If you use microsoft word, heres how your paragraph settings should look. In todays self publishing world, its a good idea to have your book available in as many formats as you can. If you intend to selfpublish print books i can recommend the experience as a positive one, then having a few tips and insights about the process before you begin will be helpful because theres a lot to cover, this topic is going to require several articles. This word template has proper margins, bleeds, gutter and just everything is predefined with easytouse layout. Using the styles function in word can help you ensure your books font and spacing is consistent. If you were to send us a document that youd formatted to mimic. Try measuring the amount of the page that you can see, to read from. The fonts used in the samples are for illustrative purposes only.
Nov 01, 2017 the thicker the book, the wider these margin need to be so that the text doesnt get eaten up by the spine. Standard margins for 6x9 size book writing stack exchange. The blank templates have the page size and margins set. In your word document, type any text 1 or 2 words is fine. If you want your book to meet the standards many designers follow, complete all the steps. As a former microsoft trainer turned selfpublished author, he is able to speak from considerable relevant. Authors have enough costs and publishing challenges to deal with already, so ive built an amazing package of book formatting templates in ms word and indesign you can download for free.
Im also making some guides and video tutorials that will help you design a professional, balanced, aesthetically pleasing, wellspaced and flawless book. If you want to experiment with book sizes and the way they might impact your typesetting choices, the reedsy book editor allows you to do so for free. If you are using a desktop publishing program like quark or pagemaker, set. How to format your book for kdp print 6x9 in less than 5 minutes. Understanding book layouts and page margins describes typical margins for a standard 6 inch by 9 inch trade paperback, including createspace book layout specifications. You need to know the final word count of your formatted book, so if you havent formatted your book for print yet, you need to do it before you start your full print cover. But as i mentioned, 6x9 can feel a bit big and flimsy and i like the smaller, more compact size of the 5. While designing the interior of your book is relatively simple, designing an eyecatching cover may not be. See our separate guides for formatting a paperback in microsoft word for mac and pages for mac. Apr 23, 2014 with our page size set, we continue with the global settings, and in this post we cover page layout and margins.
Insider secrets to professional book formatting for print in. Self publishing, book printing free book templates. You will need a template for the inside pages of the book, and a template for the outside cover of your book. Zip file that contains our microsoft word book layout templates in multiple design programs. When i try to choose a page size in page set up, 6x9 is not available. I set up some free templates and guides to book formatting here to help you out. To send in for a critique by the wd staff they will request that you use 1 12 in margins, which is different than the standard formatting of 1 in. These can be used in virtually any word processor like microsoft word, open office, pages, word perfect, etc. The editor also provides four popular trim sizes for formatting 4.
Literally any formatting attributes can be included, as word is a stylesbased program. However, there are some steps you can make when writing your book in microsoft word that will make the job of formatting your book easier and help prevent errors in the book formatting process. How to format a word document for amazons kdp publishing. I suggest you save your word document as well be adding formatting features, and itll be useful to do them all in the one document. If you are designing a hard copy book its essential to design your pages for doublesided printing. Free word template 6x9 format ready for createspace. Bookbaby will calculate your books spine width based on the specifications you select when configuring your book along with the number of pages in the uploaded textbody file. Whether you want to create a booklet for an event or print out an ambitious book project, consider using the prebuilt page settings for booklets that comes with word. Here, you will setup your book page or paper size which should be the same as your book cover.
How to format your book for amazon kindle using microsoft. Common mistakes made when writing a book in microsoft word. Oct 26, 2018 if you want to experiment with book sizes and the way they might impact your typesetting choices, the reedsy book editor allows you to do so for free. Diy formatting and layout guidelines harvard book store. There are so many tiny details and decisions that go into formatting a book that you pretty much have to be someone who enjoys working on that scale to appreciate book design. Another useful touch is to add a header with your surname, the books title, and page numbers. The client has told me that the book should be formatted to be 6x9, but ive looked around different forums and it seems that everyone has their own preferred marginsis there no industry standard. Basic manuscript formatting and word styles duration. We provide all guidelines for the printing process including book cover templates and layout. In my last video i talked about how much i hated formatting and in todays video im showing you how to format your novel. There are 5 templates, and each template has 5 different chapter page styles, so you can mix and match to find something perfect for your book. Sp 014 rev how do i format my word document for book printing for. You can follow the question or vote as helpful, but you cannot reply to this thread.
