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Em. A unit of measurement in typesetting and printing. One em is a sixth of an inch. Ems are used for example to specify the measure (width) of a line of type, eg 24 ems.
Excerpts. Extracts from a book which are published separately, for example in newspapers.
F
Facsimile edition. An exact copy of a book.
Feature writer. A journalist whose work is writing articles other than hard news.
First edition. See Edition, above.
Floppy disk. See Disc, above.
Folio. A sheet of printed paper comprising two pages or sides.
Font. See Typeface, below.
Foreword. A piece of copy in which the author of a book (or a third party) makes introductory or preliminary comments.
Frontispiece. The first illustration of a book, on the left facing the title-page.
G
Galley proofs. A first impression of a book, produced by the typesetter, which is not divided into numbered pages.
Gsm (grams per square metre). Standard description of paper by its weight. Book papers are typically in the range of 70gsm to 100gsm.
H
Half title. The first page of a book which according to tradition contains only its title.
Halftone. A photograph or other illustration consisting of a myriad of tiny dots visible under a magnifying glass, in a form ready for reproduction by the printer. For colour halftones, the dots are in the four process colours.
House style. Every publisher must make decisions as to the presentation and style of books. This is known as 'house style'.
I
Imposition. An arrangement of pages of type by the printer.
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Imprint. Information about the publisher or printer of a book, inserted at the beginning or at the end of a book.
Indents. The setting back of a line of text from the margin of a page.
Index. An alphabetical list of the contents of a book, usually positioned at the end.
International Standard Book Number (ISBN). A ten-digit number, usually printed along with the publishing information on the back cover of the book, and on the verso (back) of the title page. It identifies the book for distribution and marketing purposes.
Internet. A worldwide network of computers.
Italic. Oblique type.
J
Justification. The adjustment of type to be parallel with the edges of a page.
L
Laminated. A laminated book cover is one which is overlaid with a protective film. Varnishing is a cheaper and lower quality alternative.
Legal deposit. A copy of every book must, by law, be sent to the British Library. See Useful Addresses.
Liability. Legal obligation or duty.
Limp. A soft cover of a book, now known generally as paperback.
Limp cloth. A more sturdy type of paperback with cloth reinforcement.
Lower case. Small, as opposed to capital, letters.
M
Mailshots. Advertisements for books which are posted to a range of potential buyers or reviewers.
Manuscript. Literally, a handwritten document. Now generally means a book as it is presented to the publisher by the author, whether handwritten, typed or word-processed. MS for short.
Mark up. Retail price divided by unit cost.
N
Net Book Agreement. An agreement between most booksellers and publishers that books should not be sold to the public at less than a minimum retail price. The advantage of the NBA is said to be that booksellers can keep large stocks of books in the knowledge that their prices will not be undercut.
O
Official secrets. Information restricted by the Official Secrets Acts. Covers almost any information communicated to a civil servant.
Offset litho machine. A printing machine in which the image to be printed is offset (passed) to a cylinder for the actual printing process. This is by far the commonest method of book production today, having replaced the old letterpress methods long ago.
P
Page proofs. Trial impressions of a book with numbered pages.
Pagination. The method by which the pages of a book are numbered.
Perfect bound. A method of bookbinding using glue, instead of sewing with thread.
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PMT (part mechanical tint). Another term for a halftone, especially a black and white photograph.
Point. A unit of measurement in typesetting. One point is 1/72nd of an inch. There are 12 points in one em, and six ems to the inch. Type sizes are expressed in numbers of points, eg 10pt.
Preface. See Foreword, above.
Prelims. The preliminary pages of a book which come before the introduction or beginning of chapter one. Often these pages are not numbered as such.
Press release. Information about a book, aimed at and sent to newspapers and magazines.
Process colours. The four standard colours used for full-colour printing of artwork or photographs. They are black, magenta, cyan and process yellow.
Print run. The number of copies of a book which are printed at one time.
Proof reader. Someone who checks proofs for errors and stylistic discrepancies.
Proofs. Trial impressions of printed pages of a book. They can be galley proofs and/or page proofs.
Public Lending Rights. A scheme whereby authors whose books are borrowed by the public from libraries are paid a small sum for each occasion they are borrowed.
R
Rejection slips. Standard forms used by commercial publishers to inform prospective authors that their work is unacceptable.
Remaindering. The sale very cheaply of a batch of unsold books to a firm which specialises in cut-price books. Some book remainder dealers even have their own retail bookshops.
Repetitive strain injury. An illness caused by repetitive movements at work, especially typing and word-processing.
Returns. Books which have been unsold and are sent back by the bookseller to the publisher for credit. This can sometimes happen many months after they were first purchased.
Royalty. A payment made by a publisher to an author which amounts to a percentage of the price of a book, or of the revenue received.
Revised edition. See Edition, above.
Running head. A page heading which runs for a number of pages. See the top of this page for an example.
S
Sale or return. An arrangement with a distributor or bookseller whereby books are stocked on the basis that only those sold will be paid for.
Self publishing. Publishing work you have produced yourself.
Shrink wrapped. A method of wrapping books in plastic.
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T
Tenosynovitis. See Repetitive strain injury, above.
Text measure. The width of a full line of type, specified in numbers of ems, for example '14 ems justified' or' 18 ems unjustified right'.
Title page. The main opening page of a book normally showing the series title (if any), the title in bold letters, the name of the author and the name of the publisher at the foot.
Trade terms. Terms on which a publisher offers to do business with a bookseller including in particular the amount of discount, credit period and postage charges if any.
Typeface. A style of print. Perhaps the best known is Times, but most printers have a wide choice available. Well-known and widely used book typesetting faces include Times, Plantin, Baskerville and Bembo.
Typescript. Typed or word-processed material.
