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What practices will help me with good index term selection?

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Term selection is a key factor that determines the quality and usability of an index. Good index terms are clear, concise, intuitive, meaningful, and accurate. But what practices will help you achieve these qualities in your indexing work?

In his article for The Indexer, Zhang Qiyu (indexer consultant and information management professor, Nanjing Institute of Politics Shanghai) dives deep into term selection, exploring what term selection means, how to identify what is and what is not indexable, and matters such as structure and design of the index. In the article, he identifies several key practices that will help you select terms for a useful and effective index.

1. Always keep user needs top of mind

Consider what is relevant to the text’s audience and how they might search for what they need. For example, does the term reflect current usage? Would a synonym or variant form be more intuitive for index users?

2. Be familiar with the subject area

Understanding the text and its purpose helps you select terms that appropriately reflect the contents and are suitable for the audience.

3. Reflect topics from the text alone

Do not add information to the index that is not in the text. Where possible, index terms should be identical to the text’s terms. However, at times you may need to use variants or alternative terms if more useful to index users.

4. Include both explicit and implicit topics

Consider the text from different angles. Are there significant unspoken meanings and relationships within the text that would be useful or illuminating for index users?

5. Make connections within the index structure

Using double-postings and cross-references among the terms creates multiple access points to information. These elements can assist a wider variety of users and reveal meaningful interconnections.

6. Eliminate clutter

The greater the range of items in the index, the more useful it will be for different users. However, index terms must lead to information that is substantive and relevant to the text’s subject, purpose, and audience. Indexing topics that are irrelevant or only mentioned in passing will obstruct efficient searching.

Read Zhang Qiyu’s full article for free in The Indexer: The International Journal of Indexing (Vol. 27, No. 3) at liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/indexer.2009.32

What if I index my own book? How can I make it a success?

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In an interview with publisher Sandra Uschtrin, indexer Jochen Fassbender reflected on authors indexing their own work. Here are his comments: 

Advantages

  • Subject knowledge and understanding of the text are key to indexing. You know your text best and you can bring your in-depth knowledge of the field to the index. There are even some instances where authors have won awards for indexes they’ve created.

Disadvantages

  • A useful index is an analytical tool, not a keyword list. As such, you will be taking on substantial labour to create your own—potentially requiring several weeks—under a strict deadline.
  • Indexing a book is a very different mental process than writing a book. You may be too close to your work to be able to see it from a user perspective.
  • Equally important as subject knowledge is proficiency in modern indexing methods, tools, and best practices. If you don’t have this foundation, it’s easy to commit what Fassbender calls the “deadly sins” of indexing and fail to meet usability standards.

As an author, how can I make my index a success?

  1. First, honestly assess whether you meet the requirements for effective indexing. Fassbender recommends reviewing the “Authors and index creation?” section on the Deutsches Netzwerk der Indexer website.
  2. Pursue indexing training. At the very least, seek out seminars. To gain proficiency, undertake more extensive training and practice.
  3. Hire a professional indexer who works in your subject area. That indexer will bring subject knowledge to the index, while using their training and experience to create an analytical index efficiently, effectively, and on time.

Read the complete interview, including Fassbender’s discussion of the “deadly sins” of indexing and what makes a good index–for free in The Indexer: The International Journal of Indexing (Vol. 29, No. 1) at liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/indexer.2011.4

Related questions

Editors and publishers want to know: What makes a good index?

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In an interview with publisher Sandra Uschtrin, indexer Jochen Fassbender described some key qualities of a good index.

What does a good index look like?

The key qualities include:

  • Good term selection: The heart of quality indexing. Entries must be clear, meaningful, accurate to the text, and complete with locators. This is why indexing of a print book should take place only after the text pagination is final.
  • Comprehensive and consistent coverage of all important details and passages.
  • Entries for both implicit and explicit subjects (i.e., not simply a list of names and keywords).
  • All references to a topic consolidated under one “preferred” term, even if the text uses multiple terms to refer to that topic
  • Synonyms added to increase access points, either pointing to the preferred term via “see” cross-references or repeating the preferred term’s locators (double-posting).
  • Related index entries point to each other with “see also” cross-references.
  • Absence of passing mentions: This means the indexer did not index a word that is only in the text for illustrative purposes or otherwise does not provide significant information.
  • Accurate and explicit locators: Commas and dashes are used to distinguish between intermittent discussions of a topic on consecutive pages (e.g., 514, 515, 516) and continuous discussion of a topic on consecutive pages (e.g., 635-637). Furthermore, the start and end of page ranges are listed explicitly (e.g., 635-637 instead of 635 ff).
  • Ideally, main entries with more than 5 or 6 locators broken down into subheadings.
  • Appropriate length: Typically 4-5% of the length of the indexable material, and even 10% or more for reference works. Below 3.5% may be problematic.

Indexes with these traits add value to the text by ensuring users can efficiently find all substantive concepts, details, and facts.

What should editors and publishers look for in an indexer?

Read the complete interview—including Fassbender’s take on the “deadly sins” he wants indexers to avoid—for free in The Indexer: The International Journal of Indexing (Vol. 29, No. 1) liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/indexer.2011.4

Fassbender also talked about some of the things that an indexer needs to produce quality work:

  • Training and practice: Essential for producing good analytical indexes
  • Ability to anticipate users’ needs and questions
  • Some knowledge in the book’s subject area
  • Indexing software: Indispensable for increasing the speed of indexing by handling and automating technical components

Read the complete interview—including Fassbender’s take on the “deadly sins” he wants indexers to avoid—for free in The Indexer: The International Journal of Indexing (Vol. 29, No. 1) liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/indexer.2011.4

Indexing Society of Canada congratulates winner of 2019 Purple Pen Competition

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Photo of Vivian UngerToronto: The Indexing Society of Canada / Société canadienne d’indexation (ISC/SCI) is proud to recognize one of its members, Vivian Unger, for winning the 2019 Purple Pen Competition.

