Last reviewed by Robert Prime — July 2026
Quick Answer: An acknowledgements page goes in the back matter, runs 200–500 words, and thanks the people who helped your book exist — editor, beta readers, family, agent, subject-matter experts. Keep it genuine, keep it short, and don't forget your cover designer. Six ready-to-use templates below.
Table of Contents
- Where the acknowledgements page goes
- The structure that works
- Template 1 — Fiction (novel)
- Template 2 — Non-fiction (practical/business)
- Template 3 — Memoir
- Template 4 — Debut novel
- Template 5 — Academic / research-based
- Template 6 — Short-form (under 100 words)
- What to include and what to leave out
- Common mistakes
- Frequently asked questions
- Final thoughts
Where the acknowledgements page goes
In UK publishing convention, acknowledgements go in the back matter — after the final chapter (or epilogue/afterword, if you have one) and before the author bio or "about the author" page. Some traditionally published books put acknowledgements in the front matter, but for self-published books on KDP, back matter is the standard.
The page order is typically:
- Final chapter / epilogue
- Afterword (if applicable)
- Acknowledgements
- About the Author
- Also By (other books)
- Resources / bibliography (non-fiction)
The structure that works
Every good acknowledgements page follows roughly the same shape:
- Opening line — a sentence or two about what the book meant to you or how it came to be
- Professional thanks — editor, cover designer, formatter, agent, beta readers, proofreader
- Subject-matter thanks — experts who helped with research, sensitivity readers, technical advisors
- Personal thanks — family, friends, writing group, partner
- Reader thanks — a line to the reader for picking up the book
- Closing — optional sign-off
You don't need all six. A 150-word acknowledgements page that names five people sincerely is better than a 1,000-word essay that reads like an Oscar speech.
Template 1 — Fiction (novel)
Acknowledgements
This book began as a conversation in a pub in [City] and somehow turned into
the thing you've just read. That wouldn't have happened without the following
people.
[Editor's name] edited this manuscript with patience and precision. Every
time I wrote "he gazed meaningfully," [they/she/he] crossed it out and wrote
"show me." The book is sharper because of [them/her/him].
[Cover designer's name] created the cover. I described what I wanted badly,
and [they/she/he] ignored most of it and made something far better.
[Beta reader 1], [Beta reader 2], and [Beta reader 3] read early drafts and
told me honestly where the story sagged. Chapter 14 exists because [Beta
reader 1] said "you can't just skip the trial."
[Partner/spouse name] — thank you for the cups of tea, the quiet mornings,
and for not asking "is it finished yet?" more than twice a week.
[Parent/family member name] — you taught me that stories matter. This one's
partly yours.
And to you, the reader — thank you for giving this book your time. If you
enjoyed it, a review on Amazon or Goodreads helps more than you'd think.
[Your name]
[City], [Month Year]
Template 2 — Non-fiction (practical/business)
Acknowledgements
Writing about [subject] means standing on the shoulders of people who've
been doing the work for years. I owe a debt to several of them.
[Expert 1 name] reviewed the chapters on [topic] and corrected two claims I
was embarrassingly confident about. Any remaining errors are mine, not
[theirs/hers/his].
[Editor's name] turned a sprawling first draft into something a reader could
actually follow. [Proofreader's name] caught the errors I was blind to after
the fifteenth read-through.
[Cover designer's name] designed a cover that communicates the book's purpose
in two seconds — which is about how long a browser on Amazon gives you.
The team at [formatter/publishing service, if applicable] handled the
interior formatting and made the print edition look like it came from a
traditional publisher.
[Colleague/mentor name] — our conversations shaped the framework in Chapter
[X]. Thank you for being generous with your thinking.
[Partner/family] — thank you for tolerating six months of "I just need to
finish this chapter." You were right; it was always more than one chapter.
To every reader who picked this up hoping to learn something practical:
I wrote it for you. I hope it earns the cover price.
[Your name]
[City], [Month Year]
Template 3 — Memoir
Acknowledgements
Memoir is a selfish genre. You write about your own life, and then you ask
other people to help you do it well. I'm grateful to the people who did.
[Editor's name] helped me find the story inside the events. Not everything
that happened to me was worth putting on the page, and [they/she/he] had the
honesty to say so.
[Sensitivity/early reader name] read the chapters involving [them/her/him]
and gave permission for me to tell it the way I remembered it, even where
our memories differ. That generosity is not small.
[Therapist/counsellor name, if appropriate and with permission] — some of
this book was processed in your office before it reached the page. Thank you.
[Family members' names] — I've told our story as honestly as I could. Where
I've changed names or details, it was to protect people who didn't choose to
be in a book. The emotions are all real.
[Partner name] — you read every draft, held me when the hard chapters
surfaced, and never once said "maybe don't publish this." I needed that.
To the reader: if any part of this story felt familiar, I hope it helped to
know you weren't the only one.
[Your name]
[City], [Month Year]
Template 4 — Debut novel
Acknowledgements
I've been writing stories since I was [age], but this is the first one that
made it all the way to a finished book. The gap between "writing" and
"published" turned out to be filled with other people's generosity.
