Formats of publications: types, classification, sizes and samples

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Practically all lovers of literature know that there are a large number of different formats of printed publications. Books of various sizes not only perform some functions, but also personify the sphere of human life that is described in them. For example, travel guides and travel phrasebooks are always small, making them ideal for the smallest pocket of a traveler's backpack.

Encyclopedias and serious reference literature are published mainly in large formats, since this kind of literature is worked at the table, in a special office. Artistic works are produced in everyone's favorite medium format, just the right size for standard book shelves.

Ancient times

Formats of book publications did not appear immediately. The tradition of creating printed products of different sizes originates in ancient times, having arisen practicallyimmediately after man invented writing. The Egyptians, for example, used papyri of various widths and lengths for various types of writing. Historical chronicles were kept on sheets of large format, art chronicles on smaller ones, and very small pieces of papyrus paper were used for various everyday or temporary records. The publishing system of Mesopotamia was no different either. Clay tablets of different sizes stored information in the same way as the papyrus in Egypt.

With the invention of printing, literature itself was finally divided into formats. This was explained by the fact that it was more convenient to print the few religious books and scientific encyclopedias in large sizes. On the contrary, works of art demanded by the masses of the people, it has become more expedient to publish in small print and small format. The size of the circulation was directly related to the parameters of the book.

Variety of printed products

A rich selection of literature is an amazing luxury of our time. Now in stores you can find a huge number of a wide variety of printed goods of various sizes and qualities. By the way, the formats for publishing books are, in fact, just as important a criterion as their volume, content or design. After all, it depends on him where we put the book, where we store it, how we read: on the table, in our hands, or even on a special stand.

There is a special standard: "GOST book publishing formats", according to which all publishing houses prepare layouts. Allthe sizes indicated in this list are the same for any publishing office. Of course, sometimes book manufactories release works in a very non-standard format, but this still applies to exceptions. In general, the policy of publishing houses regarding the format of publishing books corresponds to the standards of book printing.

Large formats

This type includes encyclopedias, monographs, dictionaries, atlases, archival lists, special editions. The explanation for this is that usually printed matter of these genres contains a huge amount of information, which, even when using small print, is still huge.

Publishing houses have to increase the volume of the book by using a large size. Also, in this format of publication it is more convenient to store information that is practically not used in everyday life. That is why almost all domestic and world science has completely switched to printing monographs, dissertations in this size. Even students realized the benefits and began to write notes in large notebooks. If we consider this type from the point of view of presentability, then gifts of this format are presented to we althy people or bosses.

Medium formats

This type includes everyone's favorite and most popular book size. Novels, storybooks, fairy tales, cookbooks, car repair manuals - all these and many other thematic publications are published in medium format.

Not by chanceit is all fiction that is published in this extremely convenient size for storage and transportation. Such a book can easily fit in a closet, backpack, purse or even under the pillow. Yes, and the publication of works in this format is very profitable - a large circulation pays for all the costs of producing a book precisely thanks to the right aspect ratio of the book. This edition is a pleasure to hold in your hands, and it is very convenient for everyday home reading.

Small formats

Collections of poetic lyrics, brochures - these types of printed products are traditionally referred to as small format book publishing. As a rule, it is used to create small-volume literature. Publishing a collection of a dozen poems in large or medium format is simply unprofitable for a book house from a commercial point of view.

But the small size looks more presentable in this case, and the process of printing this kind of literature will be much easier. It should also be remembered that most often it is small format books that are given because they look both sophisticated and aesthetically pleasing. After all, a tiny collection of love lyrics looks much more romantic than a huge encyclopedia.

Classification

There is a certain standard that is the same for all publishing houses. In the past, there were several classifications of book sizes. Now, most books are still published according to certain rules. All main edition formats are presented in the table in the illustration below:

Reviews

No need to think that readers pay attention only to the content of the book, the size of the publication format is also very important for any consumer. Often in the conversation of people buying printed materials, you can hear a similar phrase: “The book is big and colorful!”. First of all, buyers pay attention to the size of the tome, since the large format means that it will be well illustrated and, for sure, interesting.

Visually, this size looks preferable to the average. Therefore, recently more and more publishers prefer to publish even children's literature in a large format, adding volume to the book due to a larger font and a large number of illustrations. This is a rather original commercial move that made this size more popular than usual. Also, not only encyclopedias or monographs of famous scientists are now being released in this format, which has significantly increased consumer demand for products of this size.

The publication format is a kind of marker of content and quality, by which an experienced reader can immediately roughly determine what this book is about, information about what area of human life it contains.