Home > Frequently Asked Questions > Publishing Glossary

Frequently Asked Questions

iUniverse Publishing Glossary

Acknowledgments 
Recognition or honor given to people who have influenced the book being published or who have made a difference in the life of the author. 2) Section of a book containing such recognition.

Appendix
Part of book that follows a chapter (end-of-chapter appendix) or, more commonly, that comes after all the chapters (end-of-book appendix). An appendix contains supplemental material, such as tables or source material, which does not conveniently fit into a chapter.

Author Review
The phase in which the author will review cover and interior proofs electronic proofs (eProofs) and either approve for print or make revisions.

Back Matter
Counterpart of front matter. Any material, such as appendixes, notes, references, glossary or index, coming after the chapters of a book.

Bleed
To bleed means to extend outside the normal trim area of a book's page. A bleed is a bar, illustration, rule or other element that extends outside the trim area. Such elements have ink that is visible on the edge of the page in the bound book.

Book Block
PDF files that comprise all book content except the cover.

Book Consultant (BC)
Author’s book sales representative. Assists author with all book orders.

Book Pricing
Retail pricing based on trim size, print format (paperback, hardcover, or eBook), page count, and genre.

Check-In Coordinator (CIC)
Representative whose job it is to evaluate all submitted materials to determine if it meets iUniverse qualifications. Helps author to prepare publishing materials for production and design team.

Complimentary Copy (Comp Copy)
First printed copy of the completed book sent to author to be reviewed for any print errors.

Content Edit
A content editor will correct errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and syntax. This level of editing ensures the general accuracy and consistency of content and focus on more extensive restructuring of sentences.

Content Evaluation
Analysis of books content to ensure the originality of content. The content is also evaluated for any libel issues. 

Copyright (Registration)
Ownership of intellectual property such as printed matter, protected by law. The right to copy, repurpose or publish content of the copyrighted medium.

Cover Copy Polish
A service that molds the cover text that the author provides into marketable material, editing text for the hardcover flaps, back cover, author biography, and keynote statement.

Cover Design
Aesthetic layout on the covers of a book, usually intended to be attractive or alluring to the eye.

Cover Sign Off
A form the author signs attesting that the cover of the book is complete and authorized to send to the printer exactly as it appears in the eProofs.

Design (Book and Cover)
Layout, selection of font and font size and typesetting of a book. See Cover Design.

Developmental Edit
A developmental editor focuses on the big picture in terms of structure and organization, and he or she will evaluate a manuscript at the paragraph, chapter, and book levels. A Content Edit and Quality Review occur after the Developmental Edit and are included in the Developmental Editing service.

Distribution
Availability of book to retailers can be nationwide or worldwide.

Distributor
Company, group or individual who sells products or services to retailers instead of to consumers.

DPI (Dots per Inch)
Convention expressing graphic resolution of a graphic file, resolution of a computer monitor or potential printing density of a computer printer.

eBook
Electronic file format to which books may be published. Although dedicated devices may be used to read eBooks, they may be read on other platforms such as PDAs and personal computers as well.

Editorial Consultant (EC)
Author’s editorial sales representative. Assists author with all editorial services that will help you make your book the best it can be.

Editorial Evaluation (EE)
A broad assessment, a one-of-a-kind service that provides authors with constructive feedback from independent publishing pros on what works and what doesn’t. The EE is a high-view assessment, not a line-by-line edit.

Endorsement
Written statement promoting the author or book. Usually listed on the cover or the front matter of the book.

eProof
An electronic copy of the book galley or cover submitted to the author for review.

Footnote (FN, Endnote)
A footnote is a reference citations and supplementary information that appears at the bottom of a book page. A reader's attention is usually directed to a footnote through the use of a superscript character. An endnote takes the same form as a footnote but appears at the end of the chapter or book.

Formatting
Process by which a design team lays out a manuscript to create book pages. 2) Text effect applied to characters to make them appear bold, italic, sheared or otherwise.

Front Matter
Any material preceding the beginning chapters of the book including the table of contents, dedication, acknowledgements, introduction, and foreword.

Galley
A pre-publication copy of a book that is sent out to the author for review. Galleys have lower production values than finished books -- they are almost always paperbacks and usually don't feature cover art. Can be printed or electronic.

Genre
Broad category or kind of book, generally denoted by the book's subject matter. Some examples of book genres include romance, sci-fi, self-help and true crime.

Grayscale
Refers to images (which may originally have been represented in color) that are composed only of black and white and the gray shades in-between.

Hard Return
Occurs when the “enter” or “return” key is used at the end of a line of text rather than allowing the natural wraparound of the text to the next line.

