Indexes to fiction are sometimes made, although they are unusual. Philip Bradley considered the topic in his 1989 article for @theindexer.bsky.social www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/epdf/10....

There actually are professional indexers, and you can meet the UK branch via our professional directory: www.indexers.org.uk/find-an-inde...

It’s a great read so hope you enjoy it when it reaches the top of the list. Being an indexer is a cool profession in my eyes. If you’re still interested, there’s lots of info including on training on the @indexers.bsky.social website at www.indexers.org.uk.

Glad to be back at @the-ciep.bsky.social conference this year, speaking on 'Index in progress: uncovering the ancient art and modern science of book indexing' on behalf of @indexers.bsky.social. See you #Edibuddies, both known and new, at #CIEP2026?

Great day out with North West group of @indexers.bsky.social to the amazing John Rylands Library in Manchester, including a look at their Gutenberg Bible (facsimile handling copy of their stored 1454/55 original) and its unfortunate rubrication incident. #IndexSky @thejohnrylands.bsky.social

One of my favourite, and potentially most useful textbooks is rendered hugely less useful because there's no index. Other end of the spectrum, whoever indexed Heffer's Chips Channon's diaries deserves a medal.

Need an indexer for your non-fiction book? Our Professional Directory can be filtered by subject and type of publication to find the right indexer for your project buff.ly/e3Bj7h8

At the moment we don't think LLMs can do what we do. It needs a human brain to process this kind of thing, realise there's an issue and come up with a solution, time and time again, case by case, book by book, that suits each individual case. @asindexing.bsky.social - asindexing.org/ai-and-index...

I love how indexing in religious studies constantly involves new challenges; I've just finished indexing a book on Tibetan Buddhism where successive reincarnations often share the same name/title, and some way has to be found to distinguish them as individuals in the index

Valeria Padalino, Advanced Professional Member: “The tools have changed, but the thinking has not.”

How does a book indexing project work? What should I expect as a client? How do I find the right indexer for my project? Our blog series on index commissioning takes you through the process in helpful detail buff.ly/jbK0VxQ

To be in the Guiness Book of Records for 'Book with the longest index' (currently nearly 3000 song titles for The Reckless History of the 21st Century).

"If authors are rock stars, which in my mind they are, the acknowledgements are the part of the concert where they take a moment to shout out the names of the band members." lithub.com/an-ode-to-ac...

In our latest blog post, we asked our panel of expert indexers what has changed in the profession, and what has stayed the same #IndexSky buff.ly/6JN6aux

Our training course will prepare you to start work as a professional indexer as soon as you complete it. You'll create indexes for two book-length works before you become an Accredited Indexer. You'll get support and feedback from experienced indexers. Find out more at buff.ly/KIf3uHP

I guess every biographer becomes obsessed with setting the record straight about their subject, but I have never seen a book include a detailed "Index to Misconceptions" like this! The use of all-caps makes it even more hilarious. from "Berlioz and the Romantic Century" by Jacques Barzun (1950)

This was an interesting discussion. I normally say that I "write" indexes but after today I may switch to "create" instead #IndexSky

At our April coffee morning, seventeen SI members, from retired to student indexers, met to discuss what we say when we talk among ourselves about indexing.

Book indexing attracts people from diverse backgrounds. Many of our members also work in proofreading, editing, librarianship or teaching. Explore our training course pages to learn about adding indexing to your career - you can study online at your own pace: buff.ly/KIf3uHP

Thanks very much to @indexerscanada.bsky.social for an excellent conference over the weekend. I'm now itching to try indexing in LaTeX and it was great to hear about @asindexing.bsky.social's research in to AI and indexing (it doesn't do a good job) from Elizabeth Bartmess #IndexSky

More great talks at @indexerscanada.bsky.social conference today. After the latest review by Elizabeth Bartmess on generative AI attempts at creating book indexes, compared with how ‘good’ the chatbots say they are, the bots could do with much more imposter syndrome. #IndexSky

Cool! Someone went to check if they were in a book by looking at the index.

Enjoying my first day of @indexerscanada.bsky.social online conference. I loved the brilliant keynote by @dannybate.bsky.social on ‘Who Ordered the Alphabet’. Surely several more copies of his ‘Why Q Needs U’ book now sold, including to the UK @indexers.bsky.social and me. #IndexSky

Look, a reader uses and index and finds what they were looking for.

