Elements of your book

 

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Lesson #8
Elements of your book

 

What should you include in your book. Here are some possible elements. Some are necessary (like the copyright page) while others are optional (like the dedication). Some I recommend, and some I do not. See each item for specifics.

 

Title page

The very first page of your book is your title page. It contains you title, subtitle, and your name as the author. I usually right justify this text. In my view, it looks more professional than centering it, and it stands out better than left justifying it. (See the Nondesigner’s Design Book in the resources below.)

Please note that I did NOT include the word “by” before my name. I made that mistake with my first self published book; it’s a clear sign of an amateur.

 

You may want to include an illustration on the title page or the next page as I did with my novel, The Man from Sun Prairie.

 

Copyright page

Here’s what I typically include:

• Title and subtitle
• Copyright notice
• Credits for design, illustration, quoted material, etc.
• The book’s ISBN

For example, in my book, Bible Made Easy, I included the following:

In this instance I combined the title page with the copyright page because I wanted to get my reader straight into my system without a lot of page turning to get in the way. I usually use a smaller font for most of the information on the copyright page, often 10 point.

You might also want to include cataloging data. I’ve only done that with one of my books, but it does help if you’re going after library or school sales.

You definitely WANT to include the copyright notice. By the way, in the USA, once you write something, it’s automatically copyrighted. In the USA, you may register your copyright here to provide another layer of protection. I’ve done it once or twice, but usually I don’t bother.

copyright.gov/registration/

You NEED to include credits, otherwise you could be in legal trouble.

Your next item is a dedication if you want one.

 

Dedication

Nice but not necessary.
Short and sweet.
Pick up a few books and read some examples.
Don’t confuse this with “Acknowledgments” which is better suited for the end of the book.

 

Epigraph

Not necessary, but sometimes you may want to include a short quote or other short statement to set up the reader for what’s coming next. For example, in my book, Rethinking Our War on Poverty 2020 Edition, I used the following epigraph to set the mood for the book:

 

Epigraphs are sometimes placed at the beginning of each chapter.

 

Table of Contents

This normally goes next, although I did place the table of contents at the end of a couple of my books. If you’re self publishing, you’re in charge, you can do it however you want. But you gotta have a reason. In my case with these particular books, I wanted to move the reader directly into the book, and a table of contents would have stood in the way. In one of these cases, the table of contents was about 12 pages long.

LibreOffice and Microsoft Word both have features that automatically generate a table of contents for you. I recommend you use those features. Google if you’re unsure how to do it.

In some books, you may also want to include a list of figures and/or a list of tables.

 

LibreOffice

I should probably pause here and say that I’ve used LibreOffice to write and design the interior of almost all of my books. I personally like it better than Word because it seems more stable to me. And it’s free. It’s available for Windows, Mac, and UNIX platforms. A link to the download is below.

I did use Adobe InDesign to design the interior of my book, A Beautiful Christmas. It is a much more powerful design software tool, but if you’re not accustomed to it, it is not user friendly by a long stretch. If you want to go that route, Adobe Creative Suite is now available as a subscription and it gives you access to a couple dozen powerful software tools.

If you use LibreOffice to design your book’s interior, you’ll want to use the drop down style menu (in my version it’s just to the left of the font choice drop down) to place your headings in one of the headings styles. You can edit what those headings look like by clicking on the text of your heading and then going to Styles > Edit Styles.

 

Foreword

Note the spelling. It’s NOT forward.

Your foreword, if you include one, is written by someone other than you, signed and dated by that person. It’s part introduction, part endorsement, and it’s typically written by someone with a lot of clout with your intended reader. The purpose of the foreword is to add credibility and increase sales for your book. In fact, many book covers include the line “Foreword by Xxxxxxxxxx Xxxxxx” because it adds so much marketing weight to your book. If you can get a celebrity in your field to write a foreword for you, that’s a big plus.

In Amazing Faith, the book I coauthored with Dr. Thomas Shaw, Joni Eareckson Tada wrote the foreword. She was and is very well known by our target readers, and I’m guessing that her name on the cover of the book definitely helped with sales.

 

Preface

As a rule, I recommend you do NOT include a preface. Many readers won’t read it, and I always want to get my readers fully engaged in my message as quickly as possible. However, if you want or need a preface, here’s what it is: It’s written by you to tell your reader how your book came about. It’s not about the content of the book; it’s about the existence of the book. It stands outside the book. If someone asked you at a party, “Tell me the story behind your book,” the preface is your answer.