Hardcover Book (hardback or hardbound)
Book that has cloth material glued to a type of pasteboard material, forming a durable cover and spine. Reference books and lending library books are often bound in this way.

Index
List of words at the end of a book that guides a reader to the specific pages on which subjects appear in the main body of the text.

Interior Book Block
All content within the book. Everything except the cover.

Interior Graphics/Images
Pictures, diagrams, figures and other graphical items that appear within the contents of a book.

Interior Sign Off
A form the author signs attesting that the interior of the book is complete and authorized to send to the printer exactly as it appears in the eProofs.

International Standard Book Number (ISBN)
Unique 13-digit number (10 or 13 digits prior to 2007) that identifies a version of a book.

Keyword
Important word or phrase that is input to conduct searches on online search engines and databases to find all related results.

Library of Congress Control Number (LCCN)
The publisher will apply for this with the Library of Congress on the author’s behalf and include on the copyright page of book if the service is purchased.

Line Edit
A line editor will correct errors in grammar, spelling, punctuation, and ensure internal consistency of style (including capitalization, specific treatment of words, phrases, and numbers).

Manuscript
Complete version of a book (must be an electronic text file) as prepared by the author. The term manuscript refers to both textual and graphic elements of the book. Editors and authors make preproduction book alterations to the manuscript. The finalized manuscript is used to produce a set of book pages.

Marketing
Promotional and advertising efforts to sell books.

Marketing Consultant (MC)
An author’s representative in the marketing department who will assist author with the understanding and purchase of marketing services. The MC helps an author determine which marketing services will suit their book and publishing package best.

Marketing Services Representative (MSR)
An author’s representative that assists with the fulfillment of the author’s marketing services.

Offset Printing
Common printing technology that applies layers one at a time. A reverse image of each color interfaces with the page via a roller. The roller presses against the paper applying the proper color of ink.

Online Bookseller (Online Retailer)
Bookstore on the Web that sells books and other publications to the customer at retail or discounted prices.

PDF (Portable Document Format)
Adobe Systems file format that can be precisely reproduced on different systems. PDF files are often sent to a printer.

Permission
Agreement from a copyright holder that permits the reproduction or publication of copyrighted material. 2) Process of securing agreements from copyright holder.

Prepare for Design
The Publishing Services Associate (PSA) evaluates all of the submitted materials one last time to ensure that everything is in order and ready to be moved into the design phase.

Print-on-Demand (POD)
Publishing arrangement in which books are printed only as orders are placed.

Print-Ready
Final PDF file of a book that is ready to go to the printer. See also PDF (Portable Document File).

Production
The process of designing the book’s interior and cover. The production team consists of an author’s Publishing Services Associate (PSA), book designer, and cover designer. Once all production materials have been submitted and evaluated, the book will enter production.

Proofreading
Final editorial check of typeset material to correct any missed or lingering errors. This service is only available for manuscripts that have received an editorial service.

Publication Date
Official date when a book is to be released to the public.

Publishing Consultant (PC)
An author’s representative who will help the author determine which publishing package will best meet an author’s needs.

Publishing Services Associate (PSA)
Customer service representative who acts as an author’s point of contact throughout production process. Also acts as a liaison between the author and designers.

Return
Book returned to and refunded by the publisher after failing to sell on the bookstore shelf. Only the front covers of mass-market paperbacks need be returned to qualify for the refund.

Review
Professional book reviewer's published opinion of a particular book in a periodical or online.

Royalty
Payment to a book's author that is usually a percentage of sales revenue.

Self-Publishing
System of book production in which the author generally assumes the financial risk of publication. The self-publishing model circumvents the need for an author to contract with a publishing house to ensure publication of the book. A self-published book is also usually distributed and marketed by its author.

Softcover Book (softback or paperback)
Book that has a paper or paperboard cover usually bound by glue, stitches or staples.

Spine Width
Width of part of the book that is visible on a bookshelf. The spine connects the front and back covers.

Table of Contents
This section, usually called Contents, appears in the book's front matter. It lists the book's chapters and their opening page numbers.

Target Audience
Specific group of people whom a book, series or genre targets. Book marketing tends to be concentrated on the target audience.

Text Box
A space outset from the normal text within the interior of the book in which text is displayed.

TIFF (Tagged Image File Format)
Compressed-file format for graphic images. The filename extension is .tif

Title Live
This represents a book’s status after it has completed the production process and has been activated by the publisher for sale.

Trim Size
Final physical dimensions of a book page after the book is bound and trimmed.