"Oh God oh God oh God oh God," is a fairly normal reaction to discovering just how monstrous the publishing dictionary really is. At least, that was how I felt when I learned that in the editorial world alone, there are acquisitions editors, developmental editors, editorial directors, editors-in-chief, executive editors, freelance editors, proofreaders, substantive editors, and... editors-at-large? Did they commit a crime, or something?
Never to fear—I've gathered all the important publishing words and their definitions, assembling them on this website like the most obscure Marvel team ever.
To make things easier on you and your learning, I've grouped the terms under three categories: The Book, The People, and The House.
"The Book" includes everything related to the manuscript, including editorial phrases you may be unfamiliar with (what is a "STET," anyway?) and the different ways authors might get paid.
"The People" is all about the individual roles people play in publishing, so you'll find the definitions of all the editors from above in this category.
"The House" takes a broad look at the companies (and alternate modes of publishing) whose inner workings ultimately turn a crummy, unedited manuscript into the sparkly, sprayed-edges hardcover propped up in a place of honor at your local bookstore.
Some terms & definitions may appear multiple times across sections (like "wholesaler" and "distributor" both appear under "The House" and "The People," since they don't really fit neatly under either).
Without further ado:
The Book - everything related to the manuscript/published book/journal, digital or physical, and the documents related to it
The People - all about the job titles in the publishing industry
The House - a broad look at company terminology (plus bonus self-publishing content)
A-Z (All Terms & Definitions) - a collection of all the terms kept in the dictionary