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Biology professor Judi Nath used her experience studying foreign language to successfully author her first textbook, Using Medical Terminology: A Practical Approach, published by Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins in 2006. She is currently working on the second edition. When Nath wrote Using Medical Terminology, there were no other textbooks on the market that utilized the foreign language/total immersion approach to teaching medical terminology. The book’s purpose, she said, is to teach medical terminology within the context of applied anatomy and physiology. “I realized that learning the language of medicine and anatomy was equivalent to learning a foreign language, so I wrote the book using the techniques that a foreign language teacher would utilize,” Nath said. “I was well-equipped to do this, because in addition to studying biology in both my undergraduate and graduate programs, I also majored in German. In fact, I studied at the University of Salzburg in Austria and taught high school German for one year before returning to graduate school to earn my doctorate.” She earned her doctorate at the University of Toledo, and her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Bowling Green State University. For the past 17 years, Nath has been a professor in the biology and health science department at Lourdes College in Sylvania, Ohio. Her first textbook was born out of her anatomy and physiology lecture notes. “My students were struggling with the vocabulary associated with science, so I addressed the issue by beginning each lecture with an introduction to medical roots, prefixes, suffixes, and combining forms, which were applicable to the lecture and textbook topics,” Nath said. “My textbook is geared for students who have no background in medical terminology or health science.” Using Medical Terminology can be studied across disciplines in any arena in which medical terms are found. “It effectively teaches students by using an interactive immersion approach to learn the language of medicine, anatomy, and physiology,” Nath said. When writing her first textbook, Nath brought considerable experience reviewing textbooks and writing the ancillary materials that accompanied author Ric Martini’s suite of anatomy and physiology textbooks. Nath has worked in various capacities with Martini for more than a decade, most recently as a co-author. “Furthermore, my professional contacts within the publishing industry assisted in shaping my proposal and steering me toward an appropriate publisher,” Nath said. “David Brake, president of Content Connections and former editor at Prentice Hall, along with Martini, initially guided me through the process. It took nearly three years to complete the writing, reviewing, and revising process. During the second year of working on Using Medical Terminology, I was on a year-long sabbatical from Lourdes College.” While on sabbatical, Nath treated writing as if it were a full-time job from her home. “That is, I got up every morning and was at the computer and writing desk by 8 a.m. or sooner every day,” Nath said. “I enjoy writing in the comfort of my home office. In fact, it is the only place where I can create and work uninterrupted.” Today Nath uses the textbook in her own classes, and students shape every edition of each textbook that she authors. “It should also be noted that all royalties received from textbooks sold to my students are willingly donated back to Lourdes College,” she said. “I consider it unethical to do otherwise.” In addition to Using Medical Terminology, she is also the co-author of Martini’s Fundamentals of Anatomy and Physiology. Published by Pearson Benjamin Cummings, the eighth edition (which has been available since January 2008 but has a copyright date of 2009) is the first that she co-authored. Plans are under way for her to co-author future editions as well. “In my relatively brief history within the publishing arena, I now realize that once the textbooks are in continuous revision cycles, authoring can be likened to a giant conveyor belt. However, I’m honestly living my dream – to be a teaching professor who writes books,” said Nath, who is an award-winning teacher. She received the Lourdes College Faculty Excellence Award in 1997. “It is an honor to receive such an award, because both students and faculty nominate instructors. Public recognition of a job well done is rewarding." Nath describes Martini as an “extraordinary mentor.” It’s important for an author to have a mentor, she said, because it diminishes the learning curve. At the same time, it lessens the mistakes of inexperience. “I have learned that for a book to sell, you need the publisher, marketing department and sales force behind you 100 percent,” Nath said. “Bookshelves are replete with mediocre texts, while there are plenty of excellent texts that never reach publication. Another valuable lesson is to always write with a non-fatigued mind.” New authors should not underestimate the amount of time involved in writing and/or revising a textbook, Nath said. “Working on a book is the equivalent to having another entity living in the house – it is like a behemoth that just will not go away,” she said. “I would also advise that there must also be an incredible amount of passion for both the topic and for the writing process itself.” Yet, she also advises other authors to schedule one day off every week. “For many years, I did not take a vacation and worked every day – including holidays,” she said. “I finally realized that how I spent my days was, obviously, how I lived my life, and I really was not getting a break from researching, writing, or faculty obligations.” Nath resides on the southern shore of Lake Erie in Sandusky, Ohio, with her husband, Mike, and their two dogs, Gabbi, a German Shepherd, and Bear, a Rottweiler. They truly enjoy spending time engaged in outdoor activities with their dogs; and without the canines, they like to bicycle, especially around Kelley’s Island. Kim Seidel is a freelance writer based in Onalaska, Wis. Interested in submitting
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