"The Public Versus Publishers: How Scholars and Activists are Occupying the Library." Anthropologies 12 (March 2012).

"'Woman Up': Sisters in Crime's 25th Anniversary." Library Journal Nov. 1, 2011.

"Reading, Risk, and Reality: Undergraduates and Reading for Pleasure," with Julie Gilbert, College & Research Libraries 72.5 (September 2011): 474-495.

"Liberating Knowledge: A Librarian's Manifesto for Change." Thought & Action (Fall 2010): 83-90.

Through the Cracks. [fiction] St. Martin's Minotaur, May 2010.

"Critical Assets: Academic Libraries - A View from the Administration Building." Library Journal May 1, 2010 (cover story).

"Liberation Bibliography: Trumping Ownership With Access - A Manifesto." Library Journal April 1, 2010.

"The Glorious Study Hall: How Libraries Nurture a Life of the Mind." Library Issues 30.2 (Nov. 2009).

"The Dewey Dilemma." Library Journal October 1, 2009 (cover story).

"Publishers and Librarians: Two Cultures, One Goal." Library Journal May 1, 2009 (cover story).

"Means, Motive, Opportunity: A Small Library Launches a Big Mystery Event." Library Journal (online edition only) April 15, 2009; revised April 15, 2010.

"Skirting the 'Creepy Treehouse' Effect." AFT On Campus 28.3 (Jan/Feb 2009): 12.

"Fostering Information Literacy Through Faculty Development." Library Issues 29.4 (March 2009). 

"Aggregated Interdisciplinary Databases and the Needs of Undergraduate Researchers." With Julie Gilbert and Amy Fry. portal: Libraries and the Academy, 8.3 (July 2008): 273-292.

In the Wind. [fiction] New York: St. Martin's Minotaur, 2008; Pyhimysmurha (Finnish translation) Helsinki: Nemo, 2010.

"Learning in the Present Tense," AFT On Campus 27.5 (May/June 2008): 13. This article was reprinted in Education Digest 74.4 (December 2008):63-4.

"Curriculum Issues in Information Literacy Instruction," with Thomas W. Eland in Information Literacy Instruction Handbook. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries, 2008.

"What if You Ran Your Bookstore Like a Library?" Library Journal, April 15, 2008

"Face Value." Inside Higher Ed, February 18, 2008.

"One Book, One Campus: Exploring Common Reading Programs." E-Source for College Transitions 5.1 (Sept. 2007).

"When the Sacred Ginmill Opens: Crimespace Opens a Virtual Bar." Mystery Scene 100 (Summer 2007): 46-47.

"Crime Fiction with an Icelandic Accent: Barbara Fister on Arnaldur Indridason." [Interview] Shots March 2007.

"The War Within: Matt Beynon Rees' Palestinian Mystery." [Interview] Mystery Scene 98 (Feb. 2007): 28-31.

"Wikipedia and the Challenge of Read/Write Culture." Library Issues 27.3 (Jan. 2007).

"'Reading as a Contact Sport': Online Book Groups and the Social Dimensions of Reading." Reference and User Services Quarterly, 44.4 (Summer 2005): 303-309.

"Copycat Crimes: Crime Fiction and the Marketplace of Anxieties." Clues: A Journal of Detection 23.3 (Spring 2005): 43-56.

"Bodies of Evidence: How Mystery Writers Imagine Their Worlds Through Research," invited article for a special issue, "Mysteries: From Creation to Consumption," Collection Management 29.3/4 (2005): 5-19.

"Embracing the Challenge of Change Through Collegial Decision-Making," co-authored with Kathie Martin. Currents and Convergence: Proceedings of the Twefth National Conference of the Association of College and Research Libraries. Ed. Hugh Thompson. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries, 2005. 32-38.

"Choosing Sources in the Library of Babel." LOEX Quarterly 31.4 (2005): 6-7.

"Google's Digitization Project: What Difference Will it Make?" Library Issues 25.4 (March 2005).

"Go Ahead, Book Me." Library Journal (November 15, 2004): 26, 28. (Part of a cover story on university presses.)

"Common Ground: Libraries and Learning." Library Issues 25.1 (September 2004).

"Academic Authors and the Crisis in Publishing." Against the Grain 16.3 (June 2004).

"Place and Space: Libraries and the Cartography of Knowledge." Invited essay in Musings, Meanderings, and Monsters, Too: Essays on Academic Librarianship, ed. Martin Raish. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow, 2003. 41-50.

"The Devil in the Details: Media Representation of 'Ritual Abuse' and Evaluation of Sources." SIMILE: Studies in Media and Information Literacy Education 3.2: May 2003.

