Make the most of your book, include highquality front and back matter. There arent any definitive rules for how the different sections of front matter in an ebook should be organized, and it is very unlikely that your book will be rejected for publishing based on how you have structured it except for smashwords, the nitpicky ones. Some elements are expected and others are optional, but there is a standard order. Appendix an appendix will provide supplementary details about your book such as corrections, updates, and details. Your body content is the book itself its your introduction, conclusion and everything in between.
For the last few weeks, diggypods blog has been discussing the various elements of a books front matter that is, all the different pieces that fit together and introduce the author, the story, the themes, and its importance. Diy book front matter and back matter numinous productions. The front matter is paginated using lower roman numerals, however, the back matter is not. Pick up multiple books from your shelf and take a look at the front and back matter for a point of reference. Keep in mind that there is no book that has all of these parts. Material, such as an index or appendix, that follows the main body of a book. Book front matter what to include in the front of your book. The specific elements included at the end of the book should appear in the table of contents in the front matter. The text for you book is only part of the written material inside your finished book and your front and back matter can make or break your book. Front matter of a book what is included in the front matter. How to write the front and back matter of your kindle ebook. In this excerpt from book design made simple, we offer a list of possible book front matter pages and their proper order. Make it shine by arranging it in the proper order and designing it for great readability. Nov 28, 2017 november 28, 2017 5 comments what is the front matter of a book.
Order form though not used as often these days with the prevalence of online ordering, a form can be a useful sales tool. May 19, 2014 hello, this is ken from bookfuel with a brief explanation of front matter and back matter. Rightfacing pages are odd numbered pages in printed books because the first piece of paper is on the right side, facing up from the open, printed book. Jan 18, 2018 front matter, the body and back matter. These are the parts of the book before and after the content of your book and will vary based on whether it is a fiction or nonfiction book.
Beware the ebook front matter trap the great thing about selfpublishing is that there is no one telling you what you have to do with your book. Front matter of a book what is included in the front. The text for you book is only part of the written material inside your finished book and your front and back matter can make or. Back matter includes a blurb, writer biography which may include a photo, testimonial quotes, barcode, isbn, quotes or extracts from the book, and the publishers name and logo. While you may have never heard of book front matter or back matter who decided on matter anyway theyre the first step to turn your hard work into a professional book.
Beware the ebook front matter trap polgarus studio. Front matter is the stuff in your book from the page after the cover till the page before chapter one. A foreword is an essay, or short piece of writing, written by someone. The back matter also known as the end matter is you guessed it material found at the back of a book. What youve been working on, the manuscript youve sweated. Back matter definition of back matter by the free dictionary.
These sections of back matter are often supplementary in nature, and inform the reader about some aspect of the book. Front matter includes the title pages, the writers name, the edition, the publication date. November 28, 2017 5 comments what is the front matter of a book. Jan 10, 2014 last week here, i presented the parts of a book which appear in the front of the book. These elements bookend your content, the front matter providing specifics related to the content primarily, and the back matter focuses on keeping your reader invested after theyve consumed the content. Front matter is the first section of a book and is generally the shortest. Sep 15, 2014 books are divided into three partsfront matter, body text with or without illustrations, and back matter. Its the page at the very front of the book, not used in all cases, that has only the title of the book on it. We all know what the title page is, but whats a half title. The front matter pages usually arent visibly numbered. How to use your books back matter to massively boost your. Books are divided into three partsfront matter, body text with or without illustrations, and back matter. We used to recommend authors put the toc at the back of the book because of the front matter issue, but unfortunately amazon had a minor meltdown about that in january 2016, so now its less hassle to leave it at the front.
