If you’ve written a nonfiction book that is meant to be informational, instructional, or a self-help guide, please use the following guidelines to apply the final formatting touches to your book. Please read each guideline carefully to be sure your book complies.

Table of Contents: The Table of Contents should be a list of your chapter names only. Chapters should not be numbered. Please do not include page numbers (since these will change) or Xs to hold the place of future page numbers. This will be taken care of at a later stage in production.

Incorrect:

Table of Contents

Step 1: Denial…………………………………………XX

Step 2: Anger…………………………………..…….XX

Step 3: Bargaining………………………………….XX

Step 4: Depression.…………………….………….XX

Step 5: Acceptance…………………….……………XX

Correct:

Table of Contents

Step 1: Denial

Step 2: Anger

Step 3: Bargaining

Step 4: Depression

Step 5: Acceptance

Lists: If your book includes any type of list, please include a note to layout above the list which specifies what kind of list you want it to be (numerical, bulleted, alphabetical, Roman numeral, etc.), and five Zs, dash “end” (ZZZZZ-end) underneath the last bullet point as an indication of where the list ends. An example is provided below.

The five stages of grief are:

[Note to Layout: Numerical List]

1. Denial

2. Anger

3. Bargaining

4. Depression

5. Acceptance

ZZZZZ-end

The regular text of your book should pick up as normal here.

Block Quotes: If you have a quote that is longer than three lines, this is called a block quote and will be set apart from the text. Insert five Zs (ZZZZZ) above to designate the beginning of the section. Insert 5 Zs, dash “end” (ZZZZZ-end) below to designate the end of the section. Our graphic designers will search the manuscript specifically for five Zs and will separate it from the text as a block quote. Cite the quote on the next line with the proper citation and page number of your source. (If your book has endnotes, you’ll put your endnote number at the end of your block quote.) No quotation marks are needed in block quotes. Below is an example of a block quote in a book without endnotes.

Michelson’s commentary on the stages of grief has the following to say about the progression through each stage:

ZZZZZ

Every person who has experienced a grievous tragedy in his life needs to progress through the stages of grief in order to heal properly. If a person does not progress through these stages, that person’s healing will be stunted, and closure will never come.

Michelson, 58

ZZZZZ-end

The regular text of your book should pick up as normal here.

Endnotes: In a book without endnotes, each in-text citation (meaning it’s not a block quote) needs proper citation at the end of the sentence. Please include the source and page number. For example:

Michelson says that if a person does not experience all stages of grief, “that person’s healing will be stunted, and closure will never come” (Michelson, 58).

If your book needs an endnotes section, endnote references will be located at the end of the text, but the numbering should begin afresh each chapter.

To insert endnotes into your text using Microsoft Word, select the Insert pull-down menu, followed by Reference, followed by Footnote. When you select Footnote, a small dialog box will appear for footnote/endnote formatting. Under Location select Endnotes and “end of document” from the adjacent pull down menu. Under Format: Numbering, select “restart each section” from the adjacent pull-down menu.

We cannot use footnotes. All footnotes must be converted to endnotes. To convert existing footnotes to endnotes, select the Insert pull-down menu, followed by Reference, followed by Footnote. When you select Footnote, a small dialog box will appear. At the bottom right of the section titled Location, click the box that says Convert. Once converted, be sure your endnotes are formatted according to the above paragraph’s specifications.

Index: If your book has an index, include only a list of the words. Remove any reference(s) to page numbers at this stage. Later in the process, when the page count is finalized, you will be asked to go through the manuscript and provide the appropriate page numbers.

BACKMATTER

The term backmatter refers to the text that will appear on the back cover of your book. This always includes a short teaser about the book and an author bio about yourself. Sometimes this can include endorsements, but endorsements are never necessary. Please be aware that because of limited space available on the back cover, backmatter must adhere to specific word count limits depending on the length of the manuscript. Typically, these are what those limits are:

Manuscript length: 0–20,000 words → Backmatter length: 200-250 words

Manuscript length: 20,001–80,000 words → Backmatter length: 225–275 words

Manuscript length: 80,001–up → Backmatter length: 300–325 words

Teaser: Your teaser should be a short paragraph that immediately hooks the reader by providing a small amount of information about what can be found in the book. A teaser should include the name of the book at least once and may or may not include the author’s name. In the editing phase of production, your editor will work with you, using the teaser you provide, to revise and refine it. Your editor may only use elements of the teaser you submit to make the back cover as marketable and intriguing as possible while adhering to the word count limit.

Sample Teaser:

Most people don’t realize how angry they are. And yet anger destroys millions of lives every day because people aren’t properly equipped to handle it. Author Janet Pfeiffer reveals in The Secret Side of Anger that anger itself isn’t the real issue. It is triggered by underlying emotions and problems that need to be addressed first. Cleverly employing a sarcastic, lighthearted approach, she provides simple yet effective techniques that anyone can use to confront and release angry feelings that might be on the verge of destroying lives. Janet learned the hard way. She wrote The Secret Side of Anger so you won’t have to.

Author Bio: Your author bio should be a short paragraph that provides information about yourself as the author. This can include but is not limited to: work experience, field experience that pertains to the subject matter of the book, education experience and achievements, current place of residence, and family information. Your editor may also work with you to revise the author bio to make it relevant and interesting and, again, adhere to the backmatter word count limits.

Sample Bio:

Mark Vernarelli is a twenty-eight-year veteran of radio and television journalism, having won two prestigious Emmy awards and numerous other honors for his reporting. He was well-known and respected for being a compassionate and thorough storyteller, able to humanize everything from the most serious calamity to the funniest street corner oddity. Mark found himself suddenly adrift when, in a period of nineteen months, he and his wife lost two parents, a job and a career, had two babies, and were forced to move. This flurry of life-changing events gave him pause, and life’s focus suddenly changed from the worldly to the everlasting. Christ Bars None is Mark’s first book, a welcome change for him from “telling the news” to telling the good news.

ENDORSEMENTS

Endorsements are never necessary, but if you have one or two to include, please click the Endorsements link and follow the guidelines provided there. If your endorsement(s) cannot meet the criteria set forth in the guidelines, please revise it or omit it.

Congratulations! You’ve finished the last formatting step! Please proceed by clicking the Submit Your Manuscript link at the top of the page.