How Words Get Good

The Story of Making a Book

Rebecca Lee

$24.99

Paperback

Not in-store but you can order this
How long will it take?

Availability Information

We source books from suppliers in Australia and overseas. For books we don't currently have in stock, the time it takes to get them from our suppliers can vary widely - from a few days to a few months - so we check each book with each supplier to determine the expected time it will take to be supplied to us.

We then advise you accordingly. If the time taken to get any book is too long for you, you can let us know and we will cancel or adjust your order, and refund as required.

To find out the anticipated arrival time for specific items prior to ordering, please contact us by phone or email:

Phone +61 2 9264 3111, or 1800 4 BOOKS (1800 4 26657) if outside Sydney:
option 1 Abbey's Bookshop (Crime, History, Science, Kids & more) • info@abbeys.com.au
option 2 Language Book Centre (ESL & Foreign Languages) • language@abbeys.com.au
option 3 Galaxy Bookshop (Sci-fi, Fantasy, Romance, Graphic Novels) • sf@galaxybooks.com.au

QTY:

English

Profile Books Ltd
01 August 2023

Writing & editing guides; Historical & comparative linguistics; Grammar, syntax; Publishing industry

'Any bibliophile will find many enjoyable nuggets in this compendium of book chat' Stephen Poole, Guardian

'An engaging little eye-opener about the publishing business, full of tasty nuggets about books, writers and their editors' Sunday Times

'Enjoyable ... engaging ... insightful' Independent

Once upon a time, a writer had an idea. They wrote it down. But what happened next?

Join Rebecca Lee, professional text-improver, as she embarks on a fascinating journey to find out how words get from an author's brain to finished, printed books. She'll reveal the dark arts of ghostwriters, explore the secret world of literary agents and uncover the hidden beauty of typesetting. Along the way, her quest will be punctuated by a litany of little-known (but often controversial) considerations that make a big impact: ellipses, indexes, hyphens, esoteric points of grammar and juicy post-publication corrections. After all, the best stories happen when it all goes wrong.

From foot-and-note disease to the town of Index, Missouri - turn the page to discover how books get made and words get good.
*
* Or, at least, better

By: Rebecca Lee
Imprint: Profile Books Ltd
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Edition: Main
Dimensions: Height: 196mm, Width: 128mm, Spine: 26mm
Weight: 300g
ISBN: 9781788166386
ISBN 10: 1788166388
Pages: 384
Publication Date: 01 August 2023
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , General/trade , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Rebecca Lee is an editorial manager at Penguin Random House. She's spent twenty years managing hundreds of high profile books from delivery of manuscript to finished copies, signing off millions of words as fit to go to print with only the occasional regret.

Reviews for How Words Get Good: The Story of Making a Book

'A fascinating and funny look at what really goes into the making of a book' - Sunday Times 'A masterpiece' - Daily Mail 'Inject this straight into my veins!' - Lucy Mangan 'Engaging, informative, and fascinating!' - David Bellos, author 'Beautifully written, unbelievably well informed and utterly fascinating - I adored it.' - Shaun Bythell, author