Some people place acknowledgments after the preface. I prefer to move it to the back of the book.

 

Introduction

In contrast to the preface, your introduction introduces the content of your nonfiction book. You use it to help your reader get up to speed about what she will be reading.

I don’t like introductions, and I seldom include them. Here’s why: Many readers don’t read them. I don’t want to waste time writing something that a reader isn’t going to read. I take whatever content was going to go in the introduction and put it elsewhere in the book, usually in the first chapter.

 

Prologue

In your novel or fiction book, you have the option of including a prologue which is written from the point of view of a character in your book, or, as is often the case, a character from a different time period than the main story of your book. The prologue sets up a context for your story. It may help establish the stakes for your story. As with so many of these other things, if it doesn’t grab your reader and move your story forward, do not include it. I’ve worked with many first time authors. I know it’s tempting to put decorations in your book that you don’t need. Keep ’em out unless they add real value to your book.

 

Body or chapters

The body of your book is typically, but not always, arranged into chapters. Sometimes those chapters are grouped into sections or parts.

When I can, I try to start a new section or chapter on the right side or odd numbered page. I don’t always do that, but I think it looks more professional. You can use an entire page for a chapter heading, almost like a new book cover for each chapter. I did that with the textbook I wrote, Spiritual Self Defense. Here’s an example:

 

Your book may also contain:

Of course, in addition to text, your book may include footnotes, photos, images, illustrations, sidebars, tables, diagrams, comics, charts, or figures. I’ve included all of those at various times. Be sure to include captions where needed, credits where needed, and be consistent with your styling.

 

Epilogue
Optional. It brings your story to a close. Could be used with fiction and/or life story. It might tie into the prologue.

 

Conclusion
A final takeaway or a summary of the message of the book. I’m iffy about including this, but could see how it could work for some books.

 

Afterword
Similar to a preface, though it may be written by the author or by someone else. I’ve never included this.

 

Postscript
An afterthought. Like a PS in a letter. I’ve never included this.

 

Appendix
Appendices are common in nonfiction books, particularly more technical books. You may want to include a paper, a document, an article, or something outside the main message of your book that helps to augment your message or in some other way inform your reader. In my book, Bible Made Easy, I included several appendices to supplement the reader’s understanding of the Bible.

In some cases you may want to include maps, timelines, list of characters. You don’t need to call these appendices, but they’re usually placed here, or in some cases, near the beginning of the book. Some authors add an addendum or addenda (plural) toward the end of the book. I did that with Weathering Storms as my dad died just before the book went to press, and I wanted to include a page honoring him.

 

Endnotes
I usually use footnotes, but endnotes make more sense for some books. Normally, they are organized by chapter.

 

Glossary
If you’re introducing jargon or technical terms that may be unfamiliar to some readers, a glossary or alphabetical list of words/phases and their meanings can be a big plus.

 

References or Resources
Sometimes called a bibliography. This is a list of books, websites, organizations, or other resources referenced in the book and/or helpful to the reader but not specifically cited.

 

Contributors
More than one author? You’ll want to include a little information about each one. Normally, this list is organized in alphabetical order by last name. It could be at the end or at the beginning of the book.

 

Index
If you want libraries to buy your nonfiction book, an index is a big plus. Alphabetical, of course. Here’s how to create an index in LibreOffice…

 

Acknowledgments
Not to be confused with the dedication, this is where you express your gratitude to those who helped make your book a reality. While many publishers place this near the beginning, I prefer to place it near the end. While a dedication might be 30 words or less, acknowledgments are often 300 words or more. By the way, note the spelling. There’s no “e” after the “g” in American English usage.

 

About the Author
I often include a brief bio on the author. I try to make it relevant to the reader. If you want your readers to contact you, you can include the contact information you feel comfortable sharing. Do NOT include your physical address, and I recommend you do NOT include your phone number. You might want to include an email address or a website with a contact form or a Facebook page or group. In some cases, a PO Box might be okay to include, but, keep in mind, your book will last for a long time—how long do you want to be paying for that PO Box? One of my books has a UPS Store address. I had a box there for several years, but I’ve since moved out of the area, and it made no sense to keep it. So if you found that address and mailed me a thousand dollars just because you’re such a nice person, I didn’t receive it. Oops.

