Open access for books
An open access book or monograph is a scholarly book that is freely available online. It is typically published under a Creative Commons licence that allows users to read, download, share and sometimes even remix or adapt the content. Like with journal articles, there are several different ways to publish books and/or book chapters openly: repository (Green) OA, community-controlled (diamond) OA, and publisher (gold) OA.
In contrast to traditional academic publishing, where books are often sold through publishers or bookstores, open access books are published with the goal of making research more accessible to a global audience.
Pathways to open access for books
Like journal articles, open access to books can be achieved through several different pathways.
Publisher (gold) open access
Like gold open access journals, the publisher might charge a fee known as a book publishing charge (BPC) to cover the costs of publishing the book openly on the publisher’s platform. Some publishers also offer delayed open access with a discounted BPC. For example, the publisher may discount the BPC by 50% two years after publication (as they have had two years to sell the book to cover the costs of publication).
Note
There is no central funding available at Deakin or the Library for the payment of BPCs, and they are not currently covered by any of our open access Read & Publish agreements. However, Faculties, Schools, or Institutes may agree to fund BPCs in certain situations. You might also be able to use research funding to pay open access fees.
Community-controlled (diamond) open access
If the publisher doesn’t charge fees to the author or reader, it might be known as a community-controlled or diamond book publisher. Some diamond book publishers are supported by grants, donations, sales of print copies or library membership
Repository (green) open access
This is when a version of the book (or chapter) – often the author’s accepted manuscript (AM) – is made openly accessible from a repository, such as DRO at Deakin. This is free for the author but might be subject to an embargo (a delay before it is allowed to be accessed).
Alert
It's important for authors to be aware of the terms of their publishing agreements before signing. Some publishers may only allow a chapter to be open access in a repository, not the whole book.
OA Books Toolkit
To learn more on publishing open access books check out the OA Books Toolkit. Hosted by OAPEN, this is a global and multi-stakeholder initiative toolkit designed to support publishers, authors and other stakeholders in the open access book publishing process. It provides practical guidance, tools and information on navigating the complexities of open access for books.
Open access and open education
Open access and open education are closely linked through their shared commitment to removing barriers to ensure that both scholarly information and educational materials are accessible to all.
Open access makes research outputs freely available. Open educational practice, such as Open Educational Resources (OER), applies that openness in teaching and learning by using, adapting, and co-creating resources.
