Parts of a book back matter

For the last couple of weeks, weve been doing a blog series on the back matter of a book. Acknowledgements towards the end of the book, you can take a page or two to thank all the people who have helped you during the process of writing it. This excerpt from book design made simple offers insights into the best way to present this material. Sep 15, 2014 books are divided into three partsfront matter, body text with or without illustrations, and back matter. Your book back matter might be the most valuable section of the book. I just stole your an unabridged list of the parts of a book and sent it to a client with credit to you, of course. Jan 10, 2014 the particular parts and their order is more fluid in the back matter compared to front. Your body content is the book itself its your introduction, conclusion and everything in between.

The back matter of a dissertation comprises the following parts. Pat mcnees the difference between a preface, foreword. The pages at the back of the book can include the epilogue, appendices, bibliography, endnotes, and index. Appendices can be useful in a memoir if you have additional information that might be interesting to the reader but would interrupt your narrative if placed in the body of the book. Its the 30,000 to 50,000 words you just pumped out. Mar 02, 2016 carrie charley brown is hosting reforemo read for research month, a time when writers challenge themselves to read picture books as mentor texts to improve their writing. The normal order of parts of the books front matter. I found this post on the components of a printed book back in october. You can create your indexes in microsoft word or hire an indexer to do it for you. Front matter is the information that is presented before the body of the document. The frontmatter, the body of the book, and the backmatter. Formatting the parts of an ebook digital publishing 101. Back matter definition and meaning collins english. These sections of back matter are often supplementary in nature, and inform the reader about some aspect of the book.

Whats it matter the front and back matter of a book the. List all parts, chapters, and back matter material e. The selfpublished author doesnt need to include any of these. Pat mcnees the difference between a preface, foreword, and.

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. Nov 17, 2019 end matter is the material at the back of the book, generally optional. End matter is the material at the back of the book, generally optional. 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. There are so many different components of the front matter, and many of them are so similar see. For guidance like this i recommend you download my free book construction blueprint which explains all the parts of the book and their order within the book. On the contrary, salvettes book presents a detailed coverage of crucial aspects of front and back matter and metadata and is informed by his experience at his publishing company bb ebooks. No matter what bibliography style you choose, be sure to list your references in alphabetical order from a to z, sorting the references by the authors last name. We all know what the title page is, but whats a half title. I recently wrote about the importance of back matter lately. Solutions are practical, his best practice guidelines sensible and their rationales well explained. Whats it matter the front and back matter of a book. End matter optional materials at the back of the book glossary if included bibliography if included index if included notes on book elements. Between the covers of your nonfiction book bookbaby blog.

An epilogue is a piece of writing toward the end of the book that is usually used to bring closure to the story afterword. Front and back matter in books alliance of independent. How to use your books back matter to massively boost your. The inside of your book, which we call the book block, is divided into three main sections. Jan 03, 2018 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. 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. 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. Hardcover books are built from cardboard that is wrapped with either a solid color material typically a colored paper or a leatherette or a printed text stock laminated glossy or.

Im the guest authoreducator there today talking about back matter in picture books. A book without links to other workswebsiteetc is a missed opportunity. Back matter, obviously, is the stuff that goes at the end of the book. The half title is usually the first page when you open the cover of the bookit includes just the. Cheers for the ebook formatting advice ill be sure to make a few tweaks.

We did a similar one on the front matter youll remember that the front matter is all of the material that comes before the central story or body text in a book. The back matter is where youll find components such as an index, a glossary, an. Back matter items are essentially chapters within a part, with one additional option to customize. As i told the client, i couldnt have explained it better. You have a great way with words to help the layman aka. It often explains the relationship between the writer of the foreword and either the author or the story being told. The components of a doctoral dissertation and their order. You can often tell a book is selfpublished because many of these parts will be missing or in the wrong order. Items in the back matter of a fiction work can include an epilogue, afterword, and author ads.

This is an excellent book on the subject of what to put in your front and back matter of your new book. An index is a section that appears at the back of a book that details people, places, events, and concepts that were significant throughout the book. Footnotes wont work in an ebook due to the absence of pages. Back matter dictionary definition back matter defined. The back matter also known as the end matter is you guessed it material found at the back of a book. Parts parts are usually not found in fictional works, and depending on the topic, they may not be found in a nonfiction book. Material, such as an index or appendix, that follows the main body of a book. Nov 28, 2017 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.

