The
word appearance has two meanings: one
literally means to appear; the other describes what something looks like. Let’s
talk about the first meaning, which is the first thing a writer thinks about: how am I going to get this book to readers?
Most writers will have gone through the arduous task of sending work out to
agents or, in some cases, directly to publishers. (Though very few publishers, nowadays,
will accept manuscripts.) Some writers are successful and get published by the
mainstream section of the book industry.
After
the rejections, quite a few opt for vanity
publishing, which gets its name from the fact that writers—whom publishers
reject—are so vane, they get a printer to print their work and they sell it
themselves. The one flaw in the term vanity
is one’s perception of the abilities of mainstream editors knowing a good book
if they fell over one! When you try and read some of the rubbish that gets
published, you wonder if a machine read it, or the editor was drunk or
affected by some other malady. It goes
without saying, there are attics, closets, garages and charity shops, with
boxes of unsold, though not always unreadable, books.
Up until
fairly recently, mainstream and so-called vanity publishing were the only
options open to writers, besides the odd nervous breakdown—until the arrival of
the internet. E-books have become a growth industry for the vanity publishing
sector, and have opened a whole new dimension to publishing. Admittedly, in
some spheres of e-publishing the quality of books, both physical and
intellectual leaves a lot to be desired. A parallel of e-publishing is the
improvement and use of print-on-demand, which until fairly recently was a bit
disorganized, but has come on with leaps and bounds, mainly due to the advances
in printing technology and its wider use by the publishing industry and author
communities. Vanity publishing was the forerunner of print on demand, but due to
print technology advances, digital short run printing has reduced the economic
tipping point between laser and offset printing. The cost was cheaper the more
copies printed until the arrival of what basically were giant colour
photocopiers/computer laser printers. These machines are still enormous, as I
happen to know someone who sells them in the UK, and he tells me they are being
improved all the time. They cost about £250,000 a go, [ED-recent costs of the EBM can be found
here and here with standard and
more advanced models available for outright purchase or leasing] and are
mostly being bought by universities, health authorities, local governments and
in-house print companies. At the push of a button, the machine reads a file, and
minutes later, out pops a ready-made paperback, printed by laser with a glue-binding.
Laser printing is in fact more expensive than normal printing methods, but its
ability to do one-off books is its greatest benefit. Up until this kind of
print technology appeared, printing involved lithography or letterpress, and
was labour intensive to set up.
Naturally,
the mainstream people are not very happy, and old habits die hard. The clever
ones will either have the cash to buy one of these machines, or do a deal with
the likes of Amazon, and avoid the complicated arrangements in place for
mainstream publishing: printers; transport; holding stock inventory,
distributors and whatever: ad infinitum. Before I move on, let’s take a look at
what that last sentence involves. Printing: most mass-produced paperbacks and a
lot of hardbacks, are printed on very nasty paper, little better than thick
newsprint. The cost of printing these pulp
books is peanuts, probably 50cents plus (US). Shipping to the publisher’s distribution
channels depends on deals with hauliers and distances, before books reach
retailers. The publisher has to pay its editors (though in some cases, one wonders
why) and then it has to market the book, not forgetting the original
typesetting, cover design, proofing etc.
To get the book on retail bookshelves usually
involves a distributor, and they don’t come cheap. Before that, there is the
cost of delivering books to them! Most distributors charge about 50% of the
retail price, out of which they pay the book sellers their 30 to 35% for
selling it. I can see the calculators, abaci, of your minds doing some sums
(math in the US) and coming to the horrifying conclusion that the writer is the
one who gets the least out of all of this palaver! There are one or two short
cuts in the system, but they aren’t a great help: small publishers can sell
their books at book fairs, and some of the ISBN agencies will funnel orders
from bookshops, but that then involves the small publisher with a bill for
postage. A friend of mine, who is a small publisher, told me the other day that
Nielsen
BookNet had forwarded some orders to him, but the postage costs are
horrendous. The likes of Amazon have negotiated deals with the postal companies.
