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To find out more about the art of writing book dedications, Bored Panda reached out to Sheila Lowe, a handwriting examiner and best-selling book author, including a series of forensic mysteries “Inkslingers Ball” (2014), “Outside the Lines” (2016), “Written Off” (2018), “Proof of Life” (2019).
When asked what kind of significance a book dedication has, Lowe said that it really depends on what the person buying the book is looking for. “Collectors want only a signature with no personalization. Some intend to give the book as a gift. Others love to have the author write something personal, just for them,” she said and added that “like beauty, the significance is in the view of the beholder.”
When it comes to writing her own book dedications, Lowe said that although every time she signs her name in a book, she wants it to be meaningful, “sometimes, writing just the right words in a dedication is harder than writing the book!”
“When I know the reader, or there is a special reason, what I say is important to me. For others, I sometimes have a set phrase that I use. For example, in my new book, The Last Door, I might write something airy like, ‘It’s time to open the Last Door.’ Or for Dead Letters, which takes place at an archaeological dig, ‘I hope you ‘dig’ the book.’ Silly things like that,” Lowe told us.
Lowe also recounted an encounter she had with American writer Michael Connelly when he signed a book for her years ago. “Knowing I was a newish writer at the time, he wrote in a book to me, ‘If writin’ is fightin’ I hope you go ten rounds,’ which meant a lot to me (though I’m sure he wrote the same to many writers, lol),” Lowe remembered. She later served on a faculty with him at a mystery writer’s conference.
Sadly, it seems like writing a book dedication was way more popular in the past than it is today. Lowe says she can only guess why it is like that. “What comes to mind is that with mass media bombarding us all the time, the world has become far less personal and people may pay less attention to that which is. Many people use electronic devices to read on, so that puts the kibosh on a written note,” she explained.
Moreover, “often, too, readers buy books online rather than in person, so don’t have an opportunity to meet the author. For that purpose, I have printed bookplates that I sign and send to readers who request them,” Lowe said. She also added that with handwriting being less prevalent, not everyone can read a note written in cursive.
