A
Advance Reading Copy (ARC) – A pre-publication version of a book distributed to reviewers, bookstores, and other industry professionals. Also called “galley” or “proof copy.”
Antiquarian – Refers to rare, old, and out-of-print books, typically collected for their historical or artistic value.
Association Copy – A copy of a book that has been signed and inscribed by the author for a friend, colleague, or a person of historical significance. In addition to the signature, the author of the book will generally address their signature or inscription to the person with a personal note or salutation.
B
Backlist – Previously published titles that are still in print and available for sale.
Binding – The method by which pages are held together to form a book. Common types include hardcover, paperback, and spiral binding.
Blurb – A short promotional description of a book, typically found on the back cover or dust jacket.
Boards – The rigid front and back covers of a hardcover book.
Book Plate – An inscribed or decorative device that identifies the owner or former owner of a book.
C
Colophon – Publication details typically found at the end of a book, including printer information and edition details.
Consignment – An arrangement where booksellers accept books but only pay the supplier after the books are sold.
D
Dust Jacket – A protective cover for a book that is usually made with paper and wraps around the binding of a book. Can also be referred to as book jacket, dust cover, or dust wrapper.
Deckle Edge – The rough, uncut edges of paper in some books, either natural or artificial.
E
Edition – A particular version or form of a published text.
Ex-Library – A book previously owned by a library, typically containing library markings and stamps.
F
First Edition – The first appearance of an author’s work in book form.
Foxed/Foxing – Age-related browning or brown-yellowish spots that occur to the inside pages of book over time.
Frontispiece – An illustration facing the title page of a book.
G
Gilt – Decoration or lettering applied to the binding or page edge of a book.
H
Half Title – The page before the main title page, containing only the book’s title.
Hyper Modern – A very recently published book where the market price for that book increases rapidly due to book collectors speculating on the book’s future value.
I
Impression – The number of copies of an edition printed from one type of setting.
Imprint – The name of the publisher, including location and date of publication.
Inscribed – A book in which a written inscription has been made by the author to a specific person.
ISBN – International Standard Book Number; unique identifier assigned to each edition of a book.
J
Jacket Flap – The part of the dust jacket that is tucked inside the front and rear endpaper of a book. The jacket flap helps keep the dust jacket in place, and sometimes contains blurbs about the book.
L
Limited Edition – A book edition that is issued in a stated, usually very small, number of copies. Typically, the lower the number, the more valuable.
M
Mass Market Paperback – Smaller format paperback books designed for wide distribution through various retail channels.
Mint Condition – Perfect condition, showing no wear or defects.
N
Net Price – The wholesale price of a book to booksellers after all discounts.
New Release – Recently published titles, typically within the last 3-6 months.
O
Octavo – A size of book page that results from folding each printed sheet into eight leaves (sixteen pages). Generally, this results in pages that are 6 x 9.
Offset – A printing technique where the inked image or text is transferred from a plate to rubber blank, then to a surface of a page or paper, “off-setting” the print.
Out of Print (OP) – Books no longer being printed or available from the publisher.
Overstock – Excess inventory of books available at discounted prices.
P
Presentation Copy – A book that has been gifted to someone from the author without that person’s request.
Price Clipped – When the dust jacket has been cut so that the price of the book doesn’t show.
Print on Demand (POD) – Books printed individually or in small quantities as orders are received.
Publishers Remainder – New books sold at a discount due to excess inventory, often marked with a line on the bottom edge.
R
Rebound – Book condition when the original binding has been removed and replaced with new binding that has been attached and resewn.
Recto – The page on the right side of the book.
Replacement Value – The amount of money you would expect to pay for the book from a dealer or retailer if something happened to a book.
Retail Price – The suggested selling price to consumers, often printed on the book.
Returns – Books sent back to the publisher by retailers for credit, usually due to poor sales.
Review Copy – A copy of a book that was sent out for review before its publication.
S
Signing – An event where an author signs copies of their books for readers.
Slip Case – A protected sleeve, often made of either decorative cardboard or leather. It is open on one end allowing the book to easily slide in and out.
Stock Rotation – The practice of changing displayed inventory to maintain fresh appearances and promote different titles.
T
Trade Discount – The difference between the retail price and the price paid by booksellers.
Trade Paperback – Larger format paperback books, typically of higher quality than mass market paperbacks.
U
Uniform Edition – A collection or series of individual volumes of an author’s work that were bound to match other books in a series to be uniform in size and style.
V
Vendor – A supplier of books to bookstores, including publishers and wholesalers.
Verso – The page on the left side of the book.
Vertical Market – Specialized market segment, such as academic, technical, or children’s books.
W
Wholesaler – A company that buys books from publishers and sells them to retailers.
Writer’s Copy – The author’s personal copies of their book, usually provided free by the publisher.