CHAPTER 16

The Production Process

The editorial team members (and you!) have worked magic, and the text is all ready to go. Now you need to kick back, relax, and wait for the bound book to arrive on your doorstep. But how does the edited text actually become a book? This chapter will take you through the production process. You may be surprised at how many talented and technically trained people have key roles in creating the book from your manuscript.

Elements of a Book

Before we actually meet the production team and watch them slowly turn text into a bound book, you need to fully understand all the elements of a book so you can better appreciate how much thought and hard work goes into each completed product. Let's start with the inside and work our way out.

Front Matter

Grab the nearest children's book and open it up. What you will usually see first is the other side of the front cover with paper pasted down on it and a facing blank page. Publishers will decorate these with illustrations or colored paper or just keep them blank.

Now turn the page. This next spread (two facing pages) will usually have a blank verso (left-hand page). The recto (right-hand page) is the title page. The title page includes — you guessed it — the title of the book, the author's name, the illustrator's name, and the publisher's name.

When you turn this page, you'll see the copyright page (verso). This page includes important information, such as who holds the copyright to the book and the illustrations, the copyright dates, the name and address of the publisher, where the book was printed, the publishing history of the book, the ISBN, and the Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data. The copyright page may also include other information, such as acknowledgments of permissions or a disclaimer.

What is the Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data?
This is usually referred to as CIP. The publisher must send in a form with the book's information to the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress then classifies the book and creates a record of the information. Libraries nationwide will use this information in their cataloging systems.

The publisher may also have separate pages for a dedication, acknowledgments, preface, or foreword, or the publisher may choose to combine some of these elements onto one page. If the book has chapters, a table of contents will be included in the front matter.

The Body

Following the front matter is the text, usually on a recto. If the book has chapters, a chapter title or number (or both) will begin the text. Each chapter normally starts on a new page. Some publishers open each new chapter on a right-hand page, and others start a new chapter on whichever page comes next. Some publishers decide to begin the chapter at the top of the page, while others begin halfway down the page.

If the book doesn't have chapters, the publisher will sometimes add a drop cap to the first letter of the text. The drop cap makes that first letter larger than the rest of the text and sometimes takes up two lines or more in height. Or the publisher may just choose to start the text right away without any fancy elements.

The body of the book will likely have page numbers. It may also include running heads or feet. A running head (or foot) is the information that is printed across the top (or bottom) of each page of the body. The running head or foot may include the author's name, the title of the book, the title or number of the chapter, or a combination of these. Chapter opening pages can sometimes lack page numbers, running heads, or feet.

Several decisions have to be made about the text itself, but we'll get to that in a moment.

A publishing company may choose to lay out the insides of a book in any number of ways. For instance, the copyright page may be the verso, while the title page is the recto of the spread. Board books may not have any front matter, and picture books may not have any back matter. Several factors go into the company's decisions regarding the design and layout of each book, all in an effort to make the book the best it can be.

Back Matter

The back matter follows the body of the text. The back matter could include a number of things, depending on the type of book you have written. Some common elements of back matter include: appendix, index, glossary, colophon (information about the production of the book, such as the name of the designer or what medium the illustrator used), and bibliography.

Following the back matter information, the very last spread will often copy that of the very first spread with the same design or color of paper used. And that's it! As you can see, a lot goes into the innards of a book. Now let's take a look at the outside.

The Look

The outside of a book requires a lot of planning. While it may not seem like much — just a front cover, back cover, and spine — this could very well be one of the most complicated elements of the book. The cover is what people are going to see first. If they don't like the looks of the cover, chances are they won't bother finding out what's inside. The cover is one of the primary selling tools of the book. It must be perfect.

The company will probably decide to publish your book in hardcover first. Sometimes a hardcover book won't have anything at all printed on the front and back covers. The spine will have the title of the book, the author's name, and the publisher's name. This is common in adult books. Children's books, however, will sometimes print the same design from the jacket directly on the hardcover.

A jacket will cover the hardcover, adding extra protection. For the prices we pay for hardcovers, we certainly should get a little more. The front of the jacket will have a design that identifies the book, the title, the author's name, the illustrator's name, and mention of any awards the book may have won. The front flap of the jacket will contain promotional copy, usually giving a brief description of the plot, and sometimes the back flap will contain the author's and illustrator's bios. The back of the jacket will include the ISBN, bar code, and price, and sometimes the publisher's name. You will occasionally find some promotional copy on the back of the jacket, such as quotes of praise the book has received. These might be excerpts from reviews, or blurbs contributed by writers in the field.