Youve got your manuscript in top shape, but theres more to a book than the story when your publishing it yourself. Use this list instead to make sure you have the right content in the right category, and that elements of your book appear in the sequence in which they are expected. Front matter is the information that is presented before the body of the document. What is included in front matter really depends on the type of publication, so lets go. You need to allow plenty of time to collect some of the data. You can write in whatever genre you like, include whatever type of character you want, and write in any style you prefer. Some of these conventions are based on practical applications, such as numbering the front matter differently than the main body text. Book promotion expert ben cameron always says writing the blurb is the hardest 100 words youll ever write, and many authors are also stumped when it comes to writing the front and back matter another task that usually falls just when youre feeling least like writing another word, after completing your books final edit. Front and back matter formatting for gorham printing. Authors use their back matter to offer readers further context or information about the story, though back matter can also be extremely simple. Its all about the reader skilled workman posted on march 1, 2016 by david bergsland march 1, 2018 today, in this third post on formatting, i want to talk about many things which have been lost in the rush toward ebooks. Nov 17, 2019 front matter is the information that appears in the very beginning of a book.
Title page the title page is especially easy because you dont need to give it a different style. Books can be divided into three areas front matter, body content and back matter. When you format your book for hard copy printing, you should follow the structure as shown in the diagram below. Sep 26, 2019 you can probably guess but anything found before the main text is called front matter and anything found after, the back matter. Your books front and back matter your literary prose. Lets first take a look at the different sections you may want to include in your book. The issue with these three sections is that only the story part should have the title and page numbers in the header andor footer. The actual first page of your book after the front matter should always start on a righthand page and will be page 1. Nov, 2019 the back matter also known as the end matter is you guessed it material found at the back of a book. This is done because much of the main body text has to be done before the front matter can be completed.
Ive moved shearwater to permafree and got over 5,000 downloads this month. In traditional publishing, page numbers for the front matter appear in roman numerals. Your book will be divided into three main formatting sections the main one is the story itself, and then there are the mandatory front matter and optional back matter. So what is contained in the front and back matter and what do you need to include in your book. Nov 12, 20 your checklist for the components of a nonfiction book, from the front cover to the back and everything in between. Musculoskeletal disorders and the workplace examines the scientific basis for connecting musculoskeletal disorders with the workplace, considering people, job tasks, and work environments. The parts of a book for self published authors bookstand.
There is more to a nonfiction book than a catchy cover and table of contents much more. The frontmatter, the body of the book, and the backmatter. After the last page of the manuscripts text, pagination continues in numerical sequence into the back matter. The front and back matter is all the extra stuff at the beginning and at the end of your book that sits between the cover and the chapters. Author bio if you do not have this on the back cover, you can place it within the back matter. Aug 01, 2016 youve got your manuscript in top shape, but theres more to a book than the story when your publishing it yourself. Your ultimate guide to front matter and back matter. The first 5 pages of the template are called the front matter, they are publishing standard pages consisting of the half title page, the full title page, and dedication pages. For the last few weeks, diggypods blog has been discussing the various elements of a books front matter that is, all the different pieces that fit together and introduce the. A successful book is more than just a manuscript thrown between a cover. Just as front matter is what you find at the beginning of a book, back matter, simply put, is what you find at the end of a bookthe sections that appear after the central story has been completed. Back matter is information about a book and the writer which follows the end of the main text. One thing you shouldnt put at the front of your ebook huffpost.
However, sometimes the frontmatter of the book is numbered seperately by roman numbers. A multidisciplinary panel draws conclusions about the likelihood of causal links and the effectiveness of various intervention strategies. Jan 03, 2018 all of these pieces front matter, body text, and back matter fit together perfectly to create a complete book. The front matter of a book consists of its very first pages.
Jul 05, 2017 these elements bookend your content, the front matter providing specifics related to the content primarily, and the back matter focuses on keeping your reader invested after theyve consumed the content. When it comes time for book design there are 2 parts to consider outside the body of the book. Your book back matter might be the most valuable section of the book. Front matter and back matter are terms used to describe the first and last pages of a book but not the actual story or body content of the book.
