Summary of Research 2017-2018

The writing season is coming up. I need to plan out what I will work on this summer.

Here is my record for 2017-2018. I am committing to a policy of 100% honesty in this report. Some successes and some failures. But the way I think of it is that every failure is a success. Every rejection is accompanied by reviews, and I use these reviews to write a better paper (strengthen my argument, add references, cutting out irrelevant passages). The most negative review has done me a big favor by being honest. Where can one get that in day to day life? So I am a big fan of blind reviewing.

They also give me a reality check. My brilliant idea is not so solid after all, is it? It brings me down to the level of reality. However, it is very rare that a review convinces me that the paper is not worth publishing (actually, I cannot think of such a case). Usually just the opposite. Negative reviews fire me up to write a better paper, after an initial period of dejection.

One goal is to find another set of journals to submit to. How about the Linguistic Review? Any suggestions? Another goal might be to write a monograph, since the individual papers have not had much luck. And 8 of the papers are on the same topic (negation) and take the same point of view (Collins and Postal 2014).

The tally is 4 accept, 7 reject and 2 revise and resubmit. And BTW, revise and resubmit neither means reject or accept. It can go either way. It simply means that they are giving you a second chance. So that is under half, which is the story of my life (for grant applications, job applications, etc.).

Also, note that 8 of 11 of these papers are on negation. So I am still in that mode for now. I am still super charged after the publication of Collins and Postal 2014. I feel I have something to say, and it is different from what other people say, and want my ideas to get out there.

But one can see some other themes percolating in this batch. I am getting back into the passive. I need to defend Collins 2005 against detractors. I can't just sit around and watch as people go off on dead-end paths.

There might be some surprises over the summer, if I can gather my strength.

If anybody wants a copy of any of these papers, let me know.

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Quantifier Domain Restriction as Ellipsis
Rejected LI Squibs, accepted Glossa

Outer Negation of Universal Quantifier Phrases
Revise and Resubmit Linguistics and Philosophy

Distribution of Negated Quantifier Phrases
Rejected Natural Language and Linguistic Theory

*NEG NEG
Rejected LI Squibs, Accepted Glossa

Negating Comparative Quantifiers
Rejected Journal of Semantics

Scalar Modifiers of Quantifier Phrases
Rejected Journal of Semantics

On the Subject of Negative Auxiliary Version
Accepted Canadian Journal of Linguistics (with Frances Blanchette)

On the Implicit Argument in the Short Passive
Rejected LI Remarks and Replies

Disentagling Two Distinction Notions of NEG Raising
Accepted Semantics and Pragmatics (with Paul Postal)

Comparative Phrase Deletion
Revise and Resubmit Glossa

Negating Gradable Adjectives
Rejected Journal of Linguistics

A Smuggling Approach to the Dative Alternation
Not submitted