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. The back matter types menu lets you indicate an items type. An afterword is sometimes used to describe a time that is well after the timeframe of the main story. Some may not include the acknowledgements in their front matter but decide to put it at the end of the book. Make it shine by arranging it in the proper order and designing it for great readability.

The first three parts of the front matter include the half title, frontispiece, and title page. The material found in the appendix is not essential to the dissertation, but can be helpful for. How to use your books back matter to massively boost your fanbase, get more shares, and explode your platform. Front matter and back matter grammar factory publishing. 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 book the sections that appear after the central story has been completed. 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. Book back matter what to include in the back of your book.

The back matter of your thesis consists of the notes if you have chosen to group your footnotes at the end of the paper, the references bibliography or literature cited, appendices, and the biographical sketch optional. Authors use their back matter to offer readers further context or information about the story, though back matter can also be extremely simple. Half title, or bastard title title only, on otherwise blank page book card or card page, listing previous works by author, or books. Back matter definition of back matter by the free dictionary. The half title is usually the first page when you open the cover of the book it includes just the. Front matter of a book what is included in the front. Remarks while ancillary material, such as appendices, may follow the entire contents of a book, a publisher may prefer that such ancillary material follow the content of. Each edition of your book may have different front and back matter, for example, to list different isbns or calls to action. When a book is filled with facts or topics a reader might want to find quickly, an index is the fastest way to find them.

Most often seen in nonfiction like a biography or an academic text, a bibliography lists the references and sources used in researching or. Back matter definition, the parts of a book that appear after the main text, as bibliography, index, and appendixes. The glossary is a list of term definitions used throughout the book that might be unfamiliar to the reader. 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. If there are parts, use roman numerals for parts part i, part ii, etc. Some of the more complex parts weve explained below. The back matter is paginated consecutively from the last page of the text. Nov, 2019 the back matter also known as the end matter is you guessed it material found at the back of a book. The material found in the appendix is not essential to the dissertation, but can be helpful for the reader who seeks further information. Book front matter includes some or all of these pages. Front matter of a book what is included in the front matter. 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 book s final edit.

Back matter is the stuff at the end of your book, after the main sections of the book are finished. In this excerpt from book design made simple, we offer a list of possible book front matter pages and their proper order. By colin dunbar body matter the body matter is the meat of your book the main content. Keep in mind that there is no book that has all of these parts. Parts of your selfpublished book 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. Front matter is the material at the front of a book that usually offers information about the book. Deandrea matthews shares the eight parts of your books back matter so you know what can go in the back of your book. Jan 27, 2016 back matter, obviously, is the stuff that goes at the end of the book. A part starts with a dividing page, with either only the part number often. Books are divided into three partsfront matter, body text with or without illustrations, and back matter. The contents of the back matter are generally supplementary and often nonessential. Books can be divided into three areas front matter, body content and back matter. Well never look at a childrens picture book in the same way again.

Its the page at the very front of the book, not used in all cases, that has only the title of. I usually place my back matter folder beneath the main manuscript folder, whereas scriveners manuscript format template provides an existing folder for front matter. While back matter and special features are things you can add to your book to help it sell, book specifications are what will be inherently part of your book in a physical sense that you simply need to share with the publisher. Were novices, so working with front matter and back matter is a new experience. Front matter all books include the part of a book called front matter. Use the infographic above to familiarize yourself with the parts of a book.

The front matter includes any material that precedes the text. Sep 29, 2009 for guidance like this i recommend you download my free book construction blueprint which explains all the parts of the book and their order within the book. The front of the book requires first a title page, and page second, and in that order. 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. Back matter is the final pages of a book, where endnotes, the appendix, the bibliography, the index, and. Carrie charley brown is hosting reforemo read for research month, a time when writers challenge themselves to read picture books as mentor texts to improve their writing. There are two types of indexes subject matter and detailed. The errata are sometimes found in the back of the book called the back matter. Back matter in picture books marcie flinchum atkins. The parts of a book for self published authors bookstand. How to write the front and back matter of your kindle ebook. Ive moved shearwater to permafree and got over 5,000 downloads this month.

Book front matter what to include in the front of your book. Body matter the core content of the book parts sections chapters in that order. Youll find that a preface is part of the front matter, whereas the introduction is the beginning of the book proper. If your chapters are numbered, use arabic numerals and number the chapters consecutively throughout the book chapter 1, chapter 2, etc.