Once your manuscript is edited, polished, re-read a dozen times and commas tucked neatly into bed, it’s time for the next step: turning your manuscript into a real book ready for publication. This means turning your typed manuscript into a file ready for uploading.
There are many elements to book formatting; it’s what happens between the sheets! The page layout, style and placing of the text. While we can upload a Word document to Amazon, doing so without proper layout preparation often leads to inconsistent spacing, margins and typography.
Anatomy of a book
Trim size – the physical dimensions of your book (e.g. 5×8, 6×9) is the first consideration. The number of words and the genre will influence this decision.
Margins and gutter – The inner margin must be wider to account for the spine.
Typography – font choice, font size, paragraph style, line spacing. Most books are easier to read using a serif font like EB Garamond.
Paragraphs – are they indented or spaced? Do you have a drop cap for the beginning of the chapter? How are lines spaced (leading), single, double, somewhere between? Kerning and tracking – space between specific letter pairs and overall letter spacing
Alignment – Is the text left justified or fully justified?
Header and Footer – where is the page number? Do you want the chapter, book name or author name in the header?
Chapter headings – Font, size, ornamentation, drop caps, numbering style.
Front matter & back matter – Title page, copyright page, dedication, table of contents and about the author.
These are some of the considerations that come into book interior design.
Typesetting or formatting?
These terms are used interchangeably but essentially mean the same thing. To get technical:
Typesetting is the more traditional, design-focused term of this craft. Technicians train for this role and it is a highly skilled trade. Most book designers use Adobe InDesign to place every word and image on the page.
It refers to:
- Choosing and pairing fonts
- Adjusting kerning, tracking, and leading
- Controlling widows and orphans
- Fine-tuning margins and gutters
- Designing chapter openings
- Handling hyphenation rules
- Managing justification and word spacing
- Creating a professional typographic hierarchy
Historically, typesetting meant physically arranging metal type. Today it usually implies working in professional software like Adobe InDesign.
It’s about craft, typography, and aesthetic quality—the invisible polish that makes a book feel traditionally published.
Formatting is a broader and often more technical term.
It refers to:
- Setting trim size
- Adjusting margins
- Applying consistent heading styles
- Preparing files for upload (KDP, IngramSpark, etc.)
- Making sure page numbers, front matter, and TOC work
- Ensuring EPUB files validate
Book formatting makes a book function properly. Typesetting makes a book look beautiful.
In traditional publishing, these roles are distinct. In indie publishing, one person often does both—and calls it “formatting.”
If you have a complex book, or an image-heavy, coffee-table-type book, I recommend hiring a trained typesetter/book designer. The look and high quality of this type of publication is a priority.
Typesetting prices
Prices vary hugely on the complexity of the book and the experience of the designer. These prices generally apply to standard-length novels (70,000–90,000 words). However, here is a rough guide in Australian Dollars:
Basic Professional Typesetting $300 – $900
Mid-Range Professional Layout $500 – $1,950
High-Complexity / Custom Design $850 – $2,900+
Per-Page Pricing (guideline) $8 → $40+
If you want publish-ready interiors that match traditional standards, budgeting $700 – $2,000+ AUD is realistic for many books in Australia.
Traditional typesetting offers the highest level of typographic control and custom design. However, most self-published authors have neither the budget nor the need for such highly trained professionals.
DIY programs
Many self-published authors format their books using a range of excellent software specifically designed for self-published authors. These programs can quickly produce professional-looking books in both PDF and EPUB forms.
Note: Print books are fixed-layout documents. Ebooks are reflowable, meaning the reader can change font size and spacing, which means formatting requirements are different. Adobe InDesign or Affinity do not create the all-important EPUB files.
For Mac users, many use Vellum for book formatting, and there are raving fans for this software. I have used it via MacinCloud (being a PC user), and it is a good program. However, using it through the cloud made it a clunky process despite buying the program which isn’t the cheapest. Vellum’s pricing is offered in USD as a one-time purchase:
- Vellum Ebooks: US $199.99 — unlimited ebook outputs
- Vellum Press: US $249.99 — unlimited ebooks and print-ready PDFs (paperback/hardcover)
That’s roughly $300–$400 AUD depending on exchange rates and bank fees.
If you are a PC user and want to spend a little less ($147 US), I highly recommend Atticus. This program was a new kid on the block, officially launched in October 2021. I started using it in August 2023 and have created over 30 books since. It is continually updating and improving. It has access to the thousands of fonts in the Google suite.
There are a few limitations. For example, images can’t be placed wherever wanted on the page and text can only flow around images when they are half the page width or less. There is not an endless array of options for header and footer. However, there are workarounds which I am now proficient at!
There is another program called Affinity Publisher which I haven’t tried. This is a full desktop publishing application, the closest non-subscription alternative to the industry standard Adobe InDesign. It’s designed for page layout and professional print work, including books, magazines, brochures and more, and works on macOS, Windows, and iPad.
However, there is a learning curve for this, and it doesn’t natively export reflowable EPUB eBooks.
Other ways for book formatting
Reedsy Book Editor – A free, web-based editor that outputs clean EPUB and PDF files, great for straightforward formatting without software installs.
Kindle Create – Amazon’s free tool for formatting books for Kindle/print, though less powerful than dedicated tools.
Common book formatting mistakes
The beauty of programs like Atticus is that they take away some of the mistakes of formatting, like incorrect margins, widows and orphans, not allowing for gutter and inconsistent paragraph indents.
Other common errors include double spaces after full stops and overusing decorative fonts.
Conclusion
There is a lot to consider when formatting your manuscript. You want your book to look beautiful and be easy to read. It is highly possible for you to format your own book. However, if you lack time, techy skills or desire to do this, I’d love to help.
Using the professional book formatting features and great layout choices of Atticus, I can transform your manuscript into a polished-looking book even more worth reading than it already is. Send me a message here.