Apr, 2016 tips for formatting your book correctly in microsoft word. You look at it on your desk and you can measure it, that its 5. The directions below are for ms word 7 and 10 the most. The inside margin is based on page count, and i dont know how to be sure of my page count. I remember they had some outline for formatting books for our print department. It does involve jumping a few hurdles, though, and those hurdles are the reason that so many selfpublished authors dont have print versions of their books. In this post i explain formatting your word file for. The trouble is that the given dimension for the inside margin changes at 400 pages. On the dropdown menu, click more paper sizes at the bottom of the menu. Estimate your page count book designer fiona raven. Build your book format a paperback manuscript word for. To help ensure that your book meets kdps basic specifications, follow all the steps in this guide except those marked advanced. Formatting a print book for kdp can be learned quite quickly, and you can do everything in microsoft word, or indesign if you want to make it. Printondemand charges per page, not per square inch of paper, so a 200 page book at 5 x 8 is about twice as expensive as a 100 page book at 8 x 10, even though they have the same amount of actual paper.
That includes font, font size, line spacing, spacing between paragraphs, paragraph borders, etc. Diy book formatting what you need to know the main purpose of this site is to give you some templates and help you use them to format your book for free or very cheaply. The problem with this is that ms words gutter option wont work when it comes to book formatting. The standard size for most trade paperback books is 6x9. How to format your book for amazon kindle using microsoft word in only 30 minutes 0 comments one of the factors that decides whether your book will be successful or. Formatting your print book in ms word for kdp print spread. Below you will find our free microsoft word book templates for the inside pages. Click the page layout tab on the menu bar, then click and open the size option. Dust is exactly 400 pages, the extra margin spacing and larger size 6x9 makes it.
Apr 11, 2017 formatting your print book in ms word for kdp print april 11, 2017 october 6, 2018 leila if you are familiar with ms word, then it is not too difficult to format your print book interior for selfpublishing with createspace now kdp print using the formatted templates and this stepbystep guide. Becoming an indie author, but if you dont have it, this video by connie neal has some great tips. You can help protect yourself from scammers by verifying that the contact is a microsoft agent or microsoft employee and that the phone number is an official microsoft global customer service number. How to format your word document for book printing on mac or pc. All that being said, if youre writing your book in word, we recommend just leaving the page size set to standard 8. Are there standard margin sizes for specific book page sizes. If you want help formatting the other parts, see our stepbystep guides for preparing your manuscript in word for windows and mac.
Even if you dont use a book template, you can still write a book using microsoft word just be aware that you may have to spend more time formatting your book when its time to publish it. These book templates are only for the body of your book and do not include the book cover template. A useful option is to provide on your manuscripts cover page your contact information and a word count, like this. These steps include including setting up the correct trim size, setting up the correct margins, formatting the text, and numbering the pages. To download any of the templates, click on the file name. For the many indie authors who still favor microsoft word for formatting their books, heres a companion piece to ian andrews recent post about using word to create ebook interiors. I suggest you save your word document as well be adding formatting features, and itll.
Free book template microsoft word book templates diggypod. You will also need to modify the general page setup of your book like the page margins and. The goal when youre selfpublishing is to always make your book look as traditionally published as possible, so im giving you a stepby0step guide on formatting your novel. Insider secrets to professional book formatting for print in ms word. While words standard oneinch margins are great for many writing applications, they are not usually the best choice for book printing. When i was still in school i remember they had some outline for formatting books for our print department. Tips for formatting your book correctly in microsoft word. Diy formatting and layout guidelines printready means that you give us your book pdfs once theyre final. Because word is a flexible word processing system, you can simply use a book template within word, and start typing your book directly onto the page.
How to format a novel in microsoft word selfpublishing. This tutorial uses settings and options from the latest version of microsoft word, for mac or a pc. What are the guidelines for formatting a manuscript. We have free book template layouts for inside pages as well as cover templates. The template downloaded from lulu for a 6x9 book seems really simplistic. How to format your book for self publication bookstand. How to set the margins in word for your book printing project. First steps in formatting for print the editors blog. Yes, youve guessed it this time, hes explaining how to use word to format print books. This article is the first in a series to address formatting for print books. How to format a book in word a stepbystep tutorial youtube.
Publishing has become so easy in recent years that the biggest challenge for selfpublished authors is putting the effort and expertise into publishing books at the same level as the big. Using your current word count and the appropriate formula below, calculate the number of pages you can expect in your finished book. Formatting a 6x9 book i am trying to set up a 6x9 template for a self published book. This is going to be a smaller amount, because a portion of each page is being used to hold the book together. How to format a novel in microsoft word selfpublishing duration. Free templates and tutorials on formatting your book in word or indesign.
