Respect Your Buyer with Interior Book Design

The following scenario is familiar to every book designer. As happens quite often, I received a call from a prospective client who had just finished writing her book.

“I’m brand new at this,” she admitted. “I’m not even sure what questions to ask, but your site feels very welcoming, and your promise of hand holding is exactly what I need.”

I thanked her for the kind words, assured her that most of our clients were new to publishing, and that we’d be happy to guide her every step of the way. I assured her that we would recommend only services that were needed, and we would never “upsell” services that were not necessary, as many “self-publishing companies” do.

After learning that her manuscript had already been edited by a pro, and that her goal was to sell books on Amazon in a very crowded genre, I recommended book cover design, interior layout, and proofreading. I told her an index probably wasn’t necessary, given that her book was divided into 10 lessons, but in its place a detailed table of contents might be useful to the reader.

So far, so good. Then she uttered the words that send book designers everywhere over the edge: “I layed out my book in Word, 6×9, and it came out to 365 pages. It looks just fine, and I don’t want to spend that much money for you to design and typeset it. Would you look at what I did and let me know what you think?”

“Sure,” I said. I braced myself for the promised email with her “layout.”

When it arrived, I was not surprised to see that every single rule of book design was broken. I couldn’t find even one aesthetically pleasing element in the book, and except for the page size, it looked exactly like a manuscript.

The text was set in 12-point Georgia, with 1.5 line spacing, and it was not justified.

Quotations and their accompanying citations, an essential element of this self-directed Bible study guide, were set exactly like the surrounding text and difficult to find.

Chapter titles were bold, but the same size as the text. They were placed at the top margin, not moved down on the page, a standard technique that gives the reader a visual cue that a new chapter is at hand. No extra space was added between the chapter title and the first paragraph of text.

There were many instances of double spaces between words and I found half a dozen typos in just a quick scan though the document. Clearly, this book needed more proofreading than had been done to this point.

I sent an email with my assessment to give the author time to think and respond.

“You’re about to make a terrible mistake,” I wrote. “A very common mistake made by self-publishers.”

I explained that if she went forward with this Word layout (assuming it could even be printed) that reviewers and retailers would immediately flag her book as a homemade job and reject it out of hand.

I added that reviewers on Amazon would deduct stars for the typos and the difficult to read text, and that this would affect sales.

Last, I explained that this homemade layout would cost her extra money for every copy printed, because a typesetter would choose a more efficient font and adjust the line spacing to reduce the page count considerably.

I attached samples of similar books we had designed to demonstrate what a well-designed book interior looks like, took a deep breath, and hit the send button.

I’m delighted to report that this story has a happy ending; the author ordered interior design. I tell this story because for every author I convince, there are probably hundreds of others formatting their book in Word right now, and someone has to stand up for the book buyer.

Don’t you feel betrayed when a company uses a pretty package to entice you to buy a poor product? I do. When authors wrap a good cover around a poor interior, they’re committing the same offense. How many times can this happen before buyers conclude that books are not worth the risk?

It wasn’t so long ago that book buyers could count on a well-researched, well-edited, beautifully designed and carefully printed book for their money. Do we really want to change that expectation?

And what about the ambitious new publisher, whose high hopes are dashed when the bad reviews on Amazon start rolling in? Too many self-publishing “gurus” are teaching new authors that it’s OK to abandon traditional publishing standards. I think there’s something terribly sad about that, and I hope you do, too.

Excuse me while I talk to this author about proofreading…

Mistakes Love to Play “Hide and Seek”

(This post was previously featured at Authopublisher.com)

We all make mistakes

Everyone who writes understands the importance of proofreading. Whether you have just finished your first one-sheet or your twentieth 50-page report, you WILL find errors in it, guaranteed.

Book publishing is no exception. It’s truly astonishing how many mistakes come out of hiding every time you read your manuscript, no matter how many times you read it, even after it has been edited by a pro. Authors everywhere scratch their heads and ask, “How could I have written that?” and just as often, “How could I have missed that?” This is why professional proofreading is a must if your goal is to release a quality book.

You can’t outwit the human brain

It’s not enough to read your own work, or ask friends and family to do the same. The human brain is a funny thing. Once we read material more than once, we see what we expect to see. We know what we mean to say, so when we read our own words, the message is perfectly clear. Outside proofreaders, preferably specialists in book publishing, are a stand-in for your eventual reader. In addition to finding errors that almost got away, an experienced proofreader will zero in on text that may not be clear to someone reading it for the first time.

