Something old is new again

Today I was asked to consider becoming part of an editorial review board for ICS Publications.

   ICS Publications is the publishing house of the Institute of Carmelite Studies, and a not-for-profit ministry of the Washington Province of Discalced Carmelite Friars, a Roman Catholic religious community to which the members of the Institute belong. We specialize in works on the history and spirituality of Carmel, sharing the riches of the Carmelite tradition with English-language audiences.
      We are best known for our translations of Carmelite classics. Our editions of the works of Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, Lawrence of the Resurrection, Thérèse of Lisieux, Elizabeth of the Trinity, and Edith Stein - all with ample notes and explanatory materials, and translated whenever possible from the critical texts - are widely hailed for their accuracy and readability. We are also the publishers of the "Carmelite Studies" series, whose volumes have contained important articles on Carmelite subjects by such authors as Hans Urs von Balthasar, Susan Muto, Ph.D., Kevin Culligan, OCD, Roland Murphy, O.Carm., Ann and Barry Ulanov, and Pope John Paul II.
      In addition, we publish popular and scholarly works on other Carmelite figures and themes: e.g., Elijah, the Carmelite Martyrs of Compiègne, Père Jacques, and the place of "lectio" and "discernment of spirits" in the Carmelite tradition.

When I was with the Carmelites, I was a Member of the Institute of Carmelite Studies and for a while worked for ICS Publications. Three articles that I translated appeared in some of their volumes.As a member of the editorial review board, I would help evaluate manuscripts they are considering for publication and perhaps do some (minor) editing. I am pleased to be asked to do this. And I also appreciate that there is a stipend. Every little bit helps!

And I have to admit I dropped a hint to the new Editorial Director about my own books. Not that ICS Pubs would be likely to publish them. They have already published most of what is contained in the Gratian volume and they do not publish fiction, so the mystery is out. I hope, however, that she will purchase at least one for herself.

There is a quote, attributed to Patton among others: "Never pass up the opportunity to use the bathroom." When you are a writer, "Never pass up an opportunity to sell a book."