This post is the forty-second in a series about writing a novel. You can check out the list of past topics at the end of this post.
Now that your cover and book description are complete, it is time to think about what else you want to include in your book because you need to include more than just your story. Everything that goes before your story is called the Front Matter.
It comprises at a minimum the book’s title and copyright information, but can include other things such as a preface, dedication, or table of contents.
What you include is up to you but don’t want to have a lot of front matter as this is just more pages your reader has to flip/scroll through to reach the start of your book. Also, if you put in too much at the front, it will decrease the number of pages your reader can download or view online as part of a sample of your book.
Title Page (*a must)
This page is pretty obvious. You list the title of your book (and series) and who wrote it. This looks best if you center it.
Quietus
Book Two of The Elemental
By Susan Leigh Noble
Copyright Page (*a must)
On the copyright page, you list the copyright notice which will contain the name of the copyright owner and the publication year. This page may also list the permissions and disclaimers. Keep the information to this page to a minimum.
Here is the copyright page from Quietus.
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination. Any resemblances to persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2011 by Susan Leigh Noble
Published by Susan Leigh Noble
Cover design by Donna Casey (www.digitaldonna.com)
Photos used to create the cover were obtained from dreamtime.com.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or retransmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system — except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed in a magazine, newspaper, or on the web — without expressed written permission from Susan Leigh Noble.
Dedication/Acknowledgement (optional)
If you would like to dedicate your book to someone, it is done in the front of the book. It is located after the copyright page but before any table of contents or start of the actual book. Again, keep this short – one or two people.
My dedication from Summoned:
To my husband,
Without you, this book would not exist.
Acknowledgments are to thank those people who have helped in the creation of your novel – the police officer you interviewed, your editor, your spouse for their support and so on.
List of other books (optional)
This is where you list other books that you have written. This can be listed in the front OR the back of the book. I personally like it at the back of the book when publishing an e-book.
Here is what could be listed in the third book of my trilogy.
Discover other titles by Susan Leigh Noble
The Search (short story prequel to The Elemental trilogy)
Summoned: Book 1 of The Elemental
Quietus: Book 2 of The Elemental
Preface (optional)
This piece written by the author often tells why the book was written, your research methods and perhaps some acknowledgements if they are not listed separately. This is more common in non-fiction.
Forward (optional)
This is a short piece written by someone other than the author and may provide a context for the main work. If this is a work of non-fiction, a forward by an expert can lend authority to your book. The forward is usually signed with its author’s name, place and date.
Table of Contents (optional)
A table of contents (TOC) is most often added to non-fiction books. It also could be used for a collection of stories whether an anthology, short stories or a “box set” of your trilogy to aid the reader in finding the story or section they want to read.
Now whether your fiction book needs a TOC is a matter of preference. Some authors and readers prefer a TOC. If you have given names to each of your chapter, a TOC might make more sense. Otherwise it will be just a list of chapters (Chapter One, Chapter Two and so on.) If you do include a TOC, it should be right before your first chapter or prologue.
Next week we will look at Back Matter which is all the stuff that comes after your story.
Previous topics
#1 – Deciding to write a novel – Writing Myths
#2 – Three areas to develop before starting to write a novel
#3 – Finding a Story Idea and How to Know if it “good enough”
#4 – Developing Characters for your Novel
#5 – Major characters? Minor Characters? Where does everyone fit in?
#6 – Developing the Setting for your Novel
#7 – The importance of developing conflict in your novel plot
#8 – To Outline or not to outline
#9 – The importance of a story arc
#10 – The importance of tension and pace
#11 – Prologue and opening scenes
#12 – Beginning and ending scenes in a novel
#13 – The importance of dialogue…and a few tips on how to write it
#14 – Using Internal Dialogue in your novel
#15 – More dialogue tips and help with dialogue tags
#16 – Knowing and incorporating back story into your novel
#17 – Hinting at what is to come with foreshadowing
#18 – Tips for writing different scenes in your novel
#19 – Dealing with Writer’s Block
#20 – Killing a Character in your Novel
#21 – Keeping things realistic in your novel
#22 – Establishing Writing Goals and Developing Good Writing Habits
#23 – Using the five senses and passive voice in your novel
#24 – The benefit of research in fiction writing
#25 – Novella or Novel, Trilogy or Series – decisions for writers
#26 – Avoiding Plot and Character Clichés
#27 – Novel Writing – Endings and Epilogues
#28 – Fantasy Novel Writing – World Building, Dragons, Magic and More
#29 – Finishing your First Draft
#30 – Your Second Draft and Beyond
#31 – Picking Stronger Words and Watching out for Homonyms
#32 – Omitting unnecessary words in your novel
#33 – Beta Reader, Proofreaders and Copy Editors
#34 – Knowing your grammar or at least using a grammar checking program
#35 – Using a Revision Outline during your Novel Editing
#36 – Editing Techniques: Taking a Break and Reading Aloud
#37 – Publishing Options for your book
#38 – Self-publishing an ebook decisions
#39 – Picking Your Book Title and Your Pen Name
#40 – Investing in an eye-catching book cover
#41 – Writing an awesome book blurb
Dr. Bridgette is a doctorly prepared registered nurse who specializes in education and community health. She has a heart for nursing students and those struggling to reach their education and career goals. She serves as mentor and coach to nurses and nursing students as they matriculate through the nursing profession.
I don’t know how or when they migrated to playing upstairs. Maybe it was that the Xbox One games couldn’t be played on the Xbox 360. Or perhaps it was the comfy carpet they liked to sit on verses the downstairs couch. But I guess the reason doesn’t really matter. The fact was that they were in our bedroom a lot. We would have to kick them off the Xbox if we wanted to watch TV in our bedroom or when my husband wanted his turn at the Xbox. (Remember, he did buy the upstairs unit so HE could play video games even if he doesn’t play that often.)
So, one evening, after my husband got fed up with the kids dominating our TV, he did a little late night online shopping, which is never good. (He is dangerous when he shops online at night. Who knows what he will decide to buy but that is a topic for another blog post.) He bought an Xbox One X using the money he inherited from his grandmother.
Until the first spooky visit, ten year old Chrysantha Howe doesn’t think about ghosts. She thinks about plants.
Into Another World 