"What do They Know? Assessing the Library's Contribution to Student Learning." Library Issues 23.3 (January 2003).

On Edge. [fiction] New York: Dell, 2002.

"Fear of Reference." The Chronicle of Higher Education June 14, 2002, B20.

"Trade Publishing: A Report from the Front." portal: Libraries and the Academy 1.4 (October 2001): 509-523.

"Elmore Leonard's Legman: A Full-Time Researcher Helps the Renowned Mystery Writer Keep it Real." American Libraries 32.4 (April 2001): 82-84.

"Collegial Leadership in Academic Libraries." Coauthored with David Lesniaski, Kris Huber MacPherson, and Steve McKinzie. Crossing the Divide: Proceedings of the Tenth National Conference of the Association of College and Research Libraries. Ed. Hugh Thompson. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries, 2001, 233-239.

"From BI to IL: The Paths of Two Liberal Arts Colleges." Coauthored with Elizabeth O. Hutchins and Kris Huber MacPherson. Crossing the Divide: Proceedings of the Tenth National Conference of the Association of College and Research Libraries. Ed. Hugh Thompson. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries, 2001, 203-212.

"Balancing the Trade-Offs: Pros and Cons of Library Technology," Library Issues 19.1 (September 1998).

"Mugging for the Camera: Narrative Strategies in Brazil," Literature/Film Quarterly 42.3 (1996): 288-292.

Third World Women's Literatures: A Dictionary and Guide to Materials in English. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 1995.

"Connected Communities: Encouraging Dialogue Between Composition and Bibliographic Instruction." Invited chapter in Writing Across the Curriculum and the Academic Library: Implications for Bibliographic Instruction, ed. Jean Sheridan, Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1995, 33-51.

"Teaching the Rhetorical Dimensions of Research." Research Strategies 11.4 (Fall 1993): 211-219.

"The Research Processes of Undergraduate Students." Journal of Academic Librarianship18 (July 1992): 163-169.

"Common Ground: The Composition/Bibliographic Instruction Connection." In Academic Libraries: Achieving Excellence in Higher Education, ed. Tom Kirk, Chicago: ACRL, 1992.

"Sources of Authority: A Case Study Approach to Using Primary Sources." In Judging the Validity of Information Sources: Teaching Critical Analysis in Bibliographic Instruction, ed. Linda Shirato, Ann Arbor: Pierian, 1991.

"For our Silent Sisters: Third World Women's Literature." Choice 29 (September 1991): 39-47.

"Recreating the Renaissance: Dramatic Presentations in an Art History Class," co-authored with Linnea Wren. Research Strategies 8 (Fall 1990): 200-203.

"Teaching Research as a Social Act: Collaborative Learning and the Library," RQ 29 (Summer 1990): 505-509. (This article was named one of the twenty best articles of the year by the American Library Association's Library Instruction Round Table.)

Additional publications

Contributed material to several Bedford/St. Martin's publications including The Everyday Writer, The Bedford Handbook, Literature and its Writers, Elements of Argument, A Writers Reference, A Pocket Guide to Writing in History, Research and Documentation in the Electronic Age, Rules for Writers, The Bedford Guide for College Writers, and The Bedford Guide to the Research Process. The Web version of Research and Documentation in the Electronic Age was chosen for the sixth annual "Best Free Reference Web Sites" chosen by the MARS section of RUSA, the American Library Association's reference division (Fall 2004).

Columnist for Library Journal's Academic Newswire, April 2009 --.

Blogger for Inside Higher Ed (Library Babel Fish), July 2010 --.

Book reviewer for Reviewing the Evidence.

One Book, One College: Common Reading Programs, a list of reading programs on college campuses. 

Scandinavian Crime Fiction, a Website and companion blog covering Scandinavian crime fiction in English translation.

Presentations

"Hacking Knowledge: Information Literacy as Creative Participation," closing plenary address presented at the Michigan Library Association Academic Libraries conference, Traverse City, May 2013.

"Decode Academy," plenary address presented at the LOEX national conference, Nashville May 2013.

"Librarians as Agents of Change," presented at the ACRL Oregon-Washington Annual Meeting, October 2012. slides. video. 

"Playing for Keeps: Lifelong Learning in the Ludic Library," presented at the Pennsylvania Library Association Annual Conference, October 2012. Slides.

Panelist, Reader's Advisory for Town and Gown: Academic and Pulbic Library Partnerships for RA Services, American Library Association Annual Conference, June 2012. Slides. Bibliography.