“This is such a wonderful accomplishment for Vivian, and on behalf of the Indexing Society of Canada, I offer my wholehearted congratulations,” said Alexandra Peace, President of ISC/SCI. “This award is a testament to Vivian’s great work, and a validation of the value that a professional indexer brings to each book. I encourage all ISC members to consider entering future competitions.”

The Institute of Certified Indexers issued the following announcement of Vivian’s accomplishment:

“Vivian Unger, of New Brunswick and a member of the Indexing Society of Canada, has won the 2019 Purple Pen Competition sponsored by the Institute of Certified Indexers. Her index appears in the book Too Dumb for Democracy?: Why We Make Bad Political Decisions and How We Can Make Better Ones by David Moscrop (published in March 2019 by Goose Lane Editions). She wrote a 10-page index for this 240-page political commentary, and the judges found her work to capture the author’s main themes and show a good web of terminology including many helpful cross-references and buzzwords from the field and author’s text.

The author, David Moscrop, wrote, “A book’s index is essential. A good index can make the difference between a volume being useful for accessing or sharing knowledge and being a frustrating experience of searching for your keys in the dark. Vivian’s index of Too Dumb for Democracy? is excellent. She broke down a complex subject into its essential parts and helped make the book accessible and, above all, useful.”

The production editor, Alan Shepherd of Goose Lane Editions, commented, “I’m thrilled for Vivian and hope that this award will allow her to grow her career and client base. The Press was delighted with the index that she produced for our book, Too Dumb for Democracy? Vivian’s index covers both people and events as well as abstract concepts and technical political language. She was able to quickly absorb and synthesize the ideas in the book and delivered a sterling index right on schedule.”

Vivian, who holds a B.A. from McGill University (major: CompSci, minor: Classics), completed the University of California, Berkeley, course “Indexing: Theory and Application” in 2017. She is the fourth Canadian to win the Purple Pen competition in its six-year history. Former winners include Stephen Ullstom (2014), Frances Curry (2015), and Sergey Lobachev (2017).

Vivian says that she landed her first professional indexing project in early 2018, a scholarly work on Cubist and Futurist art. Since then, she has indexed feminist history and biography. She hopes to index more political books in the future and to expand into the fields of science and technology. She serves on the national council of Fair Vote Canada, an organization that advocates for replacing Canada’s current voting system with a proportional representation system. She wrote, “Juggling the demands of electoral reform activism and an indexing career can be challenging. However, I believe this interest makes me well suited to work in the field of political science. I was therefore happy for the opportunity to index David Moscrop’s book Too Dumb for Democracy?”

All entrants receive a detailed feedback scoresheet that combines the comments from three judges. The judging is done anonymously by members of the Institute of Certified Indexers (ICI).  The winner receives a check for $100 USD as well as the publicity of appearing on the ICI website: www.certifiedindexers.com and notification to the book’s publisher and author. This honor also helps the new indexer in terms of building confidence and gaining career satisfaction. The members of ICI all endorse this as a successful way to mentor new indexers who benefit from a detailed review of their work. New indexers should watch for the announcement of the 2020 competition in late spring/early summer 2020.”

The Indexing Society of Canada | Société canadienne d’indexation (ISC/SCI) is Canada’s professional society of indexers. Our mission is to encourage the production and use of indexes, promote the recognition of indexers, improve indexing techniques, and foster communication among individual indexers across Canada. Our vision is “Accessible information; informed people.” Learn more at indexers.ca.

2019 Ewart-Daveluy Indexing Award: Your Name Here

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We know there were some terrific indexes written in 2018 by you. But only one of you submitted one for the Ewart-Daveluy Indexing Award. That’s just too few. Where were the rest of you? How can we encourage you to submit your hard work in 2020? (Maybe even that index from 2018?)

The application has never been easier. It’s all online. You don’t need a hard copy — a PDF of the book with the index is enough. The cost is only $30. And did you know that we provide feedback for up to three runners-up? That’s feedback from three experienced indexers.

We are looking for print book indexes that creatively overcome challenges, resulting in an outstanding, well-structured, easy-to-navigate, clear and comprehensive guide for all of its users. There’s no restriction to the subject matter or genre — textbooks, cookbooks, guidebooks, memoirs, art books, how-to books, travel books, all books — it’s your index we will be looking at.

“Oh, but,” you say, “I’m too new!” Nonetheless, you suspect that the index you wrote for that odd little guide to breaking up with your phone was really effective. Or you’re pretty sure you did a big favour to people looking for answers to their ailments by the way you exposed the hidden gems in that dense book about digestion. Or you amazed yourself with managing to build a clear guide to too many pages in the limited space allotted by the press.

You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. Maybe you’ll get the prize (which won’t happen if you don’t apply). And if not, you’re very likely to get expert confidential feedback. That’s worth a lot.

Because we think there are indexes out there that we should have seen, for 2020, we are opening the submissions up to books published in 2018 and 2019 — a second chance to submit that index that you seriously considered, but didn’t quite have the time or courage to follow through. If you are a Canadian indexer or a Canadian resident, 2020 is the time to do it.

Watch for more information about the 2020 award deadline to come.