Hi, I am John Rodzvilla.
I teach. I write. I consult.
What can we do together?

Teaching Experience

Assistant Professor of Digital Publishing, Emerson College (since September 2020).

Online Instructor, Online MFA in Popular Fiction Writing and Publishing, Emerson College (since 2016).

Senior Electronic-Publisher-in-Residence, Emerson College (2013–2020).

Electronic-Publisher-in-Residence, Emerson College (2009–2013).

Academic Leadership Experience

Graduate Program Director, Online MFA in Popular Fiction Writing and Publishing, Emerson College (Fall 2019).

Program Director, Certificate in Digital Content Management (online), Emerson College (since 2017).

Graduate Program Director, MA in Writing and Publishing, Emerson College (2016–2020).

Graduate Program Director, Online MFA in Popular Fiction Writing and Publishing, Emerson College (2015–2016).

Co-Director, Business of Creative Enterprises, Emerson College (Fall 2015).

Interim Graduate Program Director, Emerson College (2011–2015).

Other Professional Experience

Lead Editor, The Independent: A Magazine for Video and Filmmakers (since 2020).

Peer Reviewer, Digital Humanities Quarterly (since 2014).

Book Reviewer, Publishing Research Quarterly (since 2014).

Book Reviewer, Choice Magazine (since 2009).

Book Reviewer, Library Journal (since 2009).

Book Reviewer, Journal of Web Librarianship (since 2009).

Independent Publishing Consultant (since 2007)

Expert Witness for Fenwick & West, LLP (January–November 2023).

Expert Witness for Apress v. App Press, WilmerHale (2013).

E-Publishing Consultant, Ploughshares, (2010–2017).

Library Assistant, Simmons College, (2007–2009).

Subsidiary Rights Coordinator/Operations Manager, Perseus Book Group (2003–2007).

Assistant Managing Editor, Perseus Publishing, (2001–2003).

Grants and Awards

Faculty Advancement Fund Grant proposal, “Looking Beyond the Advance: Trade Publishing and #publishingpaidme.” $7,500.

New England Book Show selection of Dressing Room Stories as a top reflowable ebook. 2016.

Research Assistant Grant, Emerson College, 2014, $2,000.

Information Literacy Collective, Emerson College, 2011, $1,000.

Simmons Staff Development Grant, Simmons College, 2009, $718.

Books

Project Management for Book Publishing. Routledge Press, 2024.

Editor of We’ve Got Blog: How Weblogs Are Changing Our Culture. Perseus Books Group, 2002.

Peer-Reviewed Chapters

“The Digital Architexture of E-readers: How the Internet of Things Adds Layers of Meaning to Text”in Der Text und seine (Re)Produktion, Edited by: Niklas Fröhlich , Bastian Politycki , Dirk Schäfer and Annkathrin Sonder. Volume 55 in the series editio /Beihefte, 2023.

“General Interest Titles,” Magazines for Libraries, 19th Edition, December 2010.

Peer-Reviewed Articles

“What Outfit Shall the Protagonist Wear?: New Models of Revenue Creation in Online Fiction Platforms.” Logos. Vol. 34, Number 2 (2023).

“The Hollowed-Out Bookstore: Amazon’s Promotion of Titles of ‘Empty Discourses’ in Their Online Bookstore.” AmLit, Vol. 3, Number 1 (2023).

“Millions of Minutes a Month: How Fiction Apps Are Changing the Way We Read.” PopMec Special issue, “New Fiction Formats & Age Old Narratives: Understanding Creative Modes of Popular Culture in the Digital Age. June 2021.

“New Title Tweets”, Computers in Libraries, Vol. 30, Number 5, June 2010.

“The Portable e-Book”, USKG Serials, November 2009.

Articles

“Smart Money: 23 Personal Finance Resources,” Library Journal, September 20, 2021.

Reprint of “Modern Book Publishing: Websites for the Trade.” Journal of Scholarly Publishing, Vol. 46, Number 2, January 2015.

“Modern Book Publishing: Websites for the Trade.” Choice Magazine, Vol. 51, Number 12, August 2014.

Digital & Print Designs, including Ebook Creation

Rosie’s Place Annual Collection of Student Work, 2018–2020, 2024.

Alvin Epstein and Jonathan Fried. Dressing Room Stories, 2016.

Ken Manning, Robin Charbit, and Sandra Krot. Digital format for Invisible Power! Insight Principles, 2015.

Walter Parke. The Skull Hunters! Gutter Type Press, 2014.

Ella Hepworth Dixon. My Flirtations. Gutter Type Press, 2013.