Hence you can get a book sent out for little cost. For example: I ordered a
book, which was sent out at a total cost of €3, but it was sent to the wrong
address. When my friend took it to the post office, she was told it would cost
€6 to post to the right address, but to send it back, would cost nothing. I was
refunded the €3 when the book arrived back at the senders. I reordered it, and
it was sent out for €3 and duly arrived at the right address. Again, I can see
your brains trying to get around that one!
The
last hurdle in the mainstream system is the displaying of your book in shops,
and any of you who browse in bookshops will know how hit and miss that is.
The
one big issue in the first meaning of appearance
is how you tell people it has appeared—been published. Publishers use AI’s
(Advance Information), ARC’s (Advanced
Review Copies), their trade distributor channel, data and catalogue listings,
which all go out to buyers at bookshops and they will put adverts in The Bookseller,
Publishers Weekly and so on. Vanity publishers have to do the same, and to some
extent, so do the e-book publishing services and self-published writers. One
advantage for mainstream publishers are that potential readers will find books
on the shelves, which is marginally easier than the task facing those publishers and authors relying mainly
on internet sellers, because the stocks in bookshops are smaller and quicker to
browse. When you see the numbers involved in internet sellers (new books), the
mind boggles!
Now
we come to the other meaning of the word appearance:
what your book looks like. Most people assume this involves just the cover, but
there is much more involved: font types and size; paragraph spacing; quality of
paper product; and so on.
Let’s
start with font type. Printer’s fonts can only be printed, as opposed to what
is called “one stroke script”, such as copperplate, straight black letter or
cursive: scripts that can be written by hand and were used in the writing of
manuscripts, and hand written letters etc. The most famous of printer’s fonts is Roman, and its origins date back to ancient
Rome, where it was used for engraving/letter-cutting of public notices. It has
serifs and tails, which cannot be done by handwriting, and when it is used in
calligraphy, it is referred to as “built lettering”, meaning several strokes
are needed to make even one simple letter. Of all printer fonts, it is the most
readable, and has withstood the tests of time: there are variations, which are
hardly noticeable to the average reader, such as Times New Roman.
What a
lot of publishers, mainstream or independent or self-published authors don’t
realise is that a significant proportion of the public suffer from poor
eyesight and dyslexia, and many read in poor light conditions or other
situations, which make reading difficult, such as trains and buses, so it’s
important to choose an easy to read font. This brings up the question of italics,
which a lot of publishers seem to think is very useful, but unfortunately, over
use it. Large blocks of italics are difficult to read for most readers, and I
will skip over such large blocks, picking up the odd word here and there, and
generally relying on the last few sentences to convey the meaning: if there is
any. A lot of italicised script is more often or not an aside or some sort of
flashback, and a lot of seasoned readers ignore most of it! So keep the italics
short and sweet! The next problem with fonts is using bold typeface in normal
text: don’t! I have also come across the bizarre use of italics and a fainter
tone of ink. One book had a grey ink, and it was virtually unreadable, unless
one got a daylight bulb! Some writers have the annoying habit of capitalising
the first word or more of a chapter: don’t, it looks cheesy!
Text
blocking is another aspect of appearance, and can be very threatening to a lot
of readers. The obvious physical problem that occurs, when one is confronted
with a page of continuous print, is being able to keep on the right line, and
the next is that of concentration. The fragile readers, dyslexics, etc. cannot
read such blocks, and seasoned readers instinctively know that the writer is
going onto a pet subject and will
start to skip through the text, knowing the writer is not going to stop for
breath: they forget that the reader has to stop for breath. If the writer was
to stand in front of someone and talk to them, they wouldn’t do so in such a
manner: they would stop for breath! The simplest way of breaking a text block
is to use first line indents combined with changes in the delivery, which means
you have to think about the construction of the text. Another is to cut it down
and reconsider the boredom aspect! While on the subject of blocks of text,
let’s look at text alignment. In normal writing, personal letters etc., the
alignment is to the left of the page, if writing in romance languages. This is
fine for dissertations, scientific papers etc., but in books, it is traditional
to use justified alignment, which is easier to read. I have come across some e-books
with left alignment and they look scrappy, untidy and annoying: you don’t want
to annoy your readers!