[Editor's name] took on a first-time author and treated the manuscript like
it mattered. It did, to me. [They/She/He] made it matter to readers too.
[Cover designer's name] — the cover made me cry when I first saw it. In the
good way.
[Writing group / course name, if applicable] — [names] — you read chapters
out of order, asked hard questions, and didn't let me get away with the easy
version of the ending.
[Beta reader names] — your feedback turned a draft into a novel. [Specific
reader] spotted the plot hole in Chapter [X] that I'd somehow missed through
four rewrites.
[Family/friends] — you believed this was going to happen before I did. Some
of you have been hearing about this book for [X] years. Thank you for not
changing the subject.
[Partner name] — for everything. You know.
This is the first one. I hope it's not the last.
[Your name]
[City], [Month Year]
Template 5 — Academic / research-based
Acknowledgements
This book draws on research conducted between [year] and [year] at
[institution/independently], and I am indebted to colleagues and
institutions that made it possible.
Professor [Name] at [University] supervised the early research that became
Chapters [X–Y] and challenged my assumptions at every stage. [Dr/Professor
Name] at [Institution] reviewed the statistical methodology and saved me
from at least one significant error.
The [funding body/grant name, if applicable] provided financial support for
the fieldwork in Chapter [X]. The [library/archive name] granted access to
the [collection name] archive, without which the historical chapters would
be thin.
[Research assistant/collaborator names] contributed to data collection,
transcription, and analysis. Their work is woven through these pages even
where it isn't cited directly.
[Editor's name] at [publishing service/press] shaped a research manuscript
into a book that non-specialists could read. [Proofreader's name] ensured
the references and footnotes were consistent — a thankless but essential job.
[Partner/family] — academic writing is solitary work that spills into
evenings and weekends. Thank you for your patience, and for asking "how's
the book?" even when the answer was always "nearly there."
Any errors of fact or interpretation remain my own.
[Your name]
[City/Institution], [Month Year]
Template 6 — Short-form (under 100 words)
For authors who prefer brevity, or where a longer acknowledgements page would feel out of proportion with the book.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to [editor's name] for the sharp editing, [cover designer's name]
for making it look right, and [beta reader names] for the honest feedback.
[Partner/family name] — for the time, the patience, and the belief.
And to you, the reader — thank you for picking this up. If it helped,
a quick review on Amazon makes a real difference.
[Your name]
What to include and what to leave out
Include:
- Anyone who directly worked on the book (editor, designer, formatter, proofreader)
- Beta readers and sensitivity readers (by name, with permission)
- Subject-matter experts who contributed knowledge
- Family and friends who supported the writing process
- Your writing group, agent, or mentor
- The reader (always a good closing)
Leave out:
- People you feel socially obligated to mention but who didn't actually help with the book
- Lengthy anecdotes that belong in the memoir, not the acknowledgements
- Inside jokes that mean nothing to the reader
- Your cat (unless the cat genuinely contributed — I've seen it argued)
- Brand names or product endorsements — the acknowledgements page isn't sponsored content
Common mistakes
Mistake 1: Putting acknowledgements before the story. In self-published books, front-matter acknowledgements push the start of your story further from the "Look Inside" preview on Amazon. Put them in the back.
Mistake 2: Forgetting the cover designer. The cover sells the book. Acknowledge the person who made it.
Mistake 3: Writing 2,000 words. This isn't your second book. Keep it proportional — 200–500 words for most books.
Mistake 4: Not getting permission. If you're naming someone (especially in memoir), confirm they're comfortable being acknowledged. Not everyone wants their name in a published book.
Mistake 5: Spelling someone's name wrong. Check. Then check again. Nothing undermines a thank-you like misspelling the person's name.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to have an acknowledgements page?
No. There's no publishing rule that requires one. But most readers expect it, particularly in fiction and memoir. It humanises the book.
Can I acknowledge someone who has died?
Yes, and many authors do. "In memory of [name], who [contribution/relationship]" is the standard phrasing. Keep it simple.
Should I acknowledge my self-publishing tools?
Generally, no. You don't acknowledge Microsoft Word or your printer. If a specific person at a service helped you — an editor at Reedsy, a formatter who went above and beyond — acknowledge the person, not the platform.
Where do acknowledgements go in a Kindle ebook?
Same place — after the final chapter, before the About the Author section. In an ebook there's no "front vs back" in the physical sense, but putting acknowledgements at the end keeps the sample preview focused on your actual content.
Is it "acknowledgements" or "acknowledgments"?
Both are correct. "Acknowledgements" (with the 'e') is standard British English. "Acknowledgments" (without) is American English. For UK-published books, use the British spelling.
Final thoughts
The acknowledgements page is a small thing done well. Name the people who earned it, keep it genuine, keep it under 500 words, and put it in the back matter where it belongs.
Once your back matter's sorted — acknowledgements, about the author, also-by page — the thing that actually determines whether the book looks professional is the interior formatting. Margins, fonts, headers, page breaks — the stuff readers notice subconsciously and reviewers notice consciously. Run a free KDP Readiness Score on your formatted file to catch what KDP will flag, or let us handle the formatting from £69 with a 3-day turnaround.
— Robert publishing.co.uk
