This piece will offer advice on book publishing. There may be specific format requirements from your editor, publisher, or publishing house. If you’re not sure where to find this info, you can always ask, but you can also checkbook marketing websites.
Whether you’re writing fiction or nonfiction, here in the States you’ll need to follow these standards when publishing your book.
In what form does a book work best when it is published?
This is the standard layout for a manuscript.
First, set your text in 12-point black Times New Roman.
Even though it’s the standard on almost all computers, Times New Roman is too boring for use in book publishing.
If you want to make an impression, don’t use a fancy font. Put it off until you’re done making changes.
You should print on standard U.S. letter-size paper (8.5 inches by 11 inches) with 1-inch margins on all sides.
When you create a new document in Word, the page size and margins are preset for you, but if you’re exporting from another programme, make sure to check the results.
Go to File > Page Setup > Page Size.
To change the margins in your document, select format>Document.
Third, set the justification to left justification.
Left-justified text is also known as rough right text. In this case, the text will justify itself to the left and the right will remain unaligned.
Word’s left justification button can be accessed from the Home tab; otherwise, select the text and navigate to the Format menu > Paragraph > Alignment > Left option.
After a period, only one space is used.
If you notice that there are two spaces after a period in your document, use the “Find and Replace” function. Type “2” into the “Find” field, “1” into the “Replace” field, and then hit “Replace All” without regard for your typing teacher’s approval.
Lines should be two spaces apart.
As mentioned by book writing studios, Assisting your editor in this way may be the single most useful thing you can do for them. Leave some white space around your text if you want your readers to absorb every word.
If you realise that you’ve written your book with different line spacing, you can easily change it by selecting all of your text, going to format> Paragraph, and then selecting “Double” from the “Line spacing” drop-down box.
Sixth, always indent your paragraphs half an inch, and never use a tab or space to indent.
This might be something that every editor hates to see. The actions of “setting tabs” and “pressing tab” are not synonymous.
After a subhead or a bulleted or numbered list, the first paragraph of the chapter should not be indented.
Arrange your paragraphs in genre-appropriate fashion.
In fiction, paragraphs should be indented and full paragraph breaks should be avoided. When writing nonfiction, a full paragraph break is preferred over indentation.
Check out some books in your chosen genre to get a feel for the typical paragraph structure, and then adopt that style.
Use page breaks (number eight)
You can’t just keep pressing return until you reach a new page and a new chapter. Use page breaks instead.
To insert a page break at the end of a chapter in Word, position the arrow at the chapter’s end and select “Insert > Break > Page Break” from the main menu.
Make sure to page number your work
The title page is not the place to begin numbering your pages. In Word, double-click the header area of the page where your story begins, then choose “Insert > Page Numbers” from the menu that appears. Page numbers should be aligned with the top left corner of each page.
Send only one Word document (.doc or.docx) containing your entire manuscript.
There’s no requirement that your masterpiece be written. And under no circumstances should you send your editor individual chapters.
There are primarily three ways books are published today.
When first entering the publishing industry, it is helpful to have a firm grasp on the various book formatting options available to you. There are three primary book formats from which to choose when creating and designing your book. See what each has to offer to determine which is best for your book, and why:
Publishing a book via PDF printing.
As far as book and document printing go, PDF is the gold standard. When creating a print book, you must adjust the size of your document to conform to industry standards and provide the printer with a PDF file.
Making a PDF is easy, but creating a beautiful book is much more challenging, so you should either use a book design template, learn how to use a book production programme, or hire a professional.
Any document created in Microsoft Word, Adobe InDesign, Microsoft PowerPoint, or Adobe Photoshop can be exported to PDF and printed or shared electronically in their original format.
When viewing a PDF on a mobile device, the text may not reflow properly, making the document difficult to read.
EPUB.
Every time you try to publish an ebook, you will be presented with the EPUB book format as an option. The entire digital publishing industry has settled on the EPUB standard, with the exception of Amazon, which developed its own system instead and calls it MOBI.
EPUB files give you access to the largest ebook retailers in the world and can be read on Apple devices, Barnes & Noble Nooks, and computers running Adobe Digital Editions.
Make sure your EPUB is in good shape before uploading it to any online stores. You could ruin your ebook if you do that. Use the International Book Publishing Forum’s free validation tools whether you do it yourself or hire a professional (IBPF).
Kindle from Amazon.com (MOBI)
As was mentioned earlier, Amazon went its own way and developed its own book format. Initially, MOBI-formatted ebooks were only compatible with Amazon’s Kindle e-readers, but it didn’t take long for developers to create software that made MOBI files accessible on other devices. Any electronic reading device that supports the Amazon Kindle app can now read ebooks in the MOBI format. As is usually the case, professionals should be entrusted with the task of converting an EPUB to MOBI.
