Depending on the content of your book, you may want to consider the following elements after the main text of your book:

Epilogue

For fiction, biographical, or historical narrative works, you may want to add a brief summary of "what happened next." The epilogue is usually one to three pages in length.

Appendix

Appendices are added to include information your readers will appreciate having but that is not an integral part of your book should go into one or more appendices. Letters, poems, legal decisions, maps, diagrams, summaries of scientific experiments, and historic documents are examples of material you may want to include in your appendix.

Each element you include in the section of your book is an "appendix." If you have more than one, the first one should be labeled, Appendix A, and next Appendix B. Each appendix should have a full, descriptive title and should be listed in the table of contents with the title as well as the Appendix number.

Notes

Comments or references to other sources of information or opinion related to the text but not included in the main part of your text may be included in a "notes" section. You may also wish to place your "notes" at the conclusion of each chapter.

Glossary

Your readers will thank you for explaning unfamiliar terms that are used in your nonfiction book. The glossary lists words in alphabetical order and does not give page references. A clear definition or explanation is given for each item. A pronunciation guide may also be supplied.

Bibliography

The bibliography is a formal list of your primary and secondary sources used in writing or editing your nonfiction book. Be consistent with your listings and follow the format used in the academic discipline associated with your book.

Contributors

You may wish to include your contributors in the acknowledgments section in the front of your book, or in a special section in the back of your book--never in both places.

The more contributors, the more appropriate your listing will be in the back of the book. Include full names, titles and credentials in your listing as well as a brief statement describing the contribution made.

Index

An index references key words and terms to pages in your book. A good index is essential for any technical book or manual and recommended for most nonfiction books. (More about indexing services)

Preparing an index is an art all its own, even with publishing software that makes the technical aspecs of indexing relatively simple. Special skills are needed in determining the length of the index and the degree of detail to be included as well as in applying consistent rules and style throughout the index. You can help your book producer prepare an index by marking key words you feel are essential to include in it.

Be prepared to pay a qualified indexing expert $3 or more to index each page of your book.