Dan De Quille. Gold Dust: Mining Stories from the Old West. Gutter Type Press, 2012.

DeWitt Henry. Visions of a Wayne Childhood. Self-published, 2012.

Revision of design of digital format for Ploughshares Literary Journal, quarterly.

Jill Schary Robinson, editor, The Wimpole Street Writers: An Anthology. Wimpole Street Writers, 2011.

Cynthia Stockley. Wild Honey and Blue Aloes: Stories of South Africa. Gutter Type Press, 2012.

Encyclopedia Entries

“Textbooks.” In The Sage Encyclopedia of Higher Education. Ed. Marilyn J. Amey and Miriam E. David. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1,000 words, May 2020.

“History and Economics of Book Publishing.” In The International Encyclopedia of Mass Media and Society. Ed. Debra Merskin and J. Geoffrey Golson. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 3,000 words, December 2019.

“Copyright Laws.” In The International Encyclopedia of Mass Media and Society. Ed. Debra Merskin and J. Geoffrey Golson. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2,500 words, December 2019.

“Literary Property.” In The International Encyclopedia of Mass Media and Society. Ed. Debra Merskin and J. Geoffrey Golson. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 1,800 words, December 2019.

“Bill Sienkiewicz, 1995-2010.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 4. Ed. M. Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 750 words, October, 2014.

“Chester Gould, 1960-1980.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 2. Ed. M. Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 750 words, October, 2014.

“Daredevil, 1980-1995.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 3. Ed. M. Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 1,000 words, October, 2014.

“Jeph Loeb, 1995-2010.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 4. Ed. M. Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 750 words, October, 2014.

“New England Comics, 1995-2010.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 4. Ed. M. Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 500 words, October, 2014.

“‘Omaha’ the Cat Dancer, 1980-1995.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 3. Ed. M.Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 1,000 words, October, 2014.

“P. Craig Russell, 1980-1995.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 3. Ed. M.Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 750 words, October, 2014.

“Peter Bagge, 1980-1995.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 3. Ed. M.Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 500 words, October, 2014.

“Peter Bagge, 1995-2010.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 4. Ed. M.Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 500 words, October, 2014.

“Wally Wood, 1980-1995.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 3. Ed. M.Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 750 words, October, 2014.

“Zap Comix, 1960-1980.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 2. Ed. M.Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 1,000 words, October, 2014.

“Zap Comix, 1980-1995.” In Comic Through Time: An Historical Encyclopedia of Comics, Volume 3. Ed. M.Keith Booker. New York: Greenwood, 750 words, October, 2014.

International

“Beyond the Advance: American Trade Publishing and the Publishingpaidme Hashtag at the By the Book 9 Conference, Ljubljana, Slovenia, June 26–27, 2024.

“The Free-to-Read (F2R) Model of Online Fiction Platforms and How it Monetizes Serialized Fiction.” Innovations in Publishing Conference, London College of Communications, September 15, 2022.

“How Fiction Apps are Using Microtransactions to get Young Adults to Read.” By the Book 7 Conference, MSH Paris Nord, Paris, France, June 20–21, 2022.

“Dealing with Software Obsolencence in the Publishing Classroom.” By the Book 7 Conference, MSH Paris Nord, Paris, France, June 20–21, 2022.

“The Hollowed-Out Bookstore: Amazon’s Promotion of Titles of ‘Empty Discourses’ in Their Online Bookstore.” 34th European Association for American Studies Conference, Madrid, Spain, April 6–8, 2022.

“The Digital Architexture of E-readers: How the Internet of Things Adds Layers of Meaning to Text.” Der Text und Seine (Re)Produktion Conference, Bergische Universität Wuppertal, Wuppertal, Germany, September 29, 2021.

“Metadata Beyond ONIX: How Publishers can use Different Metadata Formats Throughout Their Press.” ebookcraft 2018, MaRS Discovery District Collaboration Centre, Toronto, Canada, March 18, 2019.

“New Directions in Digital Publishing.” 2016 China Digital Publications Annual Conference- Beijing International Convention Center, Beijing, China. July 19-21, 2016.

“Papercasting User Experience in Interactive Ebooks.” ebookcraft 2016, MaRS Discovery District Collaboration Centre, Toronto, Canada, March 31, 2016.

National

“Where Have All the Readers Gone? A Topology of Digital Books.” Migrations of The Book Conference, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, October 14–15, 2021.

“Beyond the Panel.” Comic Con International/Comic Con Museum Educational Series, June 2021.

“The Corruption of a Text: Looking at George Herbert’s The Temple in Digitized Repositories.” Twelfth International Conference on Books, Publishing and Libraries- Simmons College, Boston, MA. November 8-9, 2014.