Publishing methods evolved for a reason

This is a message we deliver over and over again to our clients. We almost beg them to edit their manuscript and proofread it, multiple times, before interior design begins. Then we recommend an additional round of proofreading after the book has been layed out. Why? If you think errors hide out in Word, you won’t believe how they’ll pop up in text that has been carefully formatted in InDesign.

The standard work flow in book publishing has always been: edit, proofread, typeset, then proofread one final time before printing. Unfortunately, this quality control process has too often been abandoned by self-publishers, with the result that many books on the market today are riddled with errors.

Book publishing should be fun, not a nightmare!

For the good of your book, as well as to deliver true value to your readers, please invest in professional editing and proofreading before book design begins, and again after your book has been designed. You won’t believe how many errors will be found. Your readers will appreciate the quality, and post good reviews on Amazon instead of complaints.

Book Design Demystified

(Originally published at Authopublisher.com)

I Need a Book Designer?

Seven years ago, when self-publishing was just beginning to take off, I talked with author Jane Kimball, who had recently learned from a book printer that the services of a book designer were required before her book could be printed.

Thus began our nearly year-long association to design her masterwork, Trench Art: An Illustrated History, a 400+ page, full-color book featuring more than 1,000 items from her personal collection of war souvenirs. These artifacts, collectively known as trench art, were meticulously crafted by soldiers from spent shell casings and other materials beginning in World War I.

“I didn’t even know there was such a thing as a book designer!” she quipped.

“That’s alright,” I replied. “I didn’t know there was such a thing as trench art!”

I relate this story because at the time I was taken aback by Jane’s comment. Until then, every customer who came to us already understood what we did. It wasn’t necessary to explain our services. The landscape, I realized, had changed, and it remains so to this day.

In subsequent conversations, Jane taught me that book design and production is a very scary subject to many first-time authors, who worry that hiring experts will cause them to lose control of their “baby.”

What follows is a brief description of a typical book design project that will hopefully put your mind at ease. Far from losing control of your book, you’ll actually collaborate closely with experts every step of the way to make your book the very best it can be.

6 Steps to a Quality Book

Step 1: Cover Design

The first task in preparing a book for publication is Book Cover Design. The designer will ask for a synopsis of your book and ask about your goals and your intended audience. He/she will then find appropriate images and fonts, and create a design that is in line with similar bestselling books on the market. This ensures that your cover will look as good as, or better than, the competitive titles that will displayed alongside it online. A good cover is absolutely essential to the success of your book. Cover design is not the place to save money. Most designers will adjust their services to your budget, if you ask.

Step 2: Manuscript Editing

The benefits of Professional Editing, offered by an experienced book editor, cannot be overstated. When we read our own writing, we know what we mean to say, so our brain fills in the gaps. The fresh eyes of an outside editor will find and correct these gaps for a smoother reading experience, without changing your style or your voice. Authors can always decline the editor’s suggestions, but most are pleasantly surprised at the skills an editor brings to the table.

Step 3: Interior Layout (aka Typesetting)

When editing is complete, the next step in book production is Book Interior Layout, also known as Typesetting. Designers usually show one or more sample interior designs to give the author an opportunity to compare different type fonts, type sizes, chapter openers, sidebars, and other decorative elements that may be employed to enhance the appearance of the text. Once a sample chapter has been approved, the rest of the book is typeset to match. You’ll be amazed at how much better  your text looks, compared to the original Word document, when it is designed by a pro.

Step 4: Proofreading

After Interior Layout, the next step in the book production process is Proofreading. Proofreading should always be done after the book is typeset (as well as before). Those pesky typos, extra word spaces, and unnecessary tabs that escaped detection in Word stand out like a sore thumb in typeset text. Many self-publishers unfortunately decline this service, thinking it’s not needed, to the detriment of their book. I can attest that we have never once proofed a book without finding errors, sometimes hundreds of errors, even when the manuscript was previously edited.

Step 5: Corrections and Final Review

Once Proofreading is complete, and the errors identified by the proofreader are fixed, it’s time to read the book from start to finish one final time. Yes, I know, you just can’t stand to read it one more time . . . but you must. There’s an old saying in publishing, “You don’t complete a book; you declare an ending.” The proofreading and correction process never really ends, but at some point you just have to go to press.

Step 6: Digital File Prep

The final step in the production process is to prepare the digital files for printing. You can relax at this stage, because this behind-the-scenes geeky stuff is entirely the responsibility of your designer. This final step ensures that your book will print successfully.

So, How Long Does All This Take?