Facilitator, "Lost in the Library of Babel," faculty workshop at Illinois Wesleyan University, January 7, 2012. Slides. Handout. Bibliography.

Panelist for Ebooks: The New Normal, a virtual conference sponosored by Library Journal, October 12, 2011. Slides.

"Conventionally Unconventional: Lisbeth Salander's Sisters in Crime," presented at Stieg Larsson and Scandinavian Crime Fiction: An International Symposium, UCLA, May 20-21, 2011.

"Sisters in Crime at the Quarter Century: Advocacy, Community, and Change" presented on a panel "Readers Reading Mysteries" at the Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association National Conference, San Antonio TX, April 2011.

"Documdrama: Why Sources Matter - and Citing Them Correctly Doesn't" presented on a panel, “Looking the Wrong Way: Tales of Misdirection and a Call for Radical Revision in the Teaching of Citation (#burnthemanual),” given at the Conference on College Composition and Communication Annual Conference, Atlanta, April 2011. slides.

Panelist for E-Books: Libraries at the Tipping Point, a virtual conference sponsored by Library Journal, September 29, 2010. slides.

"Common Cause: How Scholarship Became a Commodity and What Libraries Can Do to Reclaim the Commons," University of Wisconsin Libraries, September 21, 2010. slides.

"Open Access and Books in a Digital Age," Metropolitan Library System, Chicago, June 9, 2010.

"Reader's Advisory for Mysteries," Minnesota Library Association Reader's Advisory Round Table Annual Retreat, May 2010.

"Read/Write Culture: What Open Means for Learning, Research, and Creativity," keynote address presented at the Iowa Library Association / Association of College and Research  Libraries Annual Conference, April 2010.

"Information Literacy in the Liberal Arts," presentation for the MnObe Mini-Immersion workshop, Gustavus Adolphus College, August 2009 (.pptx format).

"Academic and Intellectual Freedom Climate on Campus," panel presentation for the Association of College and Research Libraries Intellectual Freedom Committee at the American Library Association Annual Conference, 2009.

"Open Access and Books in a Digital World - What Role Should Libraries Play?" talk presented at the ALA's Office of Information Technology Policy advisory committee retreat, November 2008.

"Engaging Institutions in Improving Student Learning Through a National Study." Panel presentation at the Higher Learning Commission Annual Conference, April 2008.

"Why I Teach and Why it Matters," panelist at the NEA/AFT Higher Education Joint Conference in Washington DC, March 2008 responding to the "Why I Teach" Free Exchange on Campus blog meme.

"Inventing the Library." Presentation and workshop for the Ohio State University Libraries, Columbus, Ohio, December 2007.

"Information Literacy in a Wired World," workshop presented at the University of Illinois at Springfield, March 2007 as part of a two-day consultancy.

"Libraries and the Cartography of Knowledge," keynote address presented at the Alaska Library Association Conference, Anchorage, February 2006. At this conference  I also presented a paper, "Reading as a Contact Sport" and conducted two workshops, "Research as a Rhetorical Act" and "Assessing Libraries’ Contribution to Student Learning."

"Smoke and Mirrors: Finding Order in a Chaotic World," plenary address presented at WILU 2005, University of Guelph, Ontario, May 2005. Catalan translation via RECERCAT.

"Libraries and the Patriot Act: Your Loss of Privacy?" panelist at a conference held in St. Paul on May 16, 2005.

"Assessment as Opportunity: Knowing Your Students, Reaching Your Faculty," poster session presented with Michelle Twait at the Association of College and Research Libraries Twelfth National Conference, Minneapolis, April 8th, 2005. Handout.

"Information Literacy and the Marketplace of Anxieties," a workshop prepared for the Ontario Library Association Superconference, Toronto, February 2005.

"Information Literacy: A Cross-Disciplinary Conversation," a workshop conducted with Laura Behling for faculty at Carleton College, Northfield MN, Sept 2004.

"The Point-and-Click Generation Goes to the Library." Presentation at Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon, June 2004.

"Just the Facts, Ma'am: How Crime Fiction Re-Invents Reality." Continuing Education lecture sponsored by the St. Peter Community and Family Education program, presented March 16th, 2004.

"Another Set of Eyes: Peer Mentoring Can Be Fun" Workshop presented with Elizabeth O. Hutchins, sponsored by the Minnesota Oberlin Group Libraries Reference / Instruction Group, held at Carleton College, Northfield MN, December 3rd, 2003.

"True Lies: Libraries, Research, and the Facts of Fiction." Presentation at the Cooperating Libraries in Consortium Annual Retreat held at Northwestern College, Roseville MN, November 19th, 2003.

