McFarland & Company, Inc., is an American independent book publisher based in Jefferson, North Carolina, that specializes in academic and reference works, as well as general-interest adult nonfiction. Its president is Rhonda Herman. Its current Editor-in-Chief is Steve Wilson. Its former president and current President Emeritus is Robert Franklin, who founded the company in 1979. [2][3] McFarland employs a staff of about 50, and as of 2019[update] had published 7,800 titles.[3][4] McFarland's initial print runs average 600 copies per book.[5]
Subject matter
McFarland & Company focuses mainly on selling to libraries. It also utilizes direct mailing to connect with enthusiasts in niche categories.[6] The company is known for its sports literature, especially baseball history, as well as books about chess, military history, and film.[7][8] In 2007, the Mountain Times wrote that McFarland publishes about 275 scholarly monographs and reference book titles a year;[4][9] Robert Lee Brewer reported in 2015 that the number is about 350.[10]
Publications
Notable book series
The following book series are among those published by McFarland & Company:
"Contributions to Zombie Studies" (edited by Kyle William Bishop)[11]
"Critical Explorations in Science Fiction and Fantasy" (edited by C. W. Sullivan III and Donald Palumbo)[12]
Scholarly journals
The following academic journals are published by McFarland & Company:
Base Ball: A Journal of the Early Game – focuses on "baseball's early history, from its protoball roots to 1920"[13]
Black Ball: A Journal of the Negro Leagues – focuses on "all subjects related to black baseball, including the Negro major and minor leagues, and pre–Negro league play"[13]
Clues: A Journal of Detection – focuses on "all aspects of mystery and detective material in print, television and movies"[13]
^Slide, Anthony (2010). "A Publishing Phenomenon that Begins and Ends with Scarecrow Press". Film History. 22 (3): 300–301. doi:10.2979/fil.2010.22.3.298. JSTOR10.2979/fil.2010.22.3.298. S2CID192112592. The initial print run for a book in the Filmmakers series, and, for that matter, most if not all Scarecrow titles, was six hundred copies. A similar print run has been the norm at McFarland and Greenwood Press.
^Slide, Anthony (2010). "A Publishing Phenomenon that Begins and Ends with Scarecrow Press". Film History. 22 (3): 304. doi:10.2979/fil.2010.22.3.298. JSTOR10.2979/fil.2010.22.3.298. S2CID192112592. McFarland [...] books were primarily aimed at the library market. It was a mail order publisher with no interest in bookstore sales, but unlike its major competitor, virtually from the start all of its books were typeset.
^Slide, Anthony (2010). "A Publishing Phenomenon that Begins and Ends with Scarecrow Press". Film History. 22 (3): 305. doi:10.2979/fil.2010.22.3.298. JSTOR10.2979/fil.2010.22.3.298. S2CID192112592. Most film scholars, students and buffs would assume that McFarland's main thrust has been towards film book Publishing [but] it is the largest publisher of military memoirs and baseball-oriented titles. It is also rich in books on women's, African-American, and gender studies, on U.S. history, and is proud of its automotive line. It also boasts of being the most prestigious publisher of historical and reference books on chess.