It’s always good to schedule far more time than you think you’ll need for book production. I recommend at least 2 weeks each for steps 1-5 above, though some services, such as cover design and editing, can be worked on concurrently. If you must have books in hand by a specific date, be sure to tell your designer, so the two of you, along with the eventual printer, can create a schedule with milestones to make it happen.

How Much of My Time is Required?

That depends on your experience, your personality, and your available time. Many authors relish the “hands-on” approach and enjoy the prospect of talking with multiple providers. Others prefer to hand the project over to a company that will manage the entire project for them. Fortunately, providers are available to suit every preference.

Experts = An Enjoyable Process and a Better Book

The fear of losing control prompts many first-time authors to adopt the “do-it-yourself” approach, or to sign up with huge “self-publishing factories” who produce terrible work for very low fees, but both of these approaches are usually a mistake. Experts abound in every area of life, from medicine to pest control. Their knowledge and experience, even in areas that may seem low skilled or mundane, enhance our lives and give us far better products and services than we can ever hope to produce on our own. Book design is no exception.

If you’re about to enter one of the most brutally competitive industries on the planet, I hope this post has helped to clarify the process so that the book design process is an enjoyable one and the book you eventually offer to the public will be the very best it can be, and one that you will be proud to market.

Publishing Wisdom from Goldilocks

We all know the story of Goldilocks and the The Three Bears. In her exploration of the bears’ home, Goldilocks judged the three bowls of porridge to be too hot, too cold, and just right. She judged the three chairs as too big, too small, and just right. Finally, she judged the three beds as too hard, too soft, and just right.

Of course, Goldilocks forgot all about her preferences as soon as the three bears came home, when she rightly bolted out the door to save her life. The Goldilocks character is a pretty good metaphor for clients, I think.

To switch stories for a moment, a few weeks ago I was listening to a financial advisor on the radio. “Visit my web site and fill out the contact form,” she said. “I’ll be in touch to learn about your needs and explore how my company can help you.” She seemed knowledgable and genuinely interested, so expecting a personal follow-up, that’s exactly what I did.

Instead, I received a postcard in the mail, inviting me to a restaurant torture session, where I and a hundred others would be bribed by a free lunch to endure a “one-solution-fits-all” lecture. What a letdown.

Like Goldilocks, or any prospective client, I was looking for a financial advisor who was “just right” when I contacted this company. No matter the product or service being purchased, isn’t that what every client seeks…and deserves?

Too many companies today, especially the dreaded “self-publishing companies,” cruelly peddle one-size-fits-all solutions to hopeful authors. Instead of a custom analysis of the author’s needs by a publishing expert, a phone room full of high-pressure sales consultants use carefully crafted scripts to steer authors into pre-defined package deals that maximize company profits.

What on earth has happened to American business, and why aren’t we all bolting out the door just like Goldilocks did?

1106 Design is a publishing services company that

* appreciates the value of a one-on-one conversation;
* will honestly tell you when you don’t need one of our services;
* works with you to craft a top-quality book that will help you achieve your unique publishing goals; and
* offers the convenience of project management.

If that sounds good, contact us today. 1106 Design is small enough to deliver quality work with all the hand-holding you need, and large enough to get the job done quickly and conveniently. As Goldilocks might say, “1106 Design is just right.”

Why Book Publishers Need a Corporate Image

What is a “Corporate Image” and Why Does It Matter?

A professionally-designed book cover is absolutely essential when it comes to marketing your book. If your book looks good and stands out from the crowd, it has a better chance to sell.

The exact same principle also applies when prospective buyers are viewing the marketing materials of your publishing company. It’s imperative to cut through the clutter, establish credibility, and help busy buyers pay attention to your sales message.

A “corporate image” is a graphic “plan” that  begins with a professional logo and carries on with consistent use of type fonts, colors, even the arrangement of elements on the page, that will identify your publishing company to the prospective buyer before they have a chance to read one word. For an example of this, notice your own response to printed materials, and how you instantly recognize that a flyer or insert is from a particular store, without the need to actually see the store’s logo.

The same principle can be employed to your benefit as a publisher. It doesn’t matter if you publish one book or a hundred, buyers will likely see your marketing message more than once before they buy. They want to do business with a company that will be there tomorrow. Since they can’t meet you personally, the only way they can judge the reliability of your company is from your marketing materials.

Every contact you make with a potential buyer sends a message about your publishing company, whether it is a postcard, bookmark, sell sheet, book signing announcement, letter, or website. If  all of your materials are designed with a “family look,” you can maximize recognition of your company and communicate to your prospective buyer that you are a stable, reliable source for the information they seek. Plopping a professionally designed cover on a homemade flyer sends the opposite message.