“22 Panels of Influence.” part of “Comics and Form” panel. Comic Arts Conference at WonderCon, Anaheim, CA. March 30, 2013.

“Cloud Computing Demonstration for YALSA’s “Games, Gadgets, and Gurus.” American Library Association Mid-Winter Conference, Boston, MA. January 15, 2010.

“Cyber Zed Shed Webcast Series 2: Facebook, Twitter, and Sprout.” ACRL e-Learning Webcast. February 10, 2010.

“Cyber Zed Shed Webcast Series 1: Facebook, Twitter, and Sprout redux.” ACRL e-Learning Webcast. August 18, 2009.

“Content Collage: Institutional Repositories.” Computers in Libraries 2009, Crystal City, VA. April 1, 2009.

Local

“Navigating Amazon’s Publishing Process.” Hollihock Writer’s Conference, Star Store Campus, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA, August 23-29, 2019.

“Publishing and Self-Promotion.” Hollihock Writer’s Conference, Star Store Campus, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA, August 23-26, 2019.

“Building Your Author Platform Online.” Hollihock Writer’s Conference, Star Store Campus, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA, August 25-27, 2017.

“The Writing Industry.” Hollihock Writer’s Conference, Star Store Campus, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA, August 25-27, 2017.

“Traditional Publishing vs. Self-Publishing vs. Indie.” Hollihock Writer’s Conference, Star Store Campus, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA, August 26-28, 2016.

“The Road to Getting Publishing.” Hollihock Writer’s Conference, Star Store Campus, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, New Bedford, MA, August 26-28, 2016.

“Digital Disruptions: The Intersection of Libraries and Publishers in the Digital Information Age.” Opening Keynote to Bending Boundaries: Libraries as Publishers. Massachusetts Library System, Worcester, MA. April 16, 2014.

“Ebooks for Academics.” Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA. December 11, 2012.

“Metadata” and “E-book Creation.” Appazoogle’s Coding Day, Boston, MA. September 15, 2012.

“Ebooks for Independent Publishers.” New England Independent Publishers of New England’s Publishing Conference, Boxborough, MA. April 27 and 28, 2012.

“Deconstructing an E-Pub Document.” GSLIS Tech Unconference Summit, Simmons College, Boston, MA. April 22, 2010.

“Google: The Book Search, the Lawsuits and the Settlements.” Bookbuilders of Boston’s Gutenberg to Google Series, Emerson College, Boston, MA. April 20, 2010.

“E-Books: The Future of Book Publishing?” Writer’s Block, Emerson College, Boston, MA. March 17, 2010.

“Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For: Testing the Usability of Online Research Guides.” Poster Session at World Usability Day, Simmons College, Boston, MA. November 12, 2009.

“Three Stories, Copyright and Digital Content.” Keynote Address to the 2009 CET Symposium: “The Digital Scholar,” Smith College, Northampton, MA. May 4, 2009.

“Tweeting in the Library.” ACRL 14th National Conference, Seattle, WA. March 15, 2009.

“Technology in User Instruction: Using Del.icio.us, Twitter, Wikis and Blogs in the Classroom.” Simmons College, Boston, MA. April 1, 2008.

“How I Learned to Love Reading Online: A Look at E-books and E-book Readers.” Simmons College, Boston, MA. February 21, 2008.

“Get a Second Life: Virtual Worlds as a Platform for Marketing and Communications.” Boston Media Social Club, Harvard Club of Boston, Boston, MA. May 17, 2007.

Press and Interviews

“‘Sports Illustrated’ Fall Could Lead to New Sports Journalism, Says Rodzvilla” by David Ertischek, Emerson Today, January 2024.

“Digital Storytelling and Fiction Apps: Rethink the Way We Create, Read, and Publish,” Klopotek Publishing Radio podcast, January 2022.

“Independent Minds: Students Across Majors Take Over Film Publication,” Emerson Today, September 2020.

“Graduate Publishing Program Update, 2020” by Judith Rosen, Publishers Weekly, December 18, 2020.

“Graduate Publishing Program Update, 2019: PW’s Annual Survey Compares the Big Five” by Liz Hartman, Publishers Weekly, December 13, 2019.

“Literary Gold: The Magic of Emerson’s Writing, Literature and Publishing Department” by Sarah Teczar and Morgan Viehman, Expression, Summer 2019.

“Episode 5. How Metadata Boosts Your Employability and Tips for Metadata Beginners,” Learning Metadata for Publishing podcast, April 2019.