 

Order Here
You have the option of including a book order form so readers can order additional copies of this or any of your other books.

 

Other books
You might call this “Coming Soon” or “Read More” or whatever. Here you might include the first chapter of the next book in your series, and/or a list of other books with brief excerpts, endorsements, or promotional text.

 

Back cover

Many readers look at the back cover of a book before they open it. This is the place where you “sell” the book to a prospective reader. You may want to include “blurbs” or endorsements (see below), ideally from people known and respected by your target reader. You may also include a brief summary of the book, or an excerpt to generate interest. You may include a photo of yourself if that helps sell the book.

 

Endorsements

You can include endorsements wherever you want in your book. Generally they go on the back cover. But I’ve also included them at the very beginning even before the title page, or elsewhere.

When I ask people for endorsements, I usually ask for a short paragraph—just a couple of sentences. Typically, I’ve sent the reviewer a pdf copy of the book and asked them to get back to me by a specific date—usually about three weeks out. In the endorsement, I want them to say who should read the book and why. I usually include a little bit of information about the reviewer when I publish the endorsement.

Here are a few of the endorsements I received for my book, What I Believe About You:

 

Dwight Clough has offered us a gift here, a guide to the most important conversation you’ll want to have with your friends. What I Believe About You is an easy on ramp for getting up to road speed with the big questions of life, and acts as a tour guide to finding your meaning and purpose in the designs of a good God. Pick up a copy of this book around a few coffee talks with a friend, and let it propel you into your destiny as a friend of God. ~ Joseph Steinke, 24-7 Prayer Global Team, 24-7prayer.com

 

I love reading Dwight’s books. He takes deep truths and makes them accessible, engaging, and shareable. I’ve personally distributed over a hundred copies of The Easy Bible to help people who are new to the Jesus story get connected with God’s life-giving word. I’ll use What I Believe About You in a similar way. Buy a copy. Give a copy. Live a copy. This is really good stuff. ~ Pastor Israel Haas, TorrentChurch.com

 

This book is masterfully and beautifully written, full of wise counsel, filled with life changing applications and is simply a blessing to read. The author brings to the forefront that all knowledge begins with God, His living Word and God’s plans and purposes in our lives. This book will enable every reader to take hold of powerful kingdom truths. ~ J.P. Olson, Journey Into the Word with J.P. Olson, TheWordwithJPOlson.com

 

This is one of those books that makes you say, “Finally, someone said it!” Dwight pulls back the veil to a life-giving Gospel, breaking it down with stories and illustrations that disarm and empower the reader to see past their brokenness, and into the true reality of Jesus and our identity in Him. If you want to learn how to have conversation about the Gospel without sounding divisive, but with meekness and respect, this is a great way to start! ~ Keith Gilmore

For an excellent article on the elements of a book, see this page…

 

Coming up!

Designing your book inside and out. What’s the biggest mistake made by new self-published authors? Poor design. By poor design I don’t just mean the cover, although I do mean that as well. I mostly mean the interior. Without realizing it, most new authors create a book that readers will NOT want to read. But we can fix that. I’ll show you how to create a book that you’ll be proud of with 100% free software.

Course index and link to next lesson are below

 

 

Recommended resources and sample books

Yes, these are referral links so there is a danger that I might make money if you click through and purchase…

 

More resources

LibreOffice, a free alternative to Microsoft Word (scroll down for the most recent stable version)

Download GIMP, a free alternative to PhotoShop

AWeber, an email list management service—I’ve experienced excellent customer service from these folks (and, yes, this is a referral link)

How I Sold 1 Million eBooks in 5 Months

Dan Poynter’s Self-Publishing Manual: How to Write, Print and Sell Your Own Book (Volume 2)

1001 Ways to Market Your Books: For Authors and Publishers, 6th Edition

 

About Dwight Clough

I am a national award-winning writer, published author (20+ books), ghostwriter, and publishing consultant. Since 1983, I have worked on a wide range of writing projects for thousands of enthusiastic clients. I’ve helped clients write, rewrite, and publish their books.

I specialize in Christian inspirational, life story, devotional, educational and leadership books, but I’ve worked on other book projects ranging from microbiology to mental health.

You can reach me here:

 

 

 

 

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