Corporate Image Step One: A Professional Logo

The first step to a professional corporate identity is to design a logo that reflects the vision and purpose of your publishing company. The best logos are simple and should be designed to look contemporary for a minimum of 10 years. Your designer will present a number of ideas and refine them until you are delighted with the result.

A logo isn’t just a design for one purpose today, but also for many purposes in the future, so there are some considerations to discuss with your logo designer as work proceeds. A logo should be designed to look good in black and white first, because that’s how it will often be seen (on faxes and invoices, for example). Color enhances, but is never a substitute for, strong design.  If your logo doesn’t work in black and white, it simply doesn’t work. A strong logo design can be printed in black and white or one color, saving you money on printing down the road.

Logos should also be designed so that they can be used anywhere: on a book spine, on a billboard, on a banner, even engraved in metal for an office sign. Once the basic logo design is established, publishers generally need two or more versions of a logo — a vertical logo for book spines, and a horizontal version for brochures and correspondence.

If you’re tempted to acquire a logo on the cheap from a contest site or $99 logo design sites, be careful. Many customers have presented such logos to us, only to be disappointed when we tell them that the type is unreadable on a book spine, or that the logo has been created in a format that is not easily adjustable for other purposes.

Corporate Image Step Two: Written Graphic Standards

Step two in the establishment of a professional corporate identity is to write down design standards so that all of your marketing materials will have a consistent look. These standards define the size and position of your logo, as well as type faces and colors to be used consistently, so that your marketing materials won’t drift into uncharted territory every time a new item is designed. Your designer can write a graphic standards manual that explains how your logo is (and is not) to be used. With this document for reference, every marketing piece you produce now or in the future, either in house or with the help of an outside designer, will be consistent.

How Can I Minimize Costs While Projecting a Consistent Corporate Image?

A professional corporate identity consistently applied needn’t be expensive. While it’s convenient to call a quick printer every time you think of a new marketing piece, planning ahead can save you significant money on printing. Designers can suggest ways to stretch your printing budget that will still allow you the flexibility to update materials on your desktop whenever the need arises.

For example, if you know you’ll be sending out mailers every two months for the next year, you can realize savings by printing “shells” in color and then updating the message in house on your laser printer.

Another way to save money on printing is to produce bookmarks and postcards at the same time that your book cover prints. Not all book printers will do this, but even if they don’t, you can get the most for your printing dollar locally by “ganging up” your printing jobs instead of ordering each project individually.

Someone once said “the most expensive brochure is the one that doesn’t work.” Reserving a portion of your production budget for a professional logo and designed marketing materials will pay for itself many times over.

Follow Michele on Twitter.

1106 Design works with authors, publishers, business pros, coaches, consultants, speakers . . . anyone who wants a beautiful book, meticulously prepared to industry standards. Top-quality cover design, beautifully designed and typeset interiors, manuscript editing, indexing, title consulting, and expert advice. All available from one convenient source. All offered with our most important service, hand-holding. Attractive pricing choices to fit almost any budget. Prompt, personalized service. Satisfaction guaranteed. We’ll take better care of you and your book than any “self-publishing company.” How may we help you? Post your comment here or email us at office@1106design.com

Book Design and Self-Publishing Questions? Ask Them Here.

New self-publisher have questions. Lots of them. This post is an experiment. Ask your question here, and we’ll do our best to answer it, or find an expert who can. Your question can be on almost any topic related to book design: covers, interior design and typesetting, editing, indexing, best POD printer, whatever is on your mind.

1106 Design works with authors, publishers, business pros, coaches, consultants, speakers . . . anyone who wants a beautiful book, meticulously prepared to industry standards. Top-quality cover design, beautifully designed and typeset interiors, manuscript editing, indexing, title consulting, and expert advice. All available from one convenient source. All offered with our most important service, hand-holding. Attractive pricing choices to fit almost any budget. Prompt, personalized service. Satisfaction guaranteed. We’ll take better care of you and your book than any “self-publishing company.” How may we help you? Post your comment here or email us at office@1106design.com

The Forgotten Element in Book Marketing

Nearly every morning, I start the day browsing messages on Twitter, Facebook, and my favorite book industry and self-publishing blogs. I always find dozens of articles about book marketing. Tens of thousands of authors want to know how to promote their book in a cost-effective manner, who they should hire to help, and how they can measure results to ensure they are spending wisely. All good questions. And naturally, in today’s connected world, there are just as many experts willing to help them.