“Graduate Publishing Program Update, 2018: What’s New on Campus” by Liz Hartman, Publishers Weekly, December 14, 2018.

“Graduate Publishing Program Update, 2017: Schools Continue to Adapt to Meet Marketplace Changes” by Dennis Abrams, Publishers Weekly, December 15, 2017.

“Graduate Publishing Program Update, 2016: What’s New, What’s the Norm, and What Distinguishes Top Graduate Publishing Programs” by Liz Hartman, Publishers Weekly, December 2, 2016.

“Publishing Graduate Programs, 2015: Digital is the New Normal” by Gibson Fay-LeBlanc, Publishers Weekly, December 4, 2015.

“Publishing Graduate Programs, 2015: Digital Is the New Normal” by Gibson Fay-LeBlanc, Publishers Weekly, December 4, 2015.

“Publishing Masters Programs Move Out of the Classroom: Internships and Digital Experience” by Claire Swanson, Publishers Weekly, December 13, 2013.

“Episode 94. John Rodzvilla of Emerson College,” eBook Ninjas podcast, January 2013.

“Preparing for the Future: Education Publishing Program up Digital Offerings, But Keep an Eye On the Basics, Too” by Gabe Habash, Publishers Weekly, December 17, 2012.

“Earning More Than an ‘A’: Master’s Programs Fill the Needs for a More Complex Industry” by Gabe Habash, Publishers Weekly, November 18, 2011.

Creative Work—Prose

“The Phoenix Princess Defense,” Savage Planets, Volume 2, issue 4, October 2022.

“Quarterly Report on Trans-Dimensional Holdings,” Planet Scumm, Issue 5, Fall 2018.

“Five Minutes with You,” Black Market Re-view, Spring 2018.

“Andy’s Chest,” The Literary Hatchet, Special Issue 18, August 2017.

“The Bus Ride,” Salon Style anthology from New Lit Salon Press, November 2014.

“Notes On the Video Game Version of My Next Novel,” Featured Article, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, August 16, 2011.

Creative Work—Poetry

“Yarn Poem 204 (Golowin),” Scavengers 1.3, forthcoming.

“Yarn Poem 188 (Found Years),” Scavengers 1.3, forthcoming.

“Urban Legend, “ Hellbender Magazine,metapophisis, 2024.

“to the poet who carried a fountain pen,” Livnia Press, No. 7, Winter 2023.

“Low-Voiced Prayer” Uppagus, issue 55, February 2023.

“Message from Cuba,” Moria Literary Magazine, issue 10, Fall 2022.

“Prose Poem 32 (Finger, Hands, and Arm)” in Experimental Anthology, edited by Peter Campion. Unbound Edition Press, October 2022.

“Rosewater Mist,” Feed Literary Magazine, issue 3.4, October 2022.

“The Night a Snake Turned into a Snake,” Provenance Journal, Issue 4.

“Astronomy Two Ways,” Nightingale and Sparrow, Spring 2022.

“He Talked of Hungry,” Suprepresent, Volume 2, number 3, Summer 2022.

“In Kid Gloves,” Suprepresent, Volume 2, number 3, Summer 2022.

“Grass Widow,” Oxford Magazine.

“To Be Near Them,” Book Of Matches.

“Prose Poem 23 (When Love is Taken From Me),” Straylight Online, September 29, 2021.

Yarn Poem 11 (Papers on the Table),” Street Cake, issue 73, June 2021.

“Prose Poem 23 (make me whir),” Harpy Hybrid Journal.

“Port O’Connor,” Big Windows Review, April 23, 2021.

“Poem 15,” Hypnopomp, December 5, 2020.

“Blue Jay Jewel Box,” Hypnopomp, December 5, 2020.

“Yarn Poem 218: Reflect,” Grub Street Literary Magazine, Volume 70, 2020.

“The First Twenty Five,” Little Dog Poetry, Volume 1, Issue 3, Summer 2019.

“this picture taken without a flash,” Tiny Flames’ Firestarters, December 11, 2018.

“Forty One Pots,” Prelude, Issue 4, 2018.

“Story,” Scintilla, Issue 11, 2018.

“Recent Virgin,” Magnolia Review, Vol. 4, Issue 1, February 2018.

“A Great Shout,” Magnolia Review, Vol. 4, Issue 1, February 2018.

“Curse the Sacred,” Magnolia Review, Vol. 4, Issue 1, February 2018.

“From the Desk of…,” Magnolia Review, Vol. 4, Issue 1, February 2018.

“His Fake Castle,” Magnolia Review, Vol. 4, Issue 1, February 2018.

