Some folks haven't published before, so they don't know the sequence of a book.  That's fine, that's why we're here.  

 

What goes first?

eBooks have several major sections—the front, or "front-matter," the main content (the body) and the back, or "back-matter."  Of these, each has sub-sections or areas or divisions.

Front matter (or Front-matter)

Below is the normal order in which the sections are placed.  Some things are basically mandatory—like putting the copyright page as the verso (back) of the title page—but not all.  

 

•Half-title page:  this can also be termed the Bastard title (archaic use).  It has only the title of the book, nothing more. Sometimes you'll find this as the last page of the front matter, immediately before the First Chapter.

•Frontispiece:  An image or illustration, that traditionally faces the full title page.

•Title page: lists the title, the subtitle, author and publisher of the book, along with a publisher's logo, if appropriate/used.  Some older title pages show the city/state of the publisher, the year of publication and other details, like descriptive text and even lists of illustrations.  You don't see those latter items very often any longer.  This is typically page 1 of a book, in that it's the first page, which is on the right.

•Copyright page: this is traditionally on the verso page of the Title page.  Lists the title of the book, the copyright assertion, various publication info, printing history if it's a second, third edition, etc. legal notices, and the ISBN.  Some production credits (cover design, illustrations creator, production, editing) are also commonly listed here.

•Dedication: Not required, but typical.

•Epigraph:  A quote.  Sometimes appears facing the TOC, but more ordinarily, on a page of its own.  Epigraphs are also used in Chapter heads, etc.

•Table of Contents: As it states, it lists the Contents of the book.  Traditionally commences on a right-hand page.

•List of Figures:  If your book has extensive figures, or illustrations, it's not uncommon for them to be listed separately, for the convenience of the reader.

•List of Tables: Same concept for tabular data included in a book.  

•Foreword:  (Not Forward! Forward is a direction.)  Typically written by someone other than the author, the Foreword typically aids the reader in contextualizing the work.  If a Foreword is included, it is always signed and dated.  

•Preface: Not to be confused with the Foreword, the Preface is typically a "how I came to write this book" piece by the author.  It, too, is signed by the author and dated.  

•Acknowledgements: (Also Acknowledgments, if you're younger.) If you have folks you wish to thank for helping you with the book, this is the place.

•Introduction:  If your book has a purpose (other than entertainment), this is normally where you set out what that is, for the reader.

•Prologue: In fiction, a prologue sets the scene for the story.  This is always narrated by the book's narrator or a character from the book, not by the author.  

•Second Half-title: as mentioned above, when there's a lot of front-matter, it's commonplace for a second half-title page, with the title of the book, only, to be placed as the very last thing before the first page of the body of the book.  

 

Body

 

•Part Page:  this can be in fiction or non-fiction.  When a book is divided into larger parts than simply chapters, a Parts Page is normally used.  

•Chapter Opening page:  Almost all books use a Chapter Opening page. Older books often did not—a new chapter would start, with the simple inclusion of text announcing "Chapter X," right after the end of a previous chapter. Modern conventions typically call for a chapter to commence on a new page.  Some publishers favor always starting a chapter on a recto (right hand) page; but many start the new chapter on the first new page, whether that's left or right, except, of course, for Chapter One, which always starts on a recto page.  

oA chapter opening page will not display a running header, as that would typically interfere with the design of the chapter head. If the page numbers for the book are at the bottom of the page, whether or not to use a page number on a Chapter opening page is optional.  

•Epilogue:  The epilogue is a wrap-up, an ending piece, which is optionally in the voice of a character, or the author.  

•Afterword: (not Afterward!  Afterward is time, later.)  This is a wide-ranging piece; normally written by the author—in some cases, by a friend or family member, if the author is deceased; can also be written by someone else for other reasons.  Typically talks about the book in a larger context.

•Conclusion: in non-fiction, a closing that sums up the important concepts and ideas of the book.  

 

Back matter or Back-matter

•Postscript:  anything added as an afterthought, or addition to the book.

•Appendix/Addendum:  A supplement to the book, meaning providing additional data, like documents you've referenced in the book.

•Chronology:  if needed, a list of the events of the book in the order in which they occur with the relevant dates.  (Some authors put these in the front matter).

•Notes:  Just what they sound like, typically divided by Chapter.

•Glossary:  An alphabetical list of terms used in the book, and their meanings or definitions.

•Bibliography:  a list of the books or other works used and cited in the book.  Some authors include bibliographic references that weren't used in the work, but which are influential in the field.

•List of Contributors:  if a book is a work by a number of people, they are listed here.  Contributors names are shown alphabetically by last name, although they are supposed to be displayed first name followed by last.  

•Index:  the alphabetical listing of concepts and terms discussed in the book, showing the page numbers for each relevant reference to that term, concept, phrase, idea, etc.

•Errata: A notice, by the publisher, of any known errors in the book.

•Colophon:  a term identifying something that's hardly used any longer, the Colophon is a notice that discusses the typography of a book (for example, "set in Garamond," or the like) with a brief discussion of that font or those fonts, credit for the book's designer and other persons or companies involved in the production of the book.  

 

That's it!