"Common Ground: The Library as a Laboratory for Developing Critical Literacy" Presentation for library staff at the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, March 25th 2003.

"Reference Services: Virtual, Digital, and In-Library--A New Model for Effective Delivery." Panelist for a teleconference produced by the College of DuPage Office of Special Services, February 7, 2003.

"Assessment: Where We Are and Where We Need to Go." Instruction Dialogue sponsored by the Academic and Research Libraries Division (ARLD) of the Minnesota Library Association Minnesota State University, Mankato, December 9th, 2002

"Developing Information Skills in the General Education Curriculum," Workshop for the faculty of Augustana College, Rock Island, Illinois, November 19, 2002.

"The Future of Publishing." Panel presentation at the Bouchercon World Mystery Conference, Austin TX, October 19, 2002.

"In Reference to Reference: How do Students Seek Information? What can Reference Services Do to Help?" Oberlin Group Annual Conference, Whitman College, Walla Walla, Washington, October 12, 2002.

"Generation Y Comes to the Library . . . Or Not: Information Seeking Behavior of Undergraduate Students." Panelist for workshop held at Minnesota State University, Mankato, April 11 2002.

"Reintroducing Students to Good Research." Keynote address presented to the faculty of Lake Forest College, November 7, 2001.

"The Virtual Library of Babel: Seeking Knowledge in an Information Age." Keynote address presented at the Association of Lutheran College Faculties Annual Conference, Gustavus Adolphus College, October 2001.

Information Literacy Pilot Project, Concordia College, Moorhead, Minnesota. Workshop for faculty on information literacy standards and assessment, with Molly Pederson, May 2001.

"Merging Tradition and Innovation: A Visionary Future for Libraries." Minitex Conference panel, Plymouth, MN, April 2001.

"Information Literacy: Connecting Standards and Objectives to Programs and Curriculum: Case Studies of Early Implementers." Panel presentation at the Association of College and Research Libraries National Conference, March 2001.

"How to Make Shared Leadership Happen," College Libraries Section panel, American Library Association Annual Meeting, New Orleans, June 1999.

"Border Crossings: Strengthening Collaboration for Meaningful Student Inquiry," invited keynote presentation at the ACM Bibliographic Instruction Conference, St. Olaf College, October 1998.

"When Higher Education Becomes a Business, What Happens to Traditional Library Values?" College Libraries Section Panel, American Library Association Annual Meeting, Washington D.C., June 1998.

"On the Threshold of Representation: The Function of the Holbein Christ in The Idiot," presented at the Kentucky Foreign Language Conference, University of Kentucky, April 1996.

"Fifty Critical Minutes: Teaching Critical Thinking in Course-Related Bibliographic Instruction," presented at the Minnesota Library Association annual conference, October 1992.

"The Research Processes of Undergraduates," presentation to the College Libraries in Consortium Bibliographic Instruction Taskforce, Fall 1991.

"Only Connect: Writing Instruction and BI," presented at the Minnesota Library Association annual conference, October 1989.

Grants and Awards

Recipient of the Gustavus Faculty Scholarship Award, 2009.

Research, Scholarship, and Creativity Grant to develop a comprehensive website on Scandinavian crime fiction in English translation, 2008.

Kendall Center Departmental Mini-grant to develop curriculum mapping for information literacy, with Julie Gilbert, 2008.

Bush Departmental Mini-Grant to involve new students in an online discussion of the book chosen for the campus Common Reading before they arrive on campus, 2005.

"How Crime Fiction Reflects Social Anxieties," funded by the college's Research, Scholarship, and Creativity (RSC) Fund, 2004.

Bush Teaching and Learning Mini-Grant to support a project for understanding student research processes in a hybrid print/electronic environment, awarded October 2001.

National Leadership Grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services to support a two-year research and demonstration project to enhance developmental research skills across the undergraduate curriculum in a hybrid print/electronic information environment. Co-directed with Sandy Fuhr. Awarded September 1999.

Support from Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to attend the HERS Summer Institute for Women in Higher Education Administration, Bryn Mawr College, June 23-July 16, 1996.

"Teaching Research: Perspectives from Two Fields," funded by the RSC, 1992.

"Third World Women's Literature," funded by the RSC, 1990.

Joyce Scholar's Grant to develop a research course, 1990.

"The Research Processes of Undergraduates," funded by the RSC, 1989.

Courses

Information Fluency for Graduate Studies, Spring 2006 - 2013. A short version of this course was adapted for a faculty development workshop in January 2009. 

Reading Workshop, Spring 2011, 2012, 2013