Having
mentioned first line indent, it is advisable to always use that, as again, it
makes reading easier: dialogue should be indented as well as paragraphs. The
indent means a change of instance or meaning, and without it, the average
reader will think there is a typo, if the next sentence starts at the beginning
of the line. It causes confusion, and in some cases, a rereading of a line,
before the reader realises a new meaning or situation has occurred.
Talking
of paragraphs, it is not a good idea to double space between every paragraph:
to the seasoned reader, it is annoying. It may be okay for children’s books,
but not for general reading. Its main use is when a new event is introduced.
For example, if subjects are involved in a journey, it helps to have the double
space, if you want to say what happened when they arrived. In a sense, it lets the reader get out of the
car—so to speak. It is also used when two events are taking place at the same
time, and the next paragraph might start with: Meanwhile, back at the
ranch......! A first line indent usually isn’t the best device to use there:
the double space is more effective and less confusing for the reader. Use the speaking to someone rule: stop for a
longer breath!
Visual
appearances aren’t the only aspect of the appearance: there is also the mental
aspect. When the reader absorbs the information, the brain needs to know when a
change is taking place, so we have inverted commas to indicate speech; we have
the simple comma to create lists, and to indicate a contradiction: the most
famous is when we use the word but.
Question marks, exclamation marks, colons, semi colons, brackets and dashes
(hyphens), not forgetting the simple single inverted comma, used to denote the
absence of letters or the genitive case (apostrophe), all help to convey
meaning to the reader when used correctly.
A pair
of inverted commas normally indicates speech. They can also be used to emphasise
a word, very often getting tangled up with themselves if they cover the last
word of a speech sentence: so you have to reconstruct your sentence. [ED-strongly disagrees with this, as more
often than not,
it is overused or wrongly used] In some instances, single inverted
commas are used for this purpose. Another form of single inverted comma is the
apostrophe, which is used in place of the word of when referring to ownership (That is the house of Mr Smith= That
is Mr Smith’s house). Its other use is to indicate abbreviated words like,
didn’t, can’t, let’s (let us) or that’s. (That’s: could have been used in the
“Smith” example just shown). The use of the apostrophe reduces the pedantic
nature of writing. It helps the glide-flow of the text.
The
comma with the most problems is the simple
comma, because it can completely alter the meaning of a sentence if it
isn’t in the right place: or missing. Its main purposes are, to divide actions,
to cause pauses, but not full stops. The best way to decide where pauses should
be is to read the piece out loud, as if you had an audience.
The
comma has set rules: to separate verbs; before the word but; in a listing; after a date; sometimes with the word because and sometimes before the word and, if the and is denoting a change of verb. (I came out of the bedroom,
tripped over the carpet, and fell down the stairs.) The and vanishes and is replaced by a comma, if another action follows.
(I came out of the bedroom, tripped over the carpet, fell down the stairs, and
my sister came out of the kitchen, to see what had happened.) Some writers, who
don’t know their grammar, will put a row of ands
together, which is really annoying!
If you
were telling that to a person, face to face, you wouldn’t have a row of ands,
and you would make suitable pauses or gestures, where the commas are. Basically,
the reader is reading out loud to themselves, and you must provide the right
punctuation.
Speech
of different people should have separate lines and be indented. I have noticed
that some e-book writers have speech and replies closely following, even on the
same line, and often without any punctuation between the two speakers. (“How
are you today, Charlie?” “I’m fine, Fred, how are you?”)
