Need some good book formatting tips? Focusing on the content of your book is the natural primary priority when you are writing. But did you know that how your book is formatted plays a huge part in how well readers take in your content? Not only does a clean book format help readers follow your book’s content easily from the first page to the last, but a nicely formatted book feels professionally crafted and more expertly written than a book with an awkward or incomplete format.
- Book Formatting Explained
- Book Formatting Tips: 1. Select readable fonts.
- Book Formatting Tips: 2. Choose the right size font.
- Book Formatting Tips: 3. Give margins room to work.
- Book Formatting Tips: 4. Create chapters by using headers.
- Book Formatting Tips: 5. Be consistent with line spacing.
- Book Formatting Tips: 6. Utilize visuals for scene breaks.
- Book Formatting Tips: 7. Use page numbers.
- Book Formatting Tips: 8. Use justified formatting.
- Book Formatting Tips: 9. Don’t use two spaces after a period.
- Book Formatting Tips: 10. Finalize your draft with black ink on a white background.
- Putting Book Formatting Tips in Action
Book Formatting Explained
A book’s format simply is the way a book is laid out, including everything from how large the margins are, what types of fonts and graphic elements are included, how chapters or sections are presented to the reader and even how page numbering is handled. As a whole, the format encompasses each of these elements, but books may follow a similar but slightly different format.
Unique book formatting tips often follow genres, but authors and publishing companies are free to play with the details of book formatting to reach their audience and create a positive, engaging experience for readers. To get your manuscript into good shape, use our book formatting tips to polish your book’s structure so your readers can focus on your amazing content rather than inconsistent, incomplete or just the wrong type of formatting for your book.
Book Formatting Tips: 1. Select readable fonts.
The first of our book formatting tips is to choose a font that is easy to read. Artistic, stylish or creative fonts can seem like an appealing choice for creative writers who want to extend their book’s concept or artistic vision onto each page. However, choosing a clear, easy-to-read font like Times New Roman is a good start to creating text that won’t strain the eyes of your readers.
If that basic font doesn’t seem like the right fit for your book, choose another font with a similarly clean, non-fussy style to let your book’s words keep your reader’s attention instead of a difficult-to-read, complicated font that will slow readers down. Some of the more popular fonts your readers have likely seen are Caslon, Garamond, Janson and Minion.
Book Formatting Tips: 2. Choose the right size font.
The font size you use in your book is just as important as the type of font. If the font is too small, readers will have to work to read the words, and they may grow frustrated and put your book down before finishing it altogether. An overly large font can look cartoonish or present too little content on a single page, needlessly lengthening your book and potentially scaring away readers.
The standard font size for most books is 11-point font, but authors have the flexibility to choose a different size as long as the font isn’t so big that it feels like a Large Print book. A good rule of thumb is to aim for a font that provides an average of 11 to 15 words per line to provide a comfortable reading pace.
Book Formatting Tips: 3. Give margins room to work.
The purpose of formatting a book’s margins generously on all sides is not simply to create a clean frame around the text, although a clean margin does just that. Margins play a role in both book binding and printing, and strong margins are one of the stars of the show in making each page enjoyable to read.
The top, outside and bottom margins are normally 5/8th of an inch on 5.5” x 8” books, and 6”x 9” book margins are typically around 3/4th of an inch. These margins leave room for headers, footers and page numbers and also create an inviting, spacious feel for readers. Choosing smaller margins can backfire, however, since the outside margins also provide critical space for necessary page trimming that happens as a natural part of the book binding process.
The inside margin, called the gutter, should be increased by ¼ to ½ an inch to allow for the binding to allow the page to sink comfortably into the center of the book. Without this increase in the page format, you risk losing text that will disappear into the center of the book.
Book Formatting Tips: 4. Create chapters by using headers.
One of our favorite book formatting tips is to use the built-in headers feature in your word processing program as you write to separate chapters or book sections. Inserting the appropriate title into your manuscript as you go, labeling each with a chapter number, will help you quickly find your way through each chapter during the writing and editing processes. Once your book has been edited and the manuscript content is in its final form, you can decide where you want your final draft of your book’s chapters to fall on each page.
Book Formatting Tips: 5. Be consistent with line spacing.
One of the best book formatting tips is to start as you mean to go on. In other words, set up your basic formatting structures, like font, chapter headers and line spacing, before you even begin, if possible, and then your book will have many aspects of book formatting done correctly when you are finished writing.
Line spacing is one of those book formatting stylistic choices that authors can be creative with, but readers will be comfortable reading your book if you follow a few standard expectations.
- Indent each paragraph.
- If you choose not to indent each paragraph, then you will need a space (blank line) between each one.
- Do not leave space between paragraphs for non-fiction books.
- Regardless of how you decide to add spaces or indents, make sure it happens on every single page, from the first word to the last line of the book.
Book Formatting Tips: 6. Utilize visuals for scene breaks.
When your writing shifts focus within a chapter and you move to a new scene, use a visual line marker. Graphic designers can create a unique marker for you that represents your story, theme or topic, or you can simply use a straight line or a line of characters like asterisks to present readers with the visual break between scenes.
Book Formatting Tips: 7. Use page numbers.
Use the page numbering tool that comes with your word processing program to include page numbers on each page. Not only will it make editing and revising your manuscript easier, but readers love to gauge their progress with a page number as well. Format numbers with the same font and size as the body of your manuscript for a clean, unobtrusive appearance.
Book Formatting Tips: 8. Use justified formatting.
Most fiction books are published with justified margins, which creates a straight, sleek line of text on all sides of the page. Having your page preset as justified can also help you judge how many words you can put on a line using your chosen font. Since the word processing program will add or subtract spaces to create that smooth, straight outside margin, you may learn that your favored font or preferred font size needs to be adjusted to create a text block on each page that looks great and reads comfortably.
Book Formatting Tips: 9. Don’t use two spaces after a period.
With modern communication moving swiftly to digital formatting, the need for more visual breathing room in writing has adapted in the printing of books, too. Instead of the formerly standard “period space space” we have utilized in writing for decades, the new norm requires only one space after the end of a sentence, before beginning a new sentence. Old habits can be hard to break, so be sure to check your manuscript for this consistent formatting.
Book Formatting Tips: 10. Finalize your draft with black ink on a white background.
Many authors use different colors during the drafting process of their manuscript, assigning a color for first drafts, editing passes and finalized blocks of text. This can result in a colorful manuscript, but the final draft of your book should always be changed back to black ink on a pure white background when it is ready to send off to the printer. Different color text can print lighter or darker, creating an uneven book printing that neither you nor your readers will enjoy reading.
Putting Book Formatting Tips in Action
Writing, editing and formatting a book are all big jobs, but the beauty of self-publishing lies in an author’s ability to retain full control over their own creative project. Writing and printing a beautiful book that your readers will enjoy picking up and reading from start to finish begins with clear formatting that is consistent, logical and presents your book’s contents in a readable, comfortable way.
Good formatting isn’t something that readers even think about, unless it is disorganized, inconsistent, or doesn’t make sense to the reader. Printers like Dazzle Printing can help you take your finalized manuscript and transform it into a gorgeous book that your readers will enjoy, from the first page to the last, when you focus on creating a strong format that follows conventions but reflects the uniqueness of your book’s story.
