Top Ten things I wish all publishers and authors would do

So the previous top tens I've posted were of quotes I really loved. Today I decided to do a wish  list, if you will, of the top ten things I wish publisher and/or authors did differently in books. They're really just minor things that are easily changed, but little things add up. Some publishers and authors already do some of the things I suggest, and I sincerely thank you. You guys rock! To the rest of you--please consider the following:

10. I love it when an author writes a totally unique and vast world for their characters to reside in. If by the third book, however, they still don't include a glossary of terms and/or creatures, it makes it difficult to keep track of them all and not get at least a little lost. So please, help a reader out and add one.

9. I dislike it when the order of a series is different from the order the books were published in. It is soooooo confusing. I know this can happen occasionally when deadlines are pushed back or an author changes publishers, but it can be a little upsetting to realize you must have missed a book because they're talking about something you haven't read about yet. If it happens please alert retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble, etc and book related internet sites like Goodreads of the discrepancy so they can accurately record the order of the series.

8. Have you ever noticed the list of books in a series which are sometimes located somewhere on the first few pages of a book? Why can't there be a set standard for the direction to list the order of books in a series? I've had some list the first in a series first and while others list it last. Without numbers being provided next to the titles, I can't be 100% sure which is the first in the series and which is the last. Additionally, I hate it when a book doesn't list somewhere on the outside what number it is in a series it is. I have read the third or second in a series first because I thought it was a standalone book. Sometimes so much information about the previous book(s) is provide that I feel I couldn't enjoy the previous ones because I already know what's going to happen. When that happens guess who loses a sale?

7. I hate it when a cover doesn't match what is in the book. Sometimes I still love the cover, but discrepancies in things like skin color are just so wrong.

6. I don't like it when a book series starts off printing the series in paperbacks only to switch to hardback for the fourth book or so. If possible, I want my books uniform not a mish mash of different sizes. Perhaps it's an OCD thing, but what can I say?

5. If an unusual name is used for a character or place, I would really appreciate the author giving us an idea of how to pronounce it phonetically. You would not believe how many times I get it wrong and when I finally hear the correct pronunciation I am so set in my incorrect way that's it's too late to change the name in my head. 

4. I truly dislike it when books repeat information an unreasonable amount of times in an effort to bring those who didn't read the previous book(s) in the series up to date. Wish there was such a thing as a skipologue (see yesterday's Monday Musings).

3. I truly hate it when the hard cover books I buy fall apart after one reading. This is happening more and more frequently to me. I'm now keeping my receipts so I can return them when it occurs. Those darn books cost a bundle and I should get more than one read out of them. Please don't skimp on the binding.

2. If an author has more than one character giving their points of view within one chapter it would be really nice if there was some divider to indicate when the change in view point occurs. I hate having to go back and reread because I'm confused about what just happened only to discover it's now the male character's point of view being given instead of the female's. This drives me crazy.

1. As the moderator of a book club, I hate it when an author decides to forgo chapter numbers. With so many people reading the eBook versions of books, you can't just say read to  page 56. Plus, if there are different versions such as a hardcover copy and a paperback copy the page numbers just won't  match. You would not believe the hoops we moderators have to go through to figure out at what point the day's reading should end. Please don't write chapter numbers off. The BIGGEST offenders I've noted to date, which almost had me just about pulling my hair out to divvy the chapters up, were ALL the books of George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire, aka A Game of Thrones, series and Legend by Marie Lu. They each took an unbelievably large amount of time to  divide in a way everyone could comprehend. I think by the end I went a little cross eyed. So please, have a care so I don't loose my hair. lol