Hello,

Welcome back to another Q&A on this last Tuesday of the month.

Today’s question is a little different in that it comes from a subcontractor I work with. The question was asked in response to a specific piece of advice that I gave for a previous project we worked on together. My thanks for asking and for suggesting this might be a good fit for a Q&A.

With some modification to remove references to the specific project and so that the question is more broadly applicable:

Thank you for the question. I did previously advise that headings within the book can be a good source for main headings and subheadings in the index, and that it is not always necessary to reinvent the terms used in the index. That said, I also agree that headings within books are not also useful.

I think this is a good example of a conditional rule. If the headings and terms used in the book clearly describe what is discussed, then use those terms in the index. If the terms used in the book are not clear, then you may need to apply your own.

There are a few competing interests to keep in mind.

On the one hand, using terms from the book helps readers more easily see the connection between the index and the text. The reader does not need to make the mental leap from one term to another, to understand that both terms mean the same thing.

Certain terms can also be considered jargon or terms of art—specialized terms specific to that discipline. These terms are also important to pick up as is because the audience will likely be expecting them. The indexer should not try to reinterprete or rewrite terms of art.

Using terms from the text is also easier for the indexer. It is less time and effort spent on thinking up alternative phrasings. So go ahead and make your work a little easier by following the text’s lead.

On the other hand, not all books lend themselves to clear terms. I find that certain disciplines and genres, such as in the social sciences or for guide or reference books, follow conventions which encourage a clear structure and clearly written headings. In other disciplines and genres, books can still be clearly written, but there seems to be more leeway for the author’s discretion. Authors may opt for descriptive headings which are fun to read but are not written in plain language. For those books, the indexable term which describes what the discussion is actually about may be buried or it requires the indexer to read between the lines.

Finding and selecting terms also brings to mind the issue of plain language, which Iva Cheung has done a lot of work to raise awareness of among Canadian indexers. It is my belief that the index, as a separate document, should be clearly understandable on its own. While the index is obviously intertwined with the text and ideally should mirror terminology, if the text is not clear, then the indexer should step in and find appropriate terms which are understandable to the audience.

So when selecting terms for the index, first assess how the book is written. Are headings clearly written and accurately describe what each section is about? Are key terms clearly indicated in discussions? If yes, go ahead and use the language in the book. No need to intervene further.

If the answer is no, then it is time to dig deeper to see if the key terms are buried. Or, do some research or check in with the author to identify terms of art. Or, engage in some translation to clearly describe what the discussions are about. Intervening to rewrite terms takes a bit more work and should be a last resort, but may sometimes be necessary.

Yours in indexing,

Stephen