Are you a publishing professional who’s new to working with book indexers? Our guide to commissioning an index takes you through the whole process and helps you foster good working relationships and great indexes buff.ly/SE42N6l

Often a good idea to promote your non-fiction book with a glimpse of the index, especially if it is a good one. Not one of mine I have to say.

Thousands of non-fiction books are published every year; we can’t index them all! Help us out by joining the Society of Indexers. Our training course will prepare you for a stimulating career in book indexing. Find out more at buff.ly/KIf3uHP

A variation on a theme: author disappointed by the lack of an index #IndexSky

From the index for my book THE INTERNET WILL DIE, AND SO WILL YOU (out in Sept. 10). Here are some accidental poems: globalization Glück, Louise God G/O Media control of fragility of function of as human as magic as transporter Macbeth machine learning maggots

If you’re intrigued about indexing as a career, explore our online self-paced training course. You’ll index two book-length works before you finish, making you ready to take on professional projects and join the supportive community of this niche career #IndexDay

If you’re an author or publisher looking for an indexer for your book, we have a Professional Directory of accredited indexers. Search by subject and skill to find the right indexer for your project. But book early – there is high demand for our services #IndexDay buff.ly/QNq1llm

Indexers are often asked if they read every word. Yes, we do! And the indexer's eyes will often be the last to do so before the book comes out. We will raise any issues we spot. It's not a free proofread, but it is a quality check.

Couldn’t indexing be done by a computer, or AI? No, because the usual problems with AI accuracy apply. It’s more efficient for a human to index a book for another human to use. We don't recommend AI or automated tools that can't meet indexing standards #IndexDay

Indexers really do read every word of each book, analyse the concepts presented and think how the reader will search for them. We must be highly accurate and also flexible to the needs of different books and clients. We have excellent vocabularies and are expert readers #IndexDay buff.ly/glTobKP

Thank you!

So who are the indexers? We come from a wide variety of backgrounds and bring our professional experience and subject area knowledge to our indexing work. You can read about some of our members’ indexer origin stories in our blog post #IndexDay

Thank you! LIS people are very supportive of what we do.

@baindex.org has posted about her freelance career and how it has shifted towards indexing over the years. Happy Anniversary!

We’re all about high quality and standards in indexing. But how can you tell a good index from a bad one? Good indexes anticipate and serve the needs of the reader. They are appropriate to the length of the book, concise without being elliptical, inclusive without being over-complex.

There's also a lot of older free material on the @livunipress.bsky.social Indexer page. Lots of tips and interesting articles.

Very good to hear positive comments from a student indexer currently on our training course.

What is an index, and why is it important? An index is a map; it makes the information in books accessible to readers. It gives a sense of the coverage of the book, and whether it contains the information you need. And you can go back after reading to find what you want #IndexDay buff.ly/LMIHOqs

For #IndexDay, a new blog post by Ruth Martin explores what our members say when they talk about indexing. What's the best way to communicate what we do? www.indexers.org.uk/posts/what-w...

The Society of Indexers was founded in March 1957 to promote excellence in indexing. We train indexers, help clients find indexers, share information on indexing, and raise awareness of the importance of indexing. #IndexDay. You can read more about our history at buff.ly/IwKrPDK

From our lovely President @carosanderson.bsky.social so follow us for all things indexing on #IndexDay

Welcome to National Indexing Day! We're the UK's professional society for book and journal indexing, and we're celebrating our founding anniversary with lots of posts about indexing, indexes and indexers. Follow #IndexDay to join in.

Last day to book for @indexers.bsky.social National Indexing Day #IndexDay workshop for publishers, with speakers @carosanderson.bsky.social, Rachel Gee, @tanyaizzard.bsky.social and me. We’d love to discuss how to keep your readers happy with quality book indexes by human indexers!

Absolutely the last day to book for our #IndexDay workshop, 31 March in London @publishersassoc.bsky.social. Don't miss out on this opportunity for publishing professionals to understand more about how indexers work and how they can add value to non-fiction books. Book your place

Penultimate day for bookings for our #IndexDay workshop, 31 March in London @publishersassoc.bsky.social, a chance to learn more about indexing from professional indexers @baindex.org, Rachel Gee, and @tanyaizzard.bsky social

Publishing professionals, please join us for Society of Indexers’ National Indexing Day #IndexDay workshops on Tues 31 March, with speakers @carosanderson.bsky.social (Hon President @indexers.bsky.social), Rachel Gee, @tanyaizzard.bsky.social and me. We’d love to talk about book indexes with you!