One of
the most annoying aspects of reading is that of consistency, and the colon and
its close relative the semicolon are one of the favourites. The general rule is
that if you have addition to a sentence, which can’t stand alone, you use a
colon. (Use the speaking to someone
rule: stop for a longer breath!) If you wanted to add again to that, you would
use a semicolon ( ........rule: stop for a longer breath; wave your arms.) I
have come across mainstream books, which switch from colon to semicolon as the
first colon mark. Another consistency problem is that of punctuation within
speech. (“He will always be like that.” Said the inspector.) That example is
the traditional way: a full stop followed by a capital. Some authors use a
comma and lowercase: (“He will always be like that,” said the inspector.) This
usage is more common in non-standard English, but if you use one or the other,
please stick to it. I have come across books with both usages! (This often is
the result of splitting a proof text and giving sections to different proof
readers!)
Besides
the punctuation aspect and the reader’s mind, there are a couple of grammar
rules that need to be observed: don’t start a sentence with but or and, because they are intended to be used within a sentence to
either add a point, or contradict a point. (We love listening to music, but not
on a Sunday) If you find you have written a but
or an and sentence, go back and fix
it. The and can probably be simply removed,
and just change the full stop for a comma, and lowercase the ‘b’.
One of
the main skills of writing is not the story: it is how you tell it. The skill
of the writer makes the reader disappear into another world, and glide through
without noticing. This is where continuity comes in, and sadly, some books,
stories are like a child’s first book: The cat sat on the mat. Dan and Mary sat
at the table. The dog wagged his tail. With continuity: The cat sat on the mat,
and Dan and Mary sat at the table, while the dog wagged his tale.
Adverbial
clauses are also another problem, when it comes to making sense and continuity:
At the top of the main street behind the post office next to the parish church
I saw a vintage car. If you said that face to face, there is no way you would
say it all in one go! So: At the top of the main street, behind the post
office, next to the church, I saw a vintage car. While saying that, you would
probably use hand gestures, or changes of voice tone.
Since
this is supposed to be an essay on writing, and not a book on the subject, it
is time to stop, before the reader loses interest!
Vincent
Flannery is an
author and producer-presenter of the Culture Gap Program, Radio Liberté, France (Every Sunday at
15hrs.(3pm local time) Internet and podcast).
I
was brought up in The Vale of Avoca, County Wicklow, Eire, made famous the
world over by Thomas Moore the 19th century poet, also author of "the last
rose of summer".
The
vale was also made famous by the BBC (UK TV) program "Bally
Kissangel" which was made in Avoca, and if you like my book "The
Quarreller's Diary" it will be even more famous!
I
was edumacated (!) by the holy Dominicans, originally made famous by the Cathars
and the Inquisition. Fortunately, by the time their attention came round to me,
their methods of persuasion had changed for the better.
Thinking
of how I ended up now, I'm not quite so sure about that!
I
suffer from chronic lack of focus, which for some, is an excuse for doing feck
all. My problem was that I was doing too many things all at once, so when my
writing career could have taken off, I let it be sidelined. I started writing
sarcastic stuff for magazines, which took the mickey out of whoever had the
nerve to pop their heads over the stockade when I was about to go to press.
That
was in 1984 and it was great fun. My second burst of such nonsense was in 1995,
and that was even more fun. That was when I started to draw cartoons to
accompany my articles.
In
2002 I decided enough time was lost chasing my tail and I wrote the first
complete book: HOTEL DE FRANCE, which related how I ended up in France. Hotel
de France is now on Kindle as "A Story of Aubeterre", with over 50
colour pics (best seen on a PC)
In
September 2012 I just put up on Kindle, a book of poetry, which has been
sitting around for a long time. A limited edition of handmade books was
published, but then it was put on the back burner: more lack of focus!
I
now also have an English Language program on French radio www.radioliberte.fr where
I talk more nonsense and some serious stuff: a section on writing and another
on Old French House renovations and care. Sundays at 2pm french time, and on
podcast.
Enough
to keep you going for the moment.
Guest Post: Appearances Can Be Deceptive - Vincent Flannery