Paperback covers include the same information you find on a hardcover's jacket, but it's printed directly on the cover. If a publishing company prints a paperback edition following a hardcover edition, the covers of these two books may or may not be the same.

The Art of Design

Now that you know what all the elements in a book are, let's discuss how the book comes together to incorporate those elements. The art director has already developed a schedule for the books coming up, far in advance. He has assigned a designer to each book and will oversee their work. Sometimes a publishing company will have its own team of designers and equipment for the layout; others will freelance this work out on a contract basis.

The best way to get a grasp on design is to look at several different children's books. Look at the differences and similarities between books published by the same company. Also compare the books of one company with those of other companies. Are books designed differently according to category (picture book, early reader, chapter book, middle-grade, and young adult)?

The Designer's Job

First of all, the designer must know the trim size and page count for the book. This will tell the designer how much room she has to work with. The designer will then experiment with margin and gutter widths, fonts and their sizes, and leading (pronounced LED-ING; this is the amount of space between lines) to make the text fit in the allotted number of pages. All these components will either increase or decrease the amount of space the text takes up. The designer must also take into consideration the target age group. Early readers, as you know, will have a lot of white space on the page. Young adult books will have smaller type and little white space.

The designer must decide on the display fonts as well, such as for chapter titles. Speaking of chapter titles, the designer must decide how far down the page the chapter title will be placed and then how far from the chapter title the text will begin. The designer must decide where to place page numbers and where to place running heads or feet (right, left, or center).

A designer also has the responsibility of creating a cover design. As already mentioned, the cover design is very important because it influences the buyer's first impression of the book. The designer may create several different cover designs for the same book. Because it is such an important aspect, a meeting will usually be called to get different opinions before a final decision is made.

Do not try to contact the designer about your book. As mentioned earlier, it is unlikely that you will have much involvement in the production process, so if you try to force your ideas on a member of the production team, it will undoubtedly get back to your acquisitions editor. You will be regarded as difficult to work with, hindering your chances for future publication with the company.

Adding Illustrations

If your book has illustrations, you as the author will have very little say in the choice of an illustrator. The illustrator will go through a process of submitting roughs to the art director to get approval before completing the pieces. Once the art is completed, it will be scanned and then incorporated into the layout. Of course, the designer assigned to your book will play a role in this process.

If the designer is working with a picture book, she must decide where the illustration will be placed on the page in conjunction with the text. Look at the various picture books at your disposal. Compare the layouts. Some will have text that runs along the bottom of the page with the illustration taking up the biggest portion of the page. Some will have the text running along the top. Some will place the text within the illustration. And some will use a combination of these. Also look at the sizes of the illustrations. There is a lot of variety in the layout of text with illustrations. The final decision about these things is most often in the hands of the designer with input from the art director.

The Production Manager

The production manager has the important job of making sure your manuscript makes it to tangible book form. He begins plans for your book long before he actually receives it. Because the production manager oversees all books on any given list, he will have scheduled the printing of your book, as well as others, in advance of having it land on his desk. Once the production manager does receive it, he will send it off to the printer on the appointed date, ensuring a smooth and timely printing schedule.

While this may not seem like such a big job, the production manager has a lot more to do than just coordinate printing schedules. One thing to keep in mind, while reading about the role of a production manager, is that this person has the added struggle of staying within a set budget for each book. This will heavily influence most of the production manager's decisions and sometimes cause him to find creative ways of getting what's needed for the money that's been budgeted.

The Printer

One of the major decisions the production manager must make is which printer to select. Usually, the production manager will have a good relationship with several different printers, having worked with them in the past and on a regular basis. If this is the case, the decision may not be too difficult. However, if the budget for a particular book is lower than usual, or if a new printer has caught his eye, the production manager will need to do a lot of research about pricing and quality, getting information from various printers.

Sometimes a publishing company will choose to have a book printed in a different country. This is usually due to lower printing costs. However, this will increase the time needed for the printing schedule, as it can take longer to ship the book abroad than it would to send it to a domestic printer.

The production manager should be familiar with the capabilities of the printer's equipment and the quality of work it produces. The production manager should also know what the printer's needs are regarding submitted materials and advance scheduling. And, of course, the production manager must know the printing costs.

Paper Choices

Another major decision a production manager must make is what type of paper to use. While you may think paper is paper, it isn't as simple as that. There are several different kinds of paper a book may be printed on. Take a look at a variety of children's books. Can you feel the differences in quality and texture of the papers used?

For instance, compare a hardcover book to a mass-market book. The hardcover book will usually use acid-free paper, which will ensure its durability for many years. The mass-market book will use a lower-quality paper that will brown after a few years. Obviously, you get what you pay for, and this cost is reflected in the retail price of the book.