What is most important is that what you do include looks professional and is well formatted. May 27, 2015 book promotion expert ben cameron always says writing the blurb is the hardest 100 words youll ever write, and many authors are also stumped when it comes to writing the front and back matter another task that usually falls just when youre feeling least like writing another word, after completing your books final edit. Ensure you have front matter and back matter that is organized properly to give your book a professional look understand what metadata can be embedded within an ebook and how it relates to discoverability gain comprehension of how more complicated back matter like an index and notes section can function in an ebook. You may have other pages to include in the front of your book, if so add new pages and create your pages with bookwrights tools. Including all of the necessary parts of a book and putting them in the right order is the first step to making your book credible and professional. Build your book format a paperback manuscript word for. After this comes the body of the book and after that, what is called the back matter. This excerpt from book design made simple offers insights into the best way to present this material. Your checklist for the components of a nonfiction book, from the front cover to the back and everything in between. Aug 02, 2016 the front matter is paginated using lower roman numerals, however, the back matter is not. Book design is the art of incorporating the content, style, format, design, and sequence of the various components and elements of a book into a coherent unit. How to format front matter how to make an ebook series.
Jul 12, 2012 table of contents list of illustrations list of tables foreword by someone other than the author preface by the author acknowledgments or in back matter introduction abbreviations or in back matter back matter acknowledgments or in front matter appendix or several appendices numbered a, b, c, etc. Table of contents list of illustrations list of tables foreword by someone other than the author preface by the author acknowledgments or in back matter introduction abbreviations or in back matter back matter acknowledgments or in front matter appendix or several appendices numbered a, b, c, etc. Book front matter includes some or all of these pages. But that made me realize i was probably missing a major opportunity to connect with those readers, so i checked my back copy the material at the end of my book and found it seriously wanting. Front matter is everything that comes before your content. The back matter is the concluding section of a book, and it can contain a whole host of information, and many of these sections are entirely optional. The errata are sometimes found in the back of the book called the back matter.
Your body content is the book itself its your introduction. What page numbering conventions are there for front. Back matter is the final pages of a book, where endnotes, the appendix, the bibliography, the index, and related elements reside. Though the front matter may not be as sexy as the main text or as information packed as the back matter, its an opportunity for authors to set the tone for their readers experience.
Page numbers can in a header at the top of the page, or at the bottom, as they are in this book. It can be as simple as a single title page, or it can include multiple title pages, foreword, a preface, and much more. We tend to spend all of our time writing the main content of the book and fail to factor in the extra time required to write and organize the front and back matter. The back matter is where youll find components such as an index, a glossary, an. Authors often forget about their book front matter until the last minute. What is included in the front and back matter of a book.
The front matter includes any material that precedes the text. The front matter contains the nuts and bolts of the books publicationinformation such as title, author, publisher, isbn, and library of congress data. Page numbering is complicated by old conventions that have been adopted through the ages. Encourage the reader to either tear out or copy your order form page. Front matter of a book what is included in the front matter of a book. While you may have never heard of book front matter or back matter who decided on. Last week here, i presented the parts of a book which appear in the front of the book. All of these pieces front matter, body text, and back matter fit together perfectly to create a complete book. Well never look at a childrens picture book in the same way again. Today, we look at the elements which make up the back matter. When a book uses arabic page numbering, the usual habit is to treat the front cover as a page number 1, and start the book itself by page number 3. Jun 25, 2015 how to format a book in ms word part iii. As i said previously, there are no hard and fast rules that dictate how a book must be structured, but the structure discussed here is one thats been around for a few hundred years. Front matter is at the front and is sometimes called the.
Book back matter what to include in the back of your book. Now these are merely suggestions for what you can choose to include in the front and back matter of your book. Apr 26, 2019 what exactly is front matter and back matter. Front matter is information about a book which precedes the main text. Front and back matter in books selfpublishing advice. Whats it matter the front and back matter of a book. Its the 30,000 to 50,000 words you just pumped out. Jun 24, 2014 so not only are front matter blurbs redundant. Most fiction books have a minimum of back matter, while nonfiction can include a number of items. Front matter is the information that appears in the very beginning of a book. One of the key elements to success is a professional interior design that adheres to. Were novices, so working with front matter and back matter is a new experience. Whats it matter the front and back matter of a book the. In the words of renowned typographer jan tschichold 19021974, book design, though largely forgotten today, relies upon methods and rules upon which it is impossible to improve.
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