“Convent of the Capuchins,” Magnolia Review, Vol. 4, Issue 1, February 2018.

“Epitaph,” MUSH/MUM, Vol. 5, Winter 2018.

“Sugar Moon,” MUSH/MUM, Vol. 5, Winter 2018.

“Molten Prayer,” Soft Cartel, January 17, 2018.

“Booneville,” Soft Cartel, January 17, 2018.

“Ripples in the Lake,” Soft Cartel, January 17, 2018.

“Then Bring it Double (12 & 35),” Really System, Issue 13, Winter 2017.

“Tales from Legal Days,” Alexandria Quarterly, Vol. 3, Spring, May 2017.

“within one of these cloud banks,” Noble/Gas Qtrly, Vol. 203, Number 3, 2016.

“Moritura Puella,” Noble/Gas Qtrly, Vol. 203, Number 3, 2016.

“Four Visual Poems,” gorse, Number 7, December 2016.

“Music for a Carnival,” Origins Journal, Vol. 2, Number 1, Spring 2015.

“Prose Poem #1: An Extraordinary Instance of Restoration,” decomP, January 2015.

“Untitled (line 12),” SmokeLong Quarterly issue 46, December 15, 2014.

“3 Prose Poems,” Gone Lawn issue 14, Spring 2014.

“This dress checks your movements,” featured poem, Verbatim Found Poetry, September 23, 2013.

“3 Prose Poems,” BadRobotPoetry, July 5, 2013.

“5 Untitled Poem Collages,” Harvard Review, issue 43, Winter 2012.

Department Service

Judge for Popular Fiction MFA Novel Pitch award, AY 2023–2024.

Popular Fiction MFA faculty search, AY 2022–2023.

Chair for WLP Chair Renewal, AY 2021–2022.

Advisor, Redivider, Emerson College, AY 2021–2022, AY 2022–2023.

Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, Emerson College, AY 2021–2022.

Chair for WLP Chair Search, 2019.

Manager, Pub Lab, 2018–Present.

Applications Reader, Certificate in Digital Content Management (online), 2017–2023.

Thesis Reader, Online MFA in Popular Fiction Writing and Publishing, 2015–Present.

Applications Reader, Online MFA in Popular Fiction Writing and Publishing, 2015–Present.

Chair of the Online MFA Program Committee, 2014–2015.

Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, Emerson College, 2012-2014.

Organizer, Bookbuilders of Boston Scholarship, Emerson College, 2011–2020.

Thesis Advisor and Reader, MA in Publishing and Writing, 2010–Present.

Applications Reader, MA in Publishing and Writing, 2010–Present.

College-Wide Service

Faculty Reviewer for Transformational Leaders Graduate Fellowship, AY 2023–2024.

Vice-Chair, Emerson Faculty Assembly, AY 2022–2023.

Interior Designer for the 2022 Emerson College New England Commission of Higher Education Self-Study, Summer 2022.

President and Provost’s Council, Emerson College, AY 2021–2022.

Designer of Future of Emerson Report, Summer 2021.

Future of Emerson Committee, AY 2020–2021.

Facilitator for Iwasaki Library Website Card Sort, Spring 2020.

Search Committee Member for Business of Creative Enterprise Program Director, Emerson College, 2017.

Emerson Liaison, “Avenues of Access” reading, Emerson College, 2013.

Advisor, Artful Comics, Emerson College, 2012-2015.

Presenter, Information Literacy Collective, Emerson College, 2012, 2013, and 2014.

Judge, The Evvy Awards, Emerson College, 2012 & 2013.

Graduate Curriculum Committee, Emerson College, 2011–2012.

Advisor, Undergraduates for Publishing, Emerson College, 2011–2012.

NEASC Committee, Section 8, Physical & Technological Resources, Emerson College. 2011–2012.

Program Development

Master’s Degree in Business of Creative Enterprise Development Committee, AY 2020–2021.

Online Certificate in Digital Content Management, AY 2017–2018.

4+1 BA/MA in Publishing and Writing, AY 2016–2017.

BA in Writing, Literature and Publishing, Publishing Concentration, AY 2016–2017.

Online MFA in Popular Fiction Writing and Publishing, AY 2014–2015.

BA in Business of Creative Enterprises, AY 2013–20214.

Professional Service

Judge for New England Book Show, January 21, 2020.

Judge for New England Publishing Collaboration Awards (NEPCo), October 21, 2018.

Bookbuilders of Boston Education Committee, 2015–Present.

Co-Creator of New England Publishing Collaboration Awards (NEPCo), October 21, 2015.

Board of Directors, Bookbuilders of Boston, 2012–2015.