Book Publishing Glossary - Terminology Used in the Book Publishing Industry

This information is in the process of moving. For more Book Publishing Terminology, please visit the Glossary. dummy - the typeset pages of an illustrated book, with pictures in place.

e-book - a book that's delivered electronically to a device via reading software.

first pass - the first version of a book in a particular stage of editing or production review. For example, first pass manuscript, first pass pages, etc.

house style - an individual publisher's usage conventions for spelling, punctuation, capitalization, abbreviations, numbers, italics, hyphenation, etc.

jacket - the protective wrapping for a book, it folds around the book's case and doubles as a promotional tool. It is designed to attractively reflect the book's contents and its flaps and back are printed with enticing copy--for example, a description of the book, a bio of the author, and/or quotes praising the book, the author, or the author's previous works.

legal review - examination of the contents of a manuscript by the publisher's lawyers to to ensure minimal exposure to lawsuits by others. Legal review is common usually when dealing with non-fiction books where there's a potential for libel or defamation suits by people mentioned in the text.

layouts - the designer's sample rendering of the book, including such elements as trim size, typefaces, and arrangement of textual and illustrative matter.

manuscript - the typewritten or word processed work submitted by an author to put into publication.

on-sale date - the date dictated by the publisher on which books are officially available for sale. For some eagerly-awaited new books from bestselling authors, these dates are strictly enforced so that one retailer doesn't have the advantage of selling the book before another does. If this happens, it's referred to as breaking the on-sale date and the violators can be penalized.

pages - a printout of the typeset text laid out according to the design specifications.

p-book - a term used to refer to traditional printed books, to differentiate them from electronic books (e-books).

printer - the facility that produces the finished book in printed form.

proofreader - reads the typeset pages, usually against the manuscript, to check for accuracy of composition.

page proofs - are prints made from electronic files, plates, or film after typesetting. The pages look like they will in the final book, and it's one of the final review stages before printing.

pub date, publication date - sometimes differs from the on-sale date to ensure that the scheduled book publicity doesn't "hit" before consumers can find the book.

remainder - an overstocked print book that has been sold by the publisher at a deep discount in order to clear out inventory.

query letter - is a brief introduction and book summary from an author, used to solicit interest in a book from an agent or editor.

sample pages - selected pages of a manuscript that include all of the representative design elements in the book; they are used by the art department to create layouts.

style sheet - a list of spelling, grammar, and punctuation decisions that a copy editor creates for each book; used by the proofreader to make sure that style is consistent.