General question about novels

[cmw000]

Why is the author's name on every page usually? I can make lots of guesses about it but does anyone know why this is so?

[~V~]

I've just thumbed through about a dozen and not found one with the Author's name on the pages. Some did have the book title at the top, and I've seen that on quite a few others too

[cmw000]

Maybe 'usually' was the wrong word. I often see it though. Looking through the books I have here I would say about half have the author's name on every page (or every other page depending on how you look at it.)

[~Andrea~]

I have never seen that either. At least I don't remember seeing it. What country are you in cmw000?

 

Actually ... hold that ... I have just flicked through 8 or 9 novels on my shelf. About half had nothing at the top, some had novel title on the left and the chapter name on the right, and then I found one with author name on the left and novel name on the right.

 

It was Jonathon Tropper's How to talk to a widower. I guess it depends on the publisher. I think it's the exception rather than the rule though.

[cmw000]

My books come from the US mostly I think. But I can't be sure because I buy my books off Amazon usually so who knows where other people get them.

 

I don't have a lot of books right now as I don't keep books once I've read them but here are some books I have that have the author's name on every page:

 

Edgar Allen Poe - Selected Tales

Jonathan Franzen - How to be Alone

Danielle Trussoni - Falling Through the Earth

Larry McMurtry - Zeke and Ned

 

I can reall lots of books I've read with the author's name on every page. Does the publisher think I'm likely to forget what I'm reading? Is it a precaution designed for the case in which a page becomes separated from the rest of the book? Or is it to keep some designer busy filling white space? I don't know why this is interesting to me but I'm curious about it.

[Guest]

It's probably something that happens during the printing process, to keep all pages from the same book together and to prevent confusion if any get separated. I know when presenting a manuscript you have to put your surname and the book title in the header on each page (along with the page number of course) in case the pages get separated as you're not supposed to bind them in any way. And because this is all done during the printing process, it comes out in the final copy.

[Kell]

I just realised that both the book I just finished reading and the book I'm currently reading both have the author's name at the top of each left-hand page. I've never really noticed that before!