D

De Luxe Edition

 See edition de luxe.

Deckle Edges

 The natural rough and uneven edges of book pages when they have not been trimmed flush. The binding of handmade paper can also produce this decorative effect. Also known as uncut.

Dedication Copy

 A copy of a book specifically inscribed by the author to a particular person.

Dedication Page

 The page of a book that lists the persons and/or institutions to whom the author has committed the work. It is usually located opposite the copyright page.

Demand Printing

 Producing a specific quantity of books as ordered by the author or publisher. Most printers set minimum runs at 200 or 500.

Dentelle

 A decorative lace-like pattern on the inner edge of a book cover that is inspired from embroidery and the decorative arts. This binder's technique was used primarily in France in the 18th century.

Desktop Publishing

 Book design, layout, and production completed on a personal computer by specific software.

Device

 Refers to a printer's mark or imprint that was used primarily in the 16th and 17th centuries, typically found on the title page or at the end of a book. Today the term can also be used to describe a publisher's trademark or logo. Also known as printer's mark.

Direct Mail

 Form of advertising books by sending information (usually as a brochure or flyer) directly to possible buyers and clients.

Disbound

 A book, pamphlet, or ephemera that is lacking its binding.

Distributor

 A company that, for a fee, represents publishers by handling the warehousing and shipping of books to bookstores and libraries. They sometimes request an exclusive relationship with publishers and serve as the source for wholesalers.

Distributor

 A company that buys books from a publisher or other distributors and resells them to retail accounts.

Doctored

 A book that has been repaired, restored, or even added to. Also known as made-up.

Drm

 It stands for Digital Rights Management, which uses usually uses some form of encryption to protect intellectual property from copyright infringement.

Dummy

 A mockup of a book that is created to represent the physical appearance, including actual arrangement of the printed matter and illustrations, of a forthcoming book-to-book buyers. Modern trade publishing has replaced the use of dummies with materials such as advance reading copies and uncorrected proofs.

Dust Jacket (Dj)

 A removable paper wrapper that encloses a book to protect it from dirt. Dust jackets date from the early 19th century, but they came into more common use in the early 20th century as a means to advertise the book to potential buyers. Also known as dust wrapper or book jacket.

Dust Wrapper

 See dust jacket.