The Essentials of Book Production

Do you wish you had a better understanding of all the different factors which affect prices and schedules? This one-day course will teach you all you need to know about how books are manufactured and will give you an understanding of the main issues and terminology used in book production.

Each stage of the workflow is covered including Colour printing, Binding, Paper pricing, Shipping. Including several practical exercises throughout the day, as well as visuals and physical samples.

The day will also give you an insight into what a printing plate looks like, what the inks are like in their raw state, and the differences between paper types.

This one-day course is an excellent in depth look at all the production stages involved in the creation of a book and will help improve your day-to-day effectiveness, whatever your role in publishing.

Who is it for ? Production staff, Editors, Sales, Marketers, Designers

This course is aimed at production staff and is also suitable for editors, sales or designers who need a better understanding of the manufacturing process. Each stage of the workflow is covered including colour, printing and binding, paper, pricing, and shipping.

There are a number of practical exercises throughout the day as well as visuals and physical samples – you will see what a printing plate looks like, what the inks are like in their raw state, and get to feel and compare the different paper types. You will cover the terminology used in book specifications and discuss the factors which affect the prices and schedules.

Venue

This will be based in a Dublin City Centre Venue

SPEAKER

We’re delighted that industry expert Nancy Roberts has chosen to deliver the Essentials of Book Production. Nancy spent 20 years in the publishing sector working in print production and operations for companies including Quadrille, Kingfisher, Penguin/DK and Cambridge University Press, where she led a global team of over 150 staff as Global Operations Director, Academic.

She now has a portfolio career: she is the founder of Umbrella, a tech startup which uses data analytics, AI and machine learning to help businesses realise the benefits of a more diverse workforce, and she is also Head of Technology and Content at Maverick, providing specialist consultancy on production, technology and content to academic publishers and scholarly societies. She also co-runs Management In Publishing, providing bespoke management and leadership training and development tailored to the publishing industry. She has a PhD in Postcolonial Feminist Literary Theory and an Executive MBA from Cranfield University.

She is also a NED for Break the Mould and sits on various advisory boards, including We and AI, a non-profit aiming to inform the public about the risks and benefits of AI, and the Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Board of the Science and Technology Facilities Council.