Is it acknowledgments or acknowledgements?

Both are correct. Acknowledgments is the usual American spelling and the one The Chicago Manual of Style uses; acknowledgements is more common in British English. Pick one and use it on the page heading and in the table of contents.

Where do acknowledgments go in a book?

Either place works. The Chicago Manual of Style covers acknowledgments in the front matter, with or after the preface, and in the back matter after the last chapter. Most nonfiction books put them at the back, so the reader reaches the argument sooner.

How long should acknowledgments be?

As long as you need. The Scribe Method says there is no set word count: some authors write a paragraph and others several pages. For most nonfiction books, one to two pages covers everyone who mattered.

Who do you thank first in acknowledgments?

There is no rule. A common order is the people who worked on the book, then the people who shaped your ideas, then family last, so the most personal thanks close the section. Some authors reverse it and lead with family. Choose the order that reads naturally to you.

Should I ask before thanking someone by name?

For clients, colleagues in sensitive roles, and anyone whose story appears in the book, yes. For family, friends and your publishing team it is not needed, but check the spelling of every name.

Book Acknowledgements: How to Write Them, with Examples and a Template

Q: Does every book need acknowledgments?

No. The Scribe Method says the section is not mandatory, but most books include one.

What acknowledgments are, and where they go

The acknowledgments section is a public thank-you to the people who helped you write the book: family who gave you time, colleagues who shaped the ideas, readers of early drafts, and the team that edited, designed and published it. The Scribe Method says the section is not mandatory, but most books include one.

It can go at either end of the book. The Chicago Manual of Style's chapter on the parts of a book covers acknowledgments in the front matter, together with or after the preface, and again in the back matter. Most nonfiction books put them at the back, so the reader gets to the argument sooner.

Acknowledgments are not the same as a dedication. A dedication is one or two lines, at the front, for one person or a small group. Acknowledgments have room for names, details and a page or more.

Who to thank

The Scribe Method lists the groups most authors thank:

Family: a spouse or partner, children, parents, siblings
Friends who supported you along the way
Editors, proofreaders and the book production team
Publishers, agents and writing coaches
Coworkers, business partners and assistants
Contributors, advisors and sources of inspiration
Teachers, mentors and people who influenced you

For a business or expert book, add two groups that are easy to forget: the clients, interviewees or case-study subjects whose stories you used, and the early readers who told you what was not working. Ask clients before you name them; some would rather stay anonymous even when they are happy to help.

How to write them in four steps

Make a list by group. The Scribe Method's advice: list everyone first, sorted by role, so no one is left out. Go back through your calendar, your interview notes and the email threads about the book.
Pick an order. A common one is the book team, then the people behind the ideas, then friends, then family last, so the section ends on the most personal note. Leading with family works too. What matters is that the order is deliberate.
Thank each person for something specific. "Thanks to my wife" tells the reader nothing. Say what they did: read every draft, kept the business running, asked the question that became chapter three.
Write it in your own voice. The Scribe Method puts it simply: sincerity matters more than formality. Read it aloud. If a line sounds like an awards speech, rewrite it.

There is no set length. A short book with a small team may need half a page; a book built on dozens of interviews may need three.

A fill-in template

Copy this into your document and delete the groups you do not need. We wrote it for this guide.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

[Opening line: what writing this book took, in one sentence.]

To [editor / writing partner], for [the specific thing they did].
To [publishing team, by name or role], for [design, proofreading, production].

To [mentor or colleague], who [the idea, question or push they gave you].
To [clients or interviewees, named only with permission], for trusting me with [their stories / their numbers].
To [early readers], for telling me [what was not working].

To [friends], for [the support, in concrete terms].

To [family member], for [what they gave up or carried so you could write].
To [family member], for [something only they did].

[Closing line: a final thanks to the reader, or to the person who matters most.]

24 example acknowledgments by type

All 24 were written by Scribe Media for this page; the names are made up and none is quoted from a published book. Swap in your own details: the specific part is what makes a line worth reading.

The book team

To Maria, my editor, who saw the book inside a 90,000-word draft and helped me cut it to the 50,000 that mattered.
To the design and production team, who made a stack of chapters look like a book.
To Jordan, who interviewed me for twenty hours and somehow kept me on topic for most of them.
To my proofreader, who caught the typo on page one that I had read past a hundred times.

Mentors and colleagues

To Dana, who asked me in 2019 why I had never written any of this down. This book is the long answer.
To my business partner, Sam, who ran the company while I wrote on Friday mornings, and never once asked how the book was going.
To the team at the firm, whose work is on every page, even where your names are not.
To the first manager who let me fail on a small project instead of a big one. Chapter four is about you.

Clients and interviewees

To the forty founders who let me interview them about their worst year. Your honesty is the backbone of this book.
To my clients, named and unnamed, who tested these ideas before they were ready and told me exactly where they broke.
To Priya and Tom, who agreed to let me tell their story in chapter seven, including the parts that did not go well.
To everyone who answered my survey. You turned a hunch into a chapter.

Early readers

To my early readers, Chris, Lee and Ana, who read a messy draft and were kind enough to say so.
To the reader who told me the introduction was three pages too long. You were right, and it is now two pages shorter.
To my writing group, for six months of Tuesday deadlines.
To my sister, my most honest reader, who wrote "so what?" in the margin until I had an answer.

Friends

To Alex, who listened to every version of this idea on long walks and never once looked bored.
To the friends who stopped asking when the book would be done, and the ones who kept asking. I needed both.
To the coffee shop on Main Street, where most of chapter two was written, and its staff, who never moved me along.
To my running group, for the miles where I worked out what this book was actually about.

Family

To my parents, who taught me that hard work is not a story, it is a habit.
To my kids, who gave up a lot of Saturday mornings so this book could exist. The Saturdays are yours again.
To my husband, who read every draft, made every coffee, and believed in this book on the days I did not.
And to you, the reader, for giving this book your time. I hope it repays it.

Mistakes to avoid

Thanking without saying why. A list of names is a credits roll. One specific detail per person makes it a thank-you.
Leaving out the people who did the work. Editors, interviewers, designers and assistants are often missed. Check your project emails before you finish.
Naming clients without asking. Some people are glad to help and still do not want to be named in print.
Misspelled names. Check every one. It is the one page where a typo is personal.
Inside jokes nobody else can follow. Every reader sees this page. If a line needs explaining, write it in a card instead.
Turning it into a second dedication. If one person matters most, give them the dedication and a line here, not a page here.

How to write book acknowledgments, with a template and 24 examples