Formatting your print book in ms word for kdp print april 11, 2017 october 6, 2018 leila if you are familiar with ms word, then it is not too difficult to format your print book interior for selfpublishing with createspace now kdp print using the formatted templates and this stepbystep guide. Lets say you have a print book that is 5,25 wide by 8 tall. Here are the basics steps on formatting your manuscript in microsoft word for self publication. I would either have to shrink the margins and font quite a bit or have it be so thick as to be unrealistically expensive. At diggypod, we offer free book templates for the author wanting to publish a book. The book fold layout sets you up for printing your masterpiece automatically in the correct order, ready for folding and binding. Free book formatting templates in ms word and indesign.
The other formatting of the text you apply it to is also controlled by the style. Formatting print books with word selfpublishing advice. Have you had lots of questions over the years about words mirrored margins. For body font size, use 1012 points depends on your typefaces. How to format a word document for amazons kdp publishing program one of the best explanations of how to format your word document in preparation for publishing is in zoe winters book smart selfpublishing. Each book is 6x9 inches and looks like a book you might find in a bookstore. This book design tutorial will teach you how to format your own book before publishing. Using the styles function in word can help you ensure your book s font and spacing is consistent. May 16, 2016 how to format a picture book manuscript for publishers. How to write bestselling book descriptions in less than an hour. For microsoft word users, go to file and page setup.
How to make a full print book cover in microsoft word for. I think, from what ive read, is that my book would be about 400 pages. Our specialty is book formatting and interior layout, and wed love to help you get your book into professional condition. I am writing a 6x9 us paperback book in which i have downloaded a random 6x9 template.
Whether you hire someone to help you or format the book on your own, here are some helpful guidelines. For instance, if you want to get a price on how much a book will cost to print, the first thing you need to know is the size. Many writers indicate a title or subtitle by simply changing the font size and changing the font from the default font ah, times new roman, how we miss you and thinking their job is done. Using styles also saves you time because you dont have to format the font and spacing for each part of your book.
Formatting your book for lulu or createspace by moira allen. Fortunately, all versions of word allow you to easily set mirrored margins. Professionallooking book template for word, free used. Youve written, edited and proofread your book, and youve formatted it to look the way you want. Our book templates can save you time and money by automating some of the setup and formatting tasks. The stepbystep guide to formatting your print book for kdp. Im totally new at all this, but would like my first book to look really good from a page formatting standpoint. Even with thinner books, though, it doesnt hurt to account for the fact that the binding will eat up some of the page. How to format your word document for book printing on mac. Formatting a print book for kdp can be learned quite quickly, and you can do everything in microsoft word, or indesign if you want to make it extra professional.
A good, basic page layout is to leave 34inch margins on the outside edges and allow a 1inch margin on the inside, spine edge. Formatting for the kindle is really plain formatting just like typing on a typewriter, if youre old enough to remember those days. With that said, if you decide to format your novel. If you have microsoft word loaded on your system, the template will open a document within the microsoft word plugin in your browser.
Setting a gutter margin getting your book published. This makes navigating and formatting your book a pain. Hi and welcome to, where manuscripts are transformed into beautiful books. Insider secrets to professional book formatting for print. In a word document, however, the margin sizes must be adjusted accordingly for even and odd pages to achieve the mirrored look in the final book layout.
You will be issued a book cover template after saving a quote and uploading your text file. Jan 15, 2020 because word is a flexible word processing system, you can simply use a book template within word, and start typing your book directly onto the page. To get this to my editor, i have to find a way to keep all the chapter titles at the top of a new page and the end of the chapter to always end on a page that doesnt have a title. Book template free book templates book layout template. How to pick the size of your book as soon as you get serious about selfpublishing a book, you are confronted with the choice of what size your book ought to be. The font is size 10 and no special formatting is available, but you can include photos if you so choose. As you can see, a smaller trim size will produce more pages for the same word count, and a larger trim size will produce less. Having some reallife examples at your side, you should get a better sense of. How to format your book for createspace 6x9 in less than 2. Aug 14, 20 understanding book layouts and page margins joel, thanks a ton for all of your info.
You can use the preset styles in microsoft word or modify them for a custom look. Book manuscript format templates interior book design. Check out our free guide on how to find a book cover designer. Select this text, then click the arrow at the bottom right of the change styles button top right of the home menu bar. Be sure to insert blank pages in your word file where you want the photo pages to go by using the page break option, so that your book will still be paginated correctly after you insert the photo pages. Well walk you through the steps to format your word document for printing a book that is a 5. A badly formatted book can draw a reader out of the story, which is definitely. Feel free to use any fonts you wish in your document, when publishing your book. The default paper size and type of a microsoft word page is 8. Before sending your book to print, you will need to layout the book. Aug 07, 2016 insider secrets to professional book formatting for print in ms word. I just received a 6x9 trim wout bleed book proof from amazon and find. When writing your book you should separate the writing from the formatting.
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