- In the simplest terms, a book index is simply a key to locating information contained in a book. It is also known as back-of-the-book index, as it is mostly found at the end of the book. The words of the Index are sorted Alphabetically.
- Here is an Index screenshot below :
Book index sample - The Index words should be relevant and of interest to a possible reader of the book, so they can easily guide him to what he may be looking for in the book.
- The index terms can be names, places, events, or any other terms related to your book content. They can be single words or multi words.
- A book Index is different from the Table of contents(TOC). A Table of contents is a brief list of the book contents written in the order it appears in the book; e.g. Chapters titles. It appears at the beginning of the book mostly after the copyright page. Here is a TOC screenshot below :
Table of contents sample - Some International Organizations are specialized in putting the rules of book Indexes. Some countries have their own indexing rules, but at the end you should select the indexing rules and styling that are best for the book reader. That is your main target.
- Some tools are available to help you write your book index, like PDF Index Generator. Using such a tool will save you a lot of time.
The main idea of the book index is to help the reader find information quickly and easily. so you must make it simple and professional as possible. Do not make things hard for your book reader.