Most of these articles offer marketing strategies that begin too late. They teach the author how to spend his or her time and money to promote a book that has already been published (or at least prepared for printing). Often, due to the overwhelming amount of bad advice available online, the book has been prepared in a substandard way, and all the marketing in the world, at any price, isn’t going to help it sell.

Book marketing should start before the writing begins. Budding authors should savor that wonderful, initial “Aha!” moment, of course. But then, they should take off the “author” hat and put on the “publisher” hat to conduct some critical analysis. What is my book about? Why am I writing it? Does it solve a problem? Does it offer unique information, or at least a creative twist on an existing topic that will capture the buyer’s imagination? Will anybody but me think it is worth spending money on?

It’s tough to be objective about our own work. We love our own ideas because…well…they are our own ideas. That’s why it’s imperative to seek out objective advice, in publishing and any other business endeavor. When authors decide (or are told by subsidy publishers) that they don’t need developmental editing, copyediting, professional cover and interior design, professional proofreading and a useful index, they are making a decision to produce a terrible book.

Somehow, in all the noise, everyone has forgotten that marketing cannot sell a bad book. Marketing can only bring a book to the prospective buyer’s attention. In an instant, with a quick glance at the cover and perhaps a cursory flip through the pages, the buyer decides whether or not your book is a fair trade for hard-earned dollars. If the buyer decides in your favor and is rewarded with a good book, he tells everyone he knows. If he is disappointed, he also tells everyone he knows, perhaps at Amazon, where millions of others will use his opinion to buy someone else’s book.

If your reaction to the above paragraph is, “I can’t afford these things because I don’t know if my book will sell,” then please reread paragraph three.

The demise of the gatekeepers in publishing is hailed as a good thing. I agree, but only to a point. No good book idea should die simply because it can’t earn hundreds of thousands of dollars for a major publisher. But with freedom comes responsibility. Self-publishers have a new obligation to produce the good book their readers expect and to deliver real value to the buyer. If your book is meant to promote your business or your career, then quality is even more important. A quality book can land you a new client, a speaking gig, or a consulting contract. A bad book can send just the opposite message to your prospect.

Quality book development and design costs money, but it’s money well spent. A solid book concept, carefully planned and edited, with an eye-catching cover, a beautiful interior design, and a useful index will get good reviews and be recommended by buyers to others. Your quality book is your 24/7 sales force, convincing people to buy when you’re not around. Big publishers have their problems to be sure, but this is one area that they always get right, and one area that self-publishers should emulate.

1106 Design works with authors, publishers, business pros, coaches, consultants, speakers . . . anyone who wants a beautiful book, meticulously prepared to industry standards. Top-quality cover design, beautifully designed and typeset interiors, manuscript editing, indexing, title consulting, and expert advice. All available from one convenient source. All offered with our most important service, hand-holding. Attractive pricing choices to fit almost any budget. Prompt, personalized service. Satisfaction guaranteed. We’ll take better care of you and your book than any “self-publishing company.” How may we help you? Post your comment here or email us at office@1106design.com

There’s More to Book Layout Than Meets the Untrained Eye

We’ve heard the question many times, “Should I layout the interior of my book myself?” Seems like a no-brainer. You have word processing software. You know how to set margins and choose a typeface. You even know about books that describe the process (written by folks who are not trained in typography by the way). So why shouldn’t you layout your own book?

Of course you can and should use your word processing software to write your text, but interior design and formatting are best left to people who do this for a living. Why? Because there are a lot more details involved in page composition than you’d think.

For starters, word-processing software does not have the sophisticated hyphenation and justification controls that professional page layout software does. This results in tight and loose lines that are unsightly and that distract the reader. And even if you were to buy page layout software, there is a very steep learning curve. It’s a mistake to assume that no knowledge of typography or design is required to use it effectively. As the saying goes, “Owning a hammer does not make one a carpenter.”

There are several dozen conventions to be followed in book design that may not be perceptible to the reader, but when followed, they give your book a polished appearance. But it’s not only about knowing the rules, it’s knowing how and when to bend or break them on a case-by-case basis that makes the difference between an amateur layout and a professional one. These decisions must be made quite often when the words in the text don’t cooperate with the page geometry.

Quality typesetting has never been about the tools. Experienced typesetters rarely use software at the default settings. We adjust the settings for better results, sometimes paragraph by paragraph, line by line, and even word by word. Why? We were trained to see the difference between “so-so” type and great type.

For what it’s worth, only beginning self-publishers consider using a word processor for page layout. Established publishers wouldn’t think of producing the text in this way. They know that experienced book designers bring real value to the table, offering creativity and aesthetic judgment that only comes with training