Titles on Demand can print perfect bound trade paperbacks from manuscripts that have a minimum page count of 50 and a maximum of 550. All interior book pages, both printed and blank, are included in the above calculation. Your finished book has a minimum trim size of 4.75" X 4.75" and a maximum size of 8.25" X 10.75" with the most common size being 6" X 9"
Suggested Steps For Preparing Manuscript
1) Proofread
Edit your text for spelling and grammatical errors. Extensive editorial corrections during the proofing process will slow down the process and result in additional charges
2) Select readable Fonts and typestyles
- Select an easily readible text (example: Garamond, Palantino, Times New Roman, Century)
- Bold selected font for heads (Chapter titles, section heads, etc)
- Use minimal formatting and a 10pt or 11pt type for the main body of work
- Be consistent in your use of style sheets in your word processing program. Be sure that all body text uses the same style, whether it's "Normal" or one you've defined. Use the same header style for all chapter titles, the same subheaded styles for all subheads, and so on. In general, define new styles only if you really need to; fewer styles, used consistently, will give the best results.
3) Divide your manuscript into separate files
The manuscript's interior text should be broken into three sections and each section should be saved as a separate file. We recommend that you preface each file name with FM, CM & BM to identify the interior sections represented. Not all manuscripts will require all three files so create only those that you require for your needs.
- Front Matter (FM) - includes everything up to the page where your book actually begins (Title page, other works by author, dedication, acknowledgements, foreward, preface, introduction, table of contents, copyright page, promotional blurbs, etc)
- Core Material (CM) - this is where page one of your book actually begins
- Back Matter (CM) - includes everything after the actual book ends (afterward, notes, bibliography, resources, recommended reading, glossary, index, about the author, other publications, etc)
4) Edit each file independently
Review each file, reworking the pages so they reflect the way you want the finished work to appear. If using Microsoft Word, for example, you would:
A) Decide on a "trim size" (the width X height dimensions of your finished book) The most common trim size is 6" X 9"
B) Under page setup, change paper size from 8.5" X 11" to whatever trim size you choose and apply to entire document
C) Under page setup, set the top/bottom/left/right margins (We suggest 0.8")
D) Under Paragraph, set Tabs (We suggest 0.25")
E) Under Paragraph, set line spacing (We suggest 1.15 pt to 1.5 pt)
6) Review the layout of text on each page
Ensure that the tops/bottoms of each page start/end the way you want them to (example: perhaps you want each chapter to start at the top of a page) Things to avoid when formatting your manuscript:
- Do not center "by eye", using tabs and/or space bar. Use the centering tool in your application.
- Do not use the tab key or spaces to indent the first line of paragraphs. Use the margin/indent settings of your word processing program instead.
- Do not keep hitting the return/enter key until the page scrolls to where you want it; this will wreak havoc with your formatting. Use the page-break mark (SHIFT-ENTER in MS Word) or section market (CONTROL-ENTER, COMMAND-ENTER on Macintosh)
- Do not use RETURN to force a new line in the middle of a paragraph.
- Do not use two spaces between sentences.
7) Add page numbers
Page numbers should be added to your Core Matter (CM) file once everything has been formatted. This is done by adding a footer. To do this is MS Word you would select View then select Header and Footer. Place your curser in the foot field box, centre the text and select Insert Page Number from the Header and Footer tool bar. You can set the page numbering to start on whatever page number incorporates the non-numbered pages of your Front Matter (FM). For example, if your FM is 8 pages, then the first numbered page in your CM should start at 9. Be sure to format your page number in the same font as either your body text or your heads; try making them the same point size as your body text or perhaps 2 points smaller.
8) Convert files to PDF
Once you had all the pages laid out correctly and consistently, with page numbers if applicable, convert the document using Adobe Acrobat PDF conversion software you can download free from the Internet. Proofread the PDF to ensure that your manuscript appears exactly the way you envisioned it.
