Question1 Physical Factors that Influence the Book Selection Process After considering the importance of motivation in the classroom and the strategies that teachers instruct students to use, it is then critical to consider the specific factors that actually motivate students to select a book and begin reading it. The factors that will be discussed below are the physical characteristics of books that are found appealing to readers, after their interests have been considered. Several studies have been conducted that evaluate the factors that impact book selection, but very few have been done specifically on the physical traits. Edmunds and Bauserman (2006). Front Cover When choosing a book, the front cover is typically the first thing readers notice. Book covers can have a great influence on the book selection process. One of the best strategies for choosing books is to ignore the common phrase, ‘Don’t judge a book by its cover.’ Book covers can contain several clues as to the genre, age and gender appropriateness, and whether or not the book is a recent release. Lohmiller (2008) would agree about judging a book by its cover. She describes one of her experiences checking out books at a library, where the librarian was baffled that she needed books with the exact ISBN’s listed; “What did it matter if it was hardback, library binding, or paperback? The content was the same. But the content doesn’t matter if no one checks it out. It’s not what’s inside that counts. I select books by their covers” (p. 13). Illustrations When choosing the books for the classroom library, according to the findings of Edmunds and Bauserman (2006), “teachers need to provide a variety of books that have different characteristics that children will desire to read—books that are scary or funny or have good illustrations” (p. 421). Not only should teachers include these factors when choosing narrative texts for their classrooms, but also for expository texts. In addition to children being influenced to read a narrative text, based on the characteristics of a book, they are also drawn to expository text for the same reasons and more. Title For some readers, the title can be the deciding factor if the book will get read or if it will not. Book marketing companies are aware of the impact the title has on the selling of literature, and therefore it must be catchy and enticing to the reader in some way. Ross and Chelton (2001) agree by saying that “readers said they were drawn both to an unusual, catchy title (in the case of an unfamiliar book) and to a familiar title that struck a chord” (p. 53). Book Length Ross and Chelton (2001) identify the “mood of the patron” when selecting a book to be very influential in the choice that he or she makes at that moment. With that said, PhythianSence and Clark (2008) recognize that students go into the book selection process with a specific desired reading experience in their mind. Print Size Very little information has been found on how influential the size of print impacts students when they select books to read for pleasure. However, the size of the print can give the reader a sense of the difficulty level of the book. Back-of-the-Book Summary In terms of the back-of-the-book summaries, or blurbs, students have kjj observed reading them to gather a quick introduction to what the book will entail. Results from a study conducted by Swartz and Hendricks (2000) mentioned that 18 of the 31 participants used the back-of-the-book summaries as a deciding factor in the book selection process. Summary The review of literature in this chapter focused on examining the theories behind motivation as well as how educators can use motivation in the classroom, specifically when reading. Understanding the underlying issues of motivation, teachers are better able to plan their curriculum and use instructional methods that will work well with students. Question 2 1. A Computer running Photoshop. You can’t just receive an image and press ‘print’. When you shift from one medium to another (screen to paper) or one scale to another (art on the wall to art on the page), colour and perceptions change. It’s important to try and understand these shifts and translate them into the visual language of print. Photoshop gives you the tools to do this. 2. A Monitor. You don’t have to have an expensive monitor, just a consistent one. The human brain is not very good at remembering, with any accuracy, specific colours, but it is brilliant at detecting difference. We use a basic Eizo monitor because we can get close to the dull, lack of brightness that is printing on paper. We are looking for problem colours, colour shifts and issues around brightness and clarity especially when we shift from RGB to CMYK colour space. When we get an image, we look to see what is important in it and try to create and maintain a sense of difference and structure. For instance, working on an image, perhaps you are unable to recreate the exact shade of green in a tree. This isn’t necessarily a problem, the eye is unlikely to notice the wrong green; it will, however, notice differences in the shades of green within that tree. You need to recreate the difference, not the exact colour, because the difference is what matters. 3. A Press. Because you do have to print something. In the mid 2000s I spent time researching all our options for printing, looking at using both digital and offset litho printing. I wanted to print our books on uncoated paper, and so that ruled litho out on quality as well as cost. I’m not saying you can’t print litho as well as digital on uncoated papers, but it is more difficult. As for digital, although some other digital presses delivered superficially better results with zero intervention to the files, only the HP Indigo allowed full flexibility on colour intervention, printing on any stocks, with finer screens, special colours and mixed grain directions. In other words, it behaved like a conventional press. It is capable of printing some of the most delicate, bold, dramatic or sublime colour. The HP Indigo’s colour rivals gravure at its best while the text is so black it could be an impressionless letterpress. 4. A sewing machine. If you want the book to open flat and to last then you have to section sew. Although you could sew everything by hand, our bindery uses a Muller Martini semi-automatic sewing machine, which was supplied by Oscar Friedheim so long ago that they can’t find any record of it. On the other hand, there is more kit coming onto the market, such as the Smyth F3088 with Digital 88 front end feeder. However, the cost of this type of automation is high and needs to be weighed carefully against your own utilisation. Ultimately, all that matters is clean sewing, not too tight and without broken threads. 