I've been writing about singlism for years here at Psych Today and in my previous books and articles. It is a topic that almost always draws an engaged readership with lots of ideas of their own. It seemed time to pull it all together into a book specifically on that topic.

At first, I thought it would be a sole-authored book. I was going to edit much of what I had already written (for blogs and op-ed pages of newspapers; in journal articles intended for a wider audience than jargon-obsessed insiders; and so forth), add some new pieces, and organize it into book that tells a bigger and more coherent story. I did all of that, but as I kept reading the thoughtful comments that are so often posted here, and thinking about the insightful work of others on topics relevant to singlism, I knew it would be an even more exciting book if others would contribute, too.

And so they did! There are 28 bylines (other than my own) in the just-published book, Singlism: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Stop It. (Their names are listed at the end of this post.) Among the perspectives on singlism represented in the book are the personal, political, historical, religious, legal, clinical, economic, sociological, and psychological. There are media critiques, op-ed essays, and personal stories of standing up to singlism. Advocates and activists describe their successes and their challenges. Also included are sections on singlism's cousin (the stereotyping and stigmatizing of adults with no children) and on valuing all of the important people in our lives (and not just conjugal partners and children).