Typesetting. The composition of a manuscript into pages suitable for printing.
V
Vanity publishing. An arrangement whereby an author pays for the publication of his book.
W
Web offset. See Offset litho machine, above.
Word processor. A type of computer programmed to use its keyboard as a typewriter, to display words written on a screen, to edit and amend the words and to print them out.
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Further Reading
An Author's Guide to Publishing, Michael Legat (Robert Hale, 1982).
Are Books Different? Marketing in the Book Trade, Alison Baverstock (Kogan Page, 1993).
Benn's Media Directory.
Blackwell Guide for Authors, (Blackwell, revised edition 1991).
Blueprint Dictionary of Printing and Publishing, John Peacock and Michael Barnard (Blueprint, 1990).
The Bookseller (Whitaker). Weekly trade magazine.
British Books in Print: The Reference Catalogue of Current Literature (Whitaker).
The Business of Book Publishing, C. Bingley (Pergamon Press).
Copinger and Skone James on Copyright (Sweet & Maxwell).
Copy-Editing, Judith Butcher (Cambridge University Press, 1993). A standard reference book.
Directory of British Associations (CBD Research).
Directory of Grant Making Trusts.
Directory of Members (Booksellers Association, annual).
Directory of Publishing (Cassell, annual).
Editing, Design and Book Production, Charles Foster (Journeyman/ Pluto Press, 1993).
Guide to Book Production Practice (British Federation of Master Printers).
Guide to Literary Prizes, Grants and Awards (Compiled by Book Trust and the Society of Authors).
Guide to Self Publishing, Harry Mulholland (Mulholland/Wirral, 1984).
How to Do Your Own Advertising, Michael Bennie (How To Books, 2nd edition).
How to Do Your Own PR, Ian Phillipson (How To Books).
How to Start a Business from Home, Graham Jones (How To Books, 3rd edition).
Inside Book Publishing, Giles Clark (Blueprint, 2nd edition 1994).
Introduction to Desktop Publishing, David Hewson (John Taylor Book Ventures, 1988).
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Introduction to Printing Technology (British Printing Industries Federation, price £50).
The Letraset Catalogue, for a comprehensive guide to display typefaces.
The Making of Books, S. Jennet (Faber and Faber).
Managing Your Business Accounts, Peter Taylor (How To Books, 4th edition 1998).
Marketing for Small Publishers, Bill Godber, Robert Webb and Keith Smith (Journeyman/Pluto Press, 2nd edition 1992).
Print How You Can Do It Yourself, Jonathan Zeitlyn (Interchange Books, 15 Wilkin St, London NW5 3NG).
Publishers in the United Kingdom and Their Addresses (Whitaker).
Publishing Now, Peter Owen (ed.) (Peter Owen, 1993). Up-to-date survey of publishing industry in Britain and USA.
Small Business Guide, Sara Williams (Lloyds Bank).
The Truth about Publishing, S. and P. Unwin (George Allen & Unwin).
UK Book and Learned Journals Printers 1992 (British Printing Industries Federation). List of printers and facilities they offer. Free.
UK Publishers Directory, Ellen Rocco (ed.) (Gale Research International, 1993).
The VAT Guide (HM Customs and Excise, London).
Willings Press Guide (British Media Publications, Windsor Court, East Grinstead House, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 1XE, annual).
Writers' and Artists' Yearbook (A & C Black, annual).
The Writer's Handbook, edited by Barry Turner (Macmillan/PEN, annual).
Writing for Publication, Chriss McCallum (How To Books, 4th edition, 1997).
Writing on Disk, Jane Dorner (John Taylor Book Ventures, 1992).
Your Rights:The Liberty Guide, John Wadham (Pluto Press, 1994).
Many of the above books can be obtained from Book Publishing Books (BPB), a division of The Publishing Training Centre. Write for an up-to-date catalogue to BPB Administrator, Book Publishing Books, 45 East Hill, Wandsworth, London SW18 2QZ. Tel: (0181) 874 2718; Fax: (0181) 870 8985.
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Useful Addresses
American Booksellers Association
828 South Broadway
Tarytown
New York 10591
USA
Tel: (914) 591 2665
Arts Council of Great Britain
105 Piccadilly
London W1V 0AU
Tel: (0171) 629 9495
For information about grants and awards. The Council also publishes a useful (priced) list of press contacts.
(James) Askew and Son Limited
218-222 North Road
Preston PR12 1SY
Tel: (01772) 555947
One of the leading library supply companies.
Association of Little Presses
89A Petterton Road
London N5 2QT
Tel: (0171) 226 2657
Barcodes Ltd
Vale Road
Portslade
East Sussex BN41 1GD
Tel: (01273) 422693
Commercial supplier of barcodes.
Bibliographical Services
J Whitaker and Sons Ltd
12 Dyott Street
London WC1A 1DF
Tel: (08911) 32100
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(B.H.) Blackwell Ltd
Hythe Bridge Street
Oxford OX1 2ET
Tel: (01865) 792792
A leading chain of booksellers and library suppliers.
Book Club Associates
Smith/Doubleday House
87 Newman St
London W1P 3LD
Tel: (0171) 637 0341
Book Data
Northumberland House
2 King Street
Twickenham TW1 3R2
Tel: (0181) 892 2272
Marketing services company, which collects information about new books and compiles a database.
Book Marketing Ltd
7A Bedford Square
London WC1B 3RA
Tel: (0171) 580 7282
Fax: (0171) 580 7236
(The) Bookseller
J Whitaker and Sons Ltd
12 Dyott Street
London WC1A 1DF
Tel: (08911) 32100
The leading weekly trade magazine for bookselling and publishing.
(The) Booksellers Association
272 Vauxhall Bridge Road
London SW1V 1BB