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What is the index worth to
your book's bottom line··
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- in bookstore sales?
- in text adoptions?
- in reviews?
- in staff time?
- in typesetter charges?
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Who is best qualified to
better that bottom line:
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- the author?
- the computer?
- the professional indexer?
Consider: |
- Bookstore buyers and point-of-sale browsers...
use the index in making decisions.
- Educators and institutions...
use indexes in making adoption decisions.
- Librarians...
use indexes in making acquisition decisions.
- Reviewers...
use indexes as criteria for thumbs-up/thumbs-down judgments.
- Your production staff...
needs a fast turnaround on the index to get your book into the
marketplace.
- Your typesetter...
needs an index that is ready to go without delays or hassles
|
| Promptness, professionalism, and production
ease mean profits for you and royalties for your authors. |
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Entrust Your Index to a Professional
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| An index is much more than an alphabetical
list of topics with page numbers attached - at least, it should
be. A good index is a road map that leads any reader (actual or
potential, novice or expert) to every pertinent sentence in the
text, regardless of point of departure and without dead ends or
annoying detours. |
| |
| Creating a good index takes understanding
of the reader as well as the subject. It takes objectivity, perspective,
a sense of proportion and priority, patience, speed, technical training,
experience, knowledge of publishing practice, and the ability to
apply all of these under deadline pressure. That usually means that
the creation of the index should be entrusted to a professional
indexer. |
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| The American Society for Indexing (ASI)
can help you find the right indexers for your books. Since 1968,
indexers have been demonstrating their commitment to their profession
by joining ASI, honing their skills through meetings and communication
with a worldwide network of peers. |
| |
| ASI's Indexer
Locator is a directory of freelance indexers including contact
and background information for each as well as indexes by subject
specialty, type of material indexed, and geographic location. The
Indexer Locator is free to authors and publishers. For a copy, contact
the ASI Administrative Office at info@asindexing.org. |