Price isn't the only consideration in paper choice. The production manager will also have to decide on the following.

• Weight. The weight of paper is determined by how much a standard ream of that particular paper weighs. For instance, 25 lb. paper means that a ream of 500 uncut sheets (25″ × 38″) of that paper weighs twenty-five pounds.

• Bulk. Bulk is determined by how many sheets of paper make up an inch.

• Color and finish. Color and finish affect the overall appearance of the pages.

• Opacity. This will determine if the text from the reverse page will show through.

As you can see, the paper alone calls for several decisions to be made. But the production manager's job does not end here. He will also have to decide on the type of binding for the book.

Binding

During the binding process, pages are put together in signatures, usually sewed or glued. A signature is a group of pages, normally thirty-two to a group. However, depending on the type of paper used, the press capabilities, and the trim size, a signature could also be sixteen, eight, or even four pages. The signatures are gathered and bound together, either by sewing or using an adhesive. The cover is then attached to the gathered signatures using an adhesive. If you don't understand this process, don't worry yourself about it. Just know that this is one of the many steps your book must go through to reach its final form.

A production manager may also have to locate and hire a company specifically for the binding. While some printers will have the capabilities for binding, not all do. A production manager will usually try to find a printer that can do it all, but if cost is a major consideration, she may not have that option.

Binding will affect how well the book opens. For instance, have you ever found yourself straining to keep a mass-market book open while reading? Sometimes it even requires two hands. Then again, the binding for music books often allows those books to open flat without your having to keep them open.

Going to Press

Once the production manager has made all necessary decisions, the book is ready to be sent to the printer. Because it is a minutely detailed and complex process, we will only briefly describe the printing process. Most authors find it interesting to learn at least the basics of what the book has to go through to reach its final form.

Blues

The printer will create a film from the files provided by the production manager. This film is used to create blueprints, commonly referred to as “blues.” The blues represent the book's final form. They are bound pages, but the quality will not be as good as the final product. The blues will be the last chance the publisher has to review the book before it is sent to press. Corrections made at this stage are very costly. However, it is important to double check the placement of illustrations, make sure that all pages are there and in order, look for unwanted marks on the pages, and confirm that all elements have come together properly.

The editor will highlight any corrections that need to be made, then send the blues back to the printer. If there are several corrections, the book will need to be typeset again and pages adjusted, starting the process over. After corrections have been made, the book will go to press.

Print Run

The production manager specifies the quantity for the print run in the instructions to the printer. The print run is the approximate number of books to be printed. The film is then used to set up the press for the print run. The book will be printed on large sheets of paper, the paper will be folded and gathered into signatures, the signatures will be trimmed, and the book will be bound.

Four-Color Printing

If you have written a picture book that will be printed with full-color illustrations, there is an additional step to be aware of. While the printing process will remain the same, color will need to be added.

Four-color printing will usually be used on covers if not in the book itself. The book jackets will go through a separate print run, and may even be printed at a different printing company. The jackets will normally be printed long before the book itself goes to the printer, since jackets are commonly needed in advance as sales materials.

This is usually done in a four-step process, hence the name four-color printing. The four colors used in this type of printing are cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (the four are commonly referred to as CMYK). The image will go through the printer four times, each time adding a new color. The combination of these four colors will result in the variety of different colors you find on covers, in magazines, and in illustrations.

The Bound Book

The production process, for an author trying to be so patient, can seem like a lifetime — especially since you will have little if any involvement. As you can see, the book goes through a lot of steps before reaching its final form. So if you were wondering why your book was scheduled to come out on a list two years after signing the contract, this is why.

Even after your book reaches the bound book stage, it will not immediately hit the bookshelves. The bound book will be shipped by the printer — or bindery if it was sent elsewhere to be bound — to the publishing company's warehouse. This trip could take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending on how far the printer is from the warehouse.

A publishing company's warehouse may be down the street from the publisher, or in a different town or even a different state. This is where the books will be stored until they are sold to buyers. Large publishing companies may even have several warehouses scattered throughout the country.

Once the books arrive, inventory needs to be taken to ensure that the shipment is complete. The warehouse employees will then either get the go-ahead to begin processing orders or be told to hold the books for a while to give the reviewers time to do their thing and bring attention to the book. Advance copies may also be sent to potential buyers as a marketing strategy.

As the author, you will likely receive an advance copy as well. This will be your prized possession, at least until you get another book published! Editors realize how exciting this is for authors and normally don't waste much time getting the bound book in the mail. This advance copy is considered a courtesy, so don't expect your other free copies to be delivered just yet.