Books on indexing

Books on Indexing

Facing the Text: Content and Structure in Book Indexing, Do Mi Stauber. Cedar Row Press, 2004.

Based on Do Mi Stauber's popular workshop, the book discusses such standard topics as subheadings, cross-references and indexability, in the context of particular texts and indexes. Hundreds of examples illustrate the many practical strategies that Do Mi has drawn from her own practice in social sciences and humanities indexing. The book goes beyond abstract rules to confront the unique needs of each text and index, and provides guidelines to help novice and experienced indexers alike make common-sense, flexible, and reader-centered decisions. For more details, go to http://www.domistauberindexing.com/

Indexing Books, Nancy C. Mulvany. University of Chicago Press, 1994.

This is one of the best books on indexing available. For a summary of this book, read the review I wrote for Key Words, the newsletter of the American Society of Indexers. This book is available from Amazon.com and many bookstores.

Handbook of Indexing Techniques : A Guide for Beginning Indexers, Linda K. Fetters, 3rd ed., FimCo Books, 2001.

Here's what Nancy Mulvany had to say about my book on her Web site (http://www.Bayside-Indexing.com):

"Linda Fetters has written a down-to-earth, practical guide to indexing. Readers of her software reviews will be familiar with her lucid writing style which she puts to good use in this Handbook. Fetters tackles topics like, "What the Index Includes," "How Long an Index Should Be," "Inverting or Flipping Entries," and "Indexing Books Before Pagination Is Known." We are lucky that an indexer with so much practical experience has shared her insights with us. I highly recommend this book."

If you would like more information about my book, you may view the complete table of contents. If you would like to purchase the book, click here.

Indexing from A to Z, Hans H. Wellisch, 2nd ed., H.W. Wilson, 1996.

In the introduction to the first edition, Wellisch states that his book is for :

"An author who must index his or her book while still weary from the arduous task of writing [who] does not want to read a whole book on how to do it."
"Those who want to compile indexes as a hobby."
"Students in library and information science courses."
"People who want to do indexing as a part-time activity, but who do not quite know how and when to begin...."
"The professional indexer...may wish to dip here and there into the book when encountering a particular technical problem...."

My personal opinion is that people in the first four categories would find it difficult to learn how to index using this unstructured approach, and that they would be better served by either Mulvany's Indexing Books or Fetters' Handbook of Indexing Techniques. On the other hand, professional indexers will find Wellisch's encyclopedic approach extremely useful for solving pesky indexing problems.

For more information go to http://www.hwwilson.com/print/indxaz.html.

Other Sources of Reference Works for Indexers

The American Society of Indexers and other indexing societies also list useful books for indexers. For contact information for the four English-speaking indexing societies, go to the "Indexing Societies page".

Many individual indexers describe reference works for indexers on their individual Web sites. You can find many of these URLs on the "Other Indexers" page.

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