Author
Creates the text and is responsible for its intent. Together with the editor, decides what stays in the book and what goes, and approves every change.
Who makes a book (in Russian)
Book people
Book people
There is usually one name on the cover, but a whole team makes the book. Some work with the text, others with images and the page, still others with paper and machines. Here we talk about professions, not particular people.
The best compliment an editor or typesetter can receive is that the reader never thinks of them. It means nothing got in the way of the text.
How this section works: we describe the roles and responsibilities found in almost any edition, and we do not write biographies of contemporary authors, publishers or artists.
Who works on a book
Six roles without which it is hard to imagine a manuscript becoming a finished volume.
Editor
Reads the manuscript through the eyes of a future reader: checks the logic, facts and clarity of phrasing, and suggests cuts or explanations. A good editor helps the author say exactly what they meant.
Proofreader
Hunts for typos, stray spaces, and errors in punctuation and hyphenation. Works on the finished pages and so catches what everyone else has missed.
Illustrator
Creates images that continue the text and sometimes argue with it. The chosen technique, whether drawing, engraving or lithography, determines how the picture sits on the paper.
Typesetter
Places text and illustrations on the pages, watching the margins, hyphenation, widows and orphans at the top and bottom of a page, and the consistency of headings.
Print technologist
Chooses the paper and the methods of printing and binding so that the designer's vision can be realised on real machines with real materials.
Imprint pages (in Russian)
How to find out who worked on an edition
- Start with the imprint details on the back of the title page or on the last page: they usually list the editor, designer, proofreader and those responsible for publication.
- Look at the title page itself: the translator and the author of the introduction are often named right below the title.
- Check the captions under illustrations and the final pages; sometimes the illustrator is credited only there.
- Compare different editions of the same book: a change of editor or illustrator often explains why they look so different.
- For old books, turn to library catalogues and reference literature on the history of the book: the volumes themselves do not always record who made them.
- Remember that the name on the cover is not the full list of contributors. If someone's name is missing from the imprint details, it does not mean they did not work on the book.
Read next
- Who makes a book (in Russian)
A note at an old catalogue address: the roles of author, editor, proofreader, illustrator, typesetter and print technologist.
- Imprint pages (in Russian)
A note at an old catalogue address: what a book's imprint details are, where to find them and what the ISBN means.
- Close reading
A step-by-step way to examine the design of an edition, plus a table of a book's main elements.
Sources
- Reference works on the history of the book and of printing
- International standard ISO 2108 (ISBN)
Historical information is based on reference literature on the history of the book and of printing. Details of exhibitions, museums and fairs change, so please confirm them with the organisers.