6 . OCLC 44959776 .
- ↑ "Recent Books" . The Library . 5th series. 33 (1): 69–70. March 1978. ISSN 0024-2160 .
- ↑ Katz, William A. (1978). Introduction to Reference Work . Vol. 1 (3d ed.). McGraw-Hill. pp. 259–260 . ISBN 0-07-033331-9 . OCLC 3275523 .
- 1 2 Gates, Jean Key (1989). Guide to the Use of Libraries and Information Sources (6th ed.). McGraw-Hill. p. 285 . ISBN 0-07-022999-6 . OCLC 17841990 .
- ↑ Reference Sources for Small and Medium-Sized Libraries edited by Jack O'Gorman, American Library Association, 2014, page 209.
- ↑ Librarian's Guide to Online Searching: Cultivating Database Skills for Research and Instruction, 5th Edition by Christopher C. Brown and Suzanne S. Bell, ABC-CLIO, 2018, page 108.