5. Foil blocking press. Artisan Books have a standard label that obviates the need for blocking on the face or on the spine but still needs a plate marked area created to recess it. Foil blocking presses are necessary in any bindery. If you are foil blocking, the best results will always be from brass rather than magnesium dies Question 3 Papyrus scrolls were the earliest forms of books, superseded in the 6th century by the codex. The codex was more portable, sturdier, and easier to store, which made it a more popular format. During the Middle Ages, books were handwritten on parchment and then painstakingly decorated. At this time, monasteries were the centers of intellectual life, and most book copying happened in their scriptoria. Until the invention of mechanical movable type, books were expensive and not widely available. Question 4 Title Page One of the first pages you see when you open a book, whether in print or on an e-reader, is the title page. This simple page just lists your title in large font, centered both vertically and horizontally on the page. Below it goes your name (or your pen name). If you’re using a publishing company (whether a traditional publisher or a publishing company you’ve created), the company’s name and logo goes at the bottom of the title page. The title page is always a right-hand page. Other Works If you’ve written other books, the Other Works page is the right place to list them! Many series authors include the list of books in the series, in order, so that readers can see what else is available. Authors might also include other series they’ve written, nonfiction books, or any other texts that might be of interest to their readers. The Other Works page can be either a left- or right-hand page. Colophon All that legalese at the front of a book is called the “colophon.” This page gives all the statistical and professional information about the book, and it’s where you put your copyright information, ISBN, and any information about contributors like cover artist or illustrator. The colophon is typically the first left-hand page after the title page. It often uses a much smaller font than the main text of the book. Dedication or Epigram The dedication or epigram is an optional page near the front of your book. If you want to give a shout-out to one or two particular people, this is the place to do it. If you’re planning to thank lots of people, save the list for the acknowledgments page; this is for a very special thank you to someone specific. A dedication can be as simple as “To Joe” or it can be a longer, more personal message. Table of Contents The table of contents is a key part of most nonfiction books (and also a few fiction books). It acts as a road map for the book, listing the chapter titles and the page each chapter starts on. There’s a lot of different formats you can use, including tabbed charts, dot leaders, and justified alignment. But basically, you just need to put each chapter number, chapter title (if you have one), and page number on its own line. Introduction or Foreword This is another optional section. The introduction might be something you’ve written to help explain the motivations behind the book, or it might be a summary written by someone else. Often, an introduction that’s written by another person is called a foreword. The introduction starts on a right-hand page and can run for a couple of pages before the start of the book’s actual text. Text After you’ve gotten all of those formalities out of the way, you can finally put your actual text into your book! The main text always starts on a right-hand page. Typically, you’ll put the chapter number about a third of the way down the page, then start the text a few lines below that. Appendices, Notes, or Bibliography Some books, particularly nonfiction, need to provide extra information like appendices, notes, or bibliographies. These go at the end of the book, after all the text. You can use one, several, all, or none of these sections, depending on your book’s specific needs. Appendices An appendix typically consists of supplemental material to support the main text of your book. Examples include groups of photos or illustrations, lists of vocabulary or ideas, relevant quotes, or rundowns of characters or places found in the book. Notes Notes can be formatted either within the text of your book, as footnotes on the page where the note is needed, or as endnotes that appear after the text. These add some relevant information to whatever you’re making a note about, but are typically tangential to the topic. So if you’ve found out something really interesting about, say, King Henry that you want to share, but that is too much of a digression from the point you’re making in the text, you might include it as a note. When writing endnotes, you’ll typically divide them up by chapter for easier referencing. So you’d put Chapter 1 and then write all your notes below that heading, then move on to the notes for Chapter 2 and so on. Bibliography If you’ve cited any sources in your text, you need to provide your readers with a way to find those sources to read on their own. This also goes for long quotes that you’ve included; in order to be free and clear of plagiarism issues, you need to provide a way for readers to find the original source. That way is called the bibliography. Acknowledgements Towards the end of the book, you can take a page or two to thank all the people who have helped you during the process of writing it. Many authors include their editor, agent, cover designer, and other key figures in their acknowledgments. Family, close friends, and pets are also popular. If someone gave you particular help with the research, fact-checked your use of medieval warfare tactics, or let you follow them around on the job, it’s appropriate to thank them here. Much like other specialty pages in the book, the acknowledgments page goes on a right-hand page and starts about a third of the way from the top. Author Bio It’s a good idea to include an author bio in your books so that readers can get a little more familiar with who you are. This isn’t a five-page Wikipedia article—it’s just one to three paragraphs about you. It’s typical to include other books you’ve written, key accomplishments, major publications you’ve written for, or fun facts about who you are and where you live. This is also a perfect place to put your social media info—encourage your readers to connect with you on your website, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. In your ebook version, you’ll want to add direct links to all of these so that the reader can follow you with just a click or two. Coming Soon One book section that was popular in the golden age of pulp fiction that’s now making a comeback is the Coming Soon page. If you’ve already started working on your next book, this is a perfect place to put a teaser—think about including the first chapter of the next book in your series to whet readers’ appetites for more.
