The Book of Abstracts is a compact publication that bundles all accepted abstracts from a conference. It serves as a citable reference document, is often assigned a DOI, and is made available to participants as a PDF or printed volume.
Also known as: Conference proceedings, abstract book, proceedings (in the strict sense)
Format: PDF, print, indexed
Citable via: ISBN/ISSN, DOI, potentially PubMed listing
What is a Book of Abstracts?
The Book of Abstracts – often referred to as conference proceedings – is the compact written documentation of all scientific contributions at a conference. Unlike full proceedings, this contains only the short versions (abstracts), but each is citable and – when carefully prepared – assigned a DOI, making it permanently referenceable.
Creation is based directly on abstract management: As soon as the accepted contributions are finalized, the volume is generated from the original data.
Typical structure
- Foreword by the conference chair
- Program overview with daily schedule and session structure
- Table of contents by sessions, tracks, or thematic blocks
- Abstracts in standardized formatting (title, authors, affiliations, text, keywords, funding acknowledgments)
- Author index with references to the respective contribution numbers
- Keyword index
- Sponsor and exhibitor directory
- Imprint with ISBN/ISSN, DOI, and citation suggestion
Creation process
- Data export of all accepted abstracts from the abstract management system. Converia supports this with data formats for typesetting software.
- Layout template adapted to the event design
- Automatic generation with table of contents, indices, and cross-references
- Editing for consistent spelling, formula notation, and citation rules
- Correction loop with authors if necessary (especially for print publications)
- Final approval by the program committee
- Publication as a PDF (preliminary version before the event, final version after), optionally with DOI assignment and listing in databases (PubMed, ResearchGate)
Print or digital?
- Digital (PDF): The modern standard; searchable, low cost, fast distribution, easy to update if corrections are needed
- Print: Still a tradition in some scientific communities; prestigious, heavy, and expensive; often only in limited editions for speakers and guests of honor
- Hybrid: Digital for everyone, printed only on request – print-on-demand
Best practices
- Decide early on whether the Book of Abstracts will be assigned a DOI – DOI assignment requires lead time
- Communicate a uniform format briefing during the Call for Papers (character count, structural requirements)
- Only release corrections in documented versions; never perform silent updates
- Ensure persistent URLs for the online version
- Clarify licensing issues: Will the work be published Open Access, or does the organizer hold the copyright?
Book of Abstracts in Converia
Converia automatically provides all accepted contributions for the Book of Abstracts for easy further processing.
Turning accepted abstracts into a citable work
With Converia, the Book of Abstracts is created at the push of a button – instead of manually consolidating hundreds of submissions in Word.
- Abstract Management – Abstracts / Program / Speakers
- Call for Papers (CfP) – Abstracts / Program / Speakers
- Scheduling (Program Planning) – Abstracts / Program / Speakers
At the push of a button from accepted abstracts: searchable PDF with table of contents, indices, and branding.