On The Power of Story in Research

One of the values I have really tried to live out as a scholar is extending the knowledge and information contained in my scholarship as much as possible. I don’t mean salami scholarship that slices it thin in as many pieces as possible but rather sharing the work in presentation, publication, and modalities that hopefully reach new audiences.

That’s why I am so excited about my forthcoming book: Sex Work on Campus Stories. This book, part comic, part graphic novel, takes the powerful stories from the Sex Work on Campus monograph and presents them with gorgeous illustrations.

In qualitative research we are required to protect our collaborators (participants) and their privacy which is important. Due to this readers never get to see them and unless they have big imaginations may struggle to truly visualize their experiences. And for some visualization is a precursor to empathy-building. With hypermarginalized experiences and groups, such a modality can provide a fresh perspective and affective power to the stories.

I had the pleasure to work with a talented storyboard artist to bring the stories of these students to life and I’m so excited. My other hope is that college instructors who teach undergraduate students might use the text as a teaching and learning tool. The OG text is great for graduate students, practitioners, and institutional leaders but may not be undergrad friendly. This version would be a great introduction for undergraduate and graduate students in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Sociology, Higher Education, Student Affairs, and more.

This resource would also be great for community organizers, mobilizers, policy makers and harm reduction practitioners. The book will be released on September 14th and will be available in a paperback and ebook (GoogleBooks, Kobo, and Kindle).

I’m also thinking of developing a free discussion and facilitation guide for instructors who decide to use it. I’m also open to visiting with courses and students to discuss the text!

The ebook of the full research monograph Sex Work on Campus is still available for FREE for anyone wanting to engage that text with paperback and hardback available for purchase: https://www.routledge.com/.../Stewart/p/book/9781032046532

Stay tuned for updates!