A clear hierarchy and readable typeface help create a layout that is inviting to your reader. A series of terms is commonly used by libraries and publishers for the general sizes of modern books, ranging from folio the largest, to quarto smaller and octavo still smaller. Even with the advent of desktop publishing, making it possible for anyone to prepare text that appears professionally typeset, many publishers still require authors to submit manuscripts within their respective guidelines. Every section you include in your manuscript foreword, dedication, chapters, etc. Use 12point times new roman or arial font unless the publishers submission guidelines indicate otherwise. Before you submit your book to kdp, you need to format it so it meets our quality standards. Vellum is bestsuited to authors who wish to format their books without standard formatting expertise or notable graphic design skills. Do the same for any credit text you have at the beginning of the. A format used for displaying highly designed books because each page is fixed, like a pdf. If you have indesign cs5, choose one of the following free book cover templates. If your publisher provides guidelines, their guidelines should supersede these instructions wherever the.
These steps include including setting up the correct trim size, setting up the correct margins, formatting the. There is different formatting for picture books and chapter books that you. Since this is the nanowrimo month, and im using it to finish this book and blog series on selfpublishing, you can expect a new post tomorrow. How to format your book for self publication be sure your book is in one electronic file. If the publishing company does not provide specific requirements for how they would like a manuscript formatted you can just use the standard manuscript. As such it has wider support for producing the files, and editing them. If youre a tabhitter or spacespacespacespacespacer, select all of your text in word, then set indentation using format paragraph. Word doesnt export epub files the most common ebook format, but most digital publishers will. Therefore, knowing the proper book format you need is crucial.
But when you format your book, the layout of your content, structure and readability is just as important as the. Aug 31, 2014 format the manuscript according to each publishing companys specifications. You can earn more money with completelynovel read our selfpublishing price comparison, here. Nov 03, 2012 the definitive guide to writing and publishing your nonfiction book the official bookbuzzr blog says. Publishers cataloginginpublication data shakespeare, william. Use a header on each page, including your name, the title of your novel in all caps, and the page number. Doublespaced lines of text set in a word processor as 24point or 20point line spacing. How to format a novel manuscript writing academy scribophile. If you are a selfpublishing author who wants to know how to typeset a book, there are plenty of tools and resources available to you. Begin numbering with the first page of the text of the book, usually the introduction, prologue, or chapter one.
After each copy is printed and bound, the book is mechanically trimmed so that the size of every page is uniform. How to format a book for publishing pen and the pad. How to format a book the free and easy way ebook formatting. Nov 15, 2019 ms word is a pretty decent word processor, but it should not be used for book formatting. It helps to spend some time in a library and this could be your home library or a bookstore with a measuring tape and to measure some of the books in your books genre. Naturally, the quality of the content of your book is the number 1 priority. Your manuscript should be clean and professionallookingafter that, its your story that will make or break your submission.
As youll know, books are typically printed with smaller pages, so if you are selfpublishing the first thing youll need to do is adjust your page size. Now, select an area of text, such as the title in the image above, and then click on the style and your text will be changed to the new format. If youre looking to create a massmarket book, either in the selfhelp or fiction genres, a demy size is a good option for attracting maximum attention on the shelf without the expense of printing a hardback. At completelynovel we use the two most popular sizes for our books. There is different formatting for picture books and chapter books that you must research and use. Typesetting and formatting your book completelynovel. Still, this hasnt stopped it from becoming one of the most commonly used tools in selfpublishing and the reason why a lot of indie books look terrible. List of book sizes standard sizes for all different self. A socalled industry standard ebook format because it is supported by virtually all publishing industry stakeholders. If youll be epublishing your own work and need to format ebook files yourself, thats a different issue. Even with the advent of desktop publishing, making it possible for anyone to.
Self publishing, book printing free book templates. Jun 23, 2014 naturally, the quality of the content of your book is the number 1 priority. How to format your nonfiction manuscript barbara mcnichol. About the isbn standard isbn stands for international standard book number. Set the document to 12point text in either times new roman or courier font. While this article attempts to offer standardized recommendations, some editors, agents or publishing houses may have their own formatting. Writers often obsess about the correct way to format a manuscript before they send it to a publisher. They wont spend time with an author that hasnt done the necessary preparation. Start each new chapter on its own page, onethird of the way down the page. Do the same for any credit text you have at the beginning of the book by selecting the text and then clicking the centred style. Kelly hart is a proofreading contractor for book cover cafe and has been a slush. With any endeavor into publishing an ebook, youll come across the epub book formatting optionthe standard choice on the.
Turn off the function that takes an entire paragraph at the bottom of the page to the following page if the paragraph is split between two pages. Begin numbering with the first page of the text of the book, usually the. How to format a book when selfpublishing wellstoried. So, later on, you can select the best practices and which tools to use in your book design.
