Proper book front matter pages

The beginning of your book, or front matter, consists of the pages of information typically found before the main body text begins. It is a given fact that i cannot number the appendicies i. The inside of your book, which we call the book block, is divided into three main sections. Proper spacing and arrangement are clearly indicated. Your book back matter might be the most valuable section of the book. The prelims required for selfpublished books are exactly the same as those required for traditionally published books.

If the book were paginated with arabic numerals from the very first page, any change in the front matter would necessitate renumbering the entire book. Front matter occurring prior to the core content of the book front matter is the first part of a book and is the part of a book that outlines the technical details. Front matter is the first section of a book and is generally the shortest. When youve never written a book before, its hard to know whats essential, what can be cut, and where everything fits. Frontmatter pages are traditionally numbered in lowercase roman numerals i, ii, iii, iv, v, etc. These blank pages are used so that new chapters and front matter section,s such as the table of contents, dedication, foreword, etc. Some elements are expected and others are optional, but there is a standard order. These pages are traditionally numbered with lowercase roman numerals. After the last page of the manuscripts text, pagination continues in numerical sequence into the. Your book format will likely include a few blank left hand pages. Backmatter numbering graphic design stack exchange. Its the page at the very front of the book, not used in all cases, that has only the title of. This way, the front matter can be adjusted at will without affecting the body of the book.

The good thing is that front matter and back matter are fairly formulaic there are a standard set of elements to include and a typical running order for. Like any first impression, it needs to be strong and it needs to last. The front matter is a section in the beginning of a book. Specifically and in order we want to see the following. The half title page contains just the title of the book and is typically the first recto page you see after the front cover. Incidentally, recto means front side and verso means back side of a piece of paper in a bound book. Publishers call the preliminary pages in a book the front matter. 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. Page numbers should be placed at the outer margin of the running header. We all know what the title page is, but whats a half title. For the remaining pages, youll want link to previous selected. Rightfacing pages are odd numbered pages in printed books because the first piece of paper is on the right side, facing up from. Publishers are not consistent about how they number the pages of their books.

You need to have these 18 pages either before or after your fiction story or nonfiction content. Your ebook should include a title page with your book title and author name. Basic book designheaders, footers, and page numbers. However, sometimes the frontmatter of the book is numbered seperately by roman numbers. Ive not seen or designed a fiction work that doesnt follow chicago. It can be as simple as a single title page, or it can include multiple title pages. Please note, you should include all your front matter in your table of contents with the. By having the text start with number 1, the publisher wont have to renumber all the pages when adding something to the front matter.

So there and here you have it, my current thinking and timetested suggestions for making your books front matter matter. Up on the menu, the link to previous is probably selected. There are numerous pages in a book that are considered display pages. The front matter contains the nuts and bolts of the books publicationinformation such as title, author, publisher, isbn, and library of congress data. Use a font family distinctive from the text font family, e. Roman numerals are used for the front matter of the book to allow additional pages to be added in the front matter without reflowing the page numbers throughout the book. The interior of your book is basically made up of three parts. Ill type in book title, get the style right and then save it as a new quick style headers. It matters a lot, but sometimes authors get confused about what goes where, when, and why. You want to click on it to unlink it just for the first pages, so they dont link with the front matter. You can also add other front matter as well as back matter pages, but these arent required. Some of these conventions are based on practical applications, such as numbering the front matter differently than the main body text. Its really not all that complicated, but it is important to get it right if you. Probably the most basic aspect of the front matter is the book title page and the half title.

In this excerpt from book design made simple, we offer a list of possible book front matter pages and their proper order. This excerpt from book design made simple offers insights into the best way to present this material. Free book design templates and tutorials for formatting in. The frontmatter are the pages at the beginning of a book before the body of the book.

Today, we look at the elements which make up the back matter. Please include all author names for contributed books the editor names and their affiliations, the book title and subtitle. What is the proper order for the beginning of my book, or front matter. An introduction in the subject of the book, however, should appear as the first chapter of the book. What it comes down to is author preference and what the book calls for. Front matter is the information that appears in the very beginning of a book. In such case, should the first page be i 1 or iii 3.

Creating proper blank pages in a book layout jera publishing. These pages typically do not have page numbers, or they are numbered using roman numerals. The front matter of a book consists of its very first pages. These preliminary pages are called prelims, or front matter. The parts of a book for self published authors bookstand. When you open a book, youll find that there are a whole series of pages before the book proper begins. A book isnt only about the story or howto topic youve just written. Its there in poetry collections, memoirs, biographies, historical books. What is included in front matter really depends on the type of publication, so lets go.

Often, front matter has to be added late in the publishing process. Front matter contains all of the pages preceding the chapters or content of the book. Selfpublishing on a budget an excerpt from this book in addition to the body text, your selfpublished book will also contain other pages, called the front and back matter. Some publishers stick with the default numbering of the tool they are using, which is typically to number the first page of the front matter as 1 and all pages after that in a consecutive order. Some publishers use roman numerals for the front matter, and carry on the sequence in arabic numbers i, ii, iii, iv, v, 6, 7, 8 etc. It contains only the title of the book and no page number. It can be as simple as a single title page, or it can include multiple title pages, foreword, a preface, and much more. Front matter of a book what is included in the front matter of a book.

Formatting paperback using ms word is free and easy if you know how to do it. To create the first section break, go the end of the front matter and place the cursor at the beginning of the first chapter of your story. Half title is the very first recto right facing page. There may also be a preface by the author, or a foreword by someone familiar with their work. They arent always numbered separately some books start with the title page as page 1 and are paginated continuously throughout but when there is a significant amount of front matter, its conventional to number it. Whats it matter the front and back matter of a book. Last week here, i presented the parts of a book which appear in the front of the book. Book back matter what to include in the back of your book. You ultimately have control over what you want in this section. Front matter includes elements like title, and dedication pages. The first 5 pages of the template are called the front matter, they are publishing. This is one of the aspects of front matter that is in every book, no matter the type or genre. Take care in realizing and understanding what your book needs and why. Page numbering is complicated by old conventions that have been adopted through the ages.

And we call these pages, front matter and back matter. Following a few notes on book design from peter wilson author of the memoir class the order of the pages of the. Other than the occasional publication that puts an introduction on page 1 some anthologies of short stories do that, i dont recall a book that began content numbering in the front matter. I put that information on the back of the halftitle page which just shows the book title not the subtitle, author or. Front matter and back matter grammar factory publishing. Make it shine by arranging it in the proper order and designing it for great readability. 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. Order of the pages in the front matter of a book tex.

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. When numbered starting after the page it is in roman numerals v, vi, vii, etc. As i mentioned earlier, the table of contents includes everything that follows it. Optional items in the front matter at the beginning of a book are e. Book front matter includes some or all of these pages. Book front matter what to include in the front of your book. How to format front matter how to make an ebook series. Since these elements cant be finalized until youve finished writing the entire book, you might want to think about these literary appetizers for your readers as a rewarding desserts for you. Build your book format a paperback manuscript word for.

This is done because much of the main body text has to be done before the front matter can be completed. 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. 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 front matter pages usually arent visibly numbered. Back matter can include an about the author page or bibliography. Formatting front matter front matter are the sections that come before the first chapter. Front matter of a book what is included in the front. Front pages are paginated separately from the rest of the text using lowercase roman numerals at the bottom of these pages. The reason is that the mainmatter numbering is continued from a previous works and will continue in the next works, and. Front matter is the stuff in your book from the page after the cover till the page before chapter one.