Books at this size usually come with a tiny typeface and spine flexibility ranging from minimal to moderate. And you will have the ability to transform your manuscript into a beautiful book which is ready to be published. For authors that are trying the traditional route of publishing, this is also an important stepthe agents and publishers you submit to wont even look at your manuscript if its not formatted according to the industry standard. Attach proposal and sample chapters or sample illustrations word count range b. For authors that are trying the traditional route of publishing, this is also an. And you will have the ability to transform your manuscript into a beautiful. Word processors usually default to a4 or us letter size, which is most common for home printing.
Jan 15, 2020 once your book is written and ready for edits and production, the template will come in handy since itll already be in a common format and file for you to start the book production and publishing process. Standard book trim sizes are the book sizes most commonly used in the publishing industry for books of a particular genre or type. For your reference, the standard book sizes in inches are. Jun 29, 2017 the simplest way to format a book is to use the existing templates provided on self publishing websites, or to create a plaintext file which you can format using a dedicated book publishing tool more on formatting tools below. But when you format your book, the layout of your content, structure and readability is just as important as the content itself. Aformat books are dinky, and perfect for readers on the go. Almost all literary agents and publishers expect electronic. On the layout tab, in the page setup group, click size, and then select more paper sizes. Aug 14, 20 understanding book layouts and page margins describes typical margins for a standard 6 inch by 9 inch trade paperback, including createspace book layout specifications self publishing book design.
Before, you were at the mercy of your publisher on how your book format looked, but today, you have. Build your book format a paperback manuscript word for. The standard size for a mass market paperback is around 4. Almost every ebook provider amazon, barnes and noble and so forth has their own platform and format.
One of the things writers tend to obsess over is the proper format for submitting their manuscripts to agents and editors. For authors that are trying the traditional route of publishing, this is also an important stepthe agents and publishers you submit to wont even look at your manuscript if its not formatted according to the. Here are the basics steps on formatting your manuscript in microsoft word for self publication. Trim size is essentially the publishing term for book size. Publishing a book for children is a viable project, but you must know how to format the manuscript before you send it to a publisher. In general, a document with standard manuscript format will have the following features. Copyright page samples you can copy and paste into your book. Use the table in this section of the template to list the works governed. Note that you need to make your pages slightly bigger in your document than the finished book size.
The list below shows standard book sizes but remember that books can be almost any size you wish, and portrait, landscape or square format. Standard policies for how to submit your manuscript online. Even better the book templates listed in this article are absolutely free. Completelynovel specialises in helping writers create and publish beautiful printondemand books. How to format your novel manuscript the editors blog. 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. They are arranged by spine thickness, based on the number of pages in your book. Jul 27, 2018 the demy format is commonly used for airport fiction these days, often replacing the more traditional and smaller aformat size. You may also send your manuscripts to printondemand companies to have the book published outside of conventional. Almost all literary agents and publishers expect electronic submissions in microsoft word format. The definitive guide to writing and publishing your nonfiction book the official bookbuzzr blog says.
The directions below are for ms word 7 and 10 the most. Find out more about what we can do for your book below. These steps include including setting up the correct trim size, setting up the correct margins, formatting the text, and numbering the pages. Here are the measurements that you need to know about. The demy format is commonly used for airport fiction these days, often replacing the more traditional and smaller aformat size. May 09, 2017 a socalled industry standard ebook format because it is supported by virtually all publishing industry stakeholders. Before, you were at the mercy of your publisher on how your book format looked, but today, you have control over this entire process. If youre looking to create a massmarket book, either in the self. One agency per country is designated to assign isbns for the publishers and selfpublishers located in that country. Standard manuscript format news newspapers books scholar jstor november 2015 learn how and. The most common and most economical trim sizes is 5. This publishing contract governs the publication of the work s listed below. Jan 15, 2010 im in the process of selfpublishing my first book. The trim size relates these dimensions, in width x height format.
Wikipedia has a comparison of formats that will help you get started. It will help you export the file formatted in words. Enter width and height fields for your trim size with bleed added. Includes formatting tips and a tutorial video for reedsys own book editor. In fact, you have the final say over everything in your finished manuscript is displayed. This will include font style, text size, margins, spacing, headers, footers, page numbers, word count, and so on. The size of a book is generally measured by the height against the width of a leaf, or sometimes the height and width of its cover. Write your contact information on the front page, in the topleft corner.
Turn your completed manuscript into a formatted ebook with. Then change the style of the first chapter heading. How to format your childrens book manuscript dummies. Standard manuscript format is a formatting style for manuscripts of short stories, novels, poems and other literary works. However, those page sizes arent standard for the book publishing industry. Understanding book layouts and page margins describes typical margins for a standard 6 inch by 9 inch trade paperback, including createspace book layout specifications selfpublishing book. This format used to be the standard for airport fiction, but now youll also see it used widely for reprints of classic novels and niche fiction, like selfhelp or humour. Interior book design manuscript formatting professionally formatted text is an important part of book design. Turn your completed manuscript into a formatted ebook with kindle create. Almost every ebook provider amazon, barnes and noble and so forth has their own. As such it has wider support for producing the files, and editing. Readability is an interesting topic, and there are a number of readability formulas that can be used to test the readability of text. How to format a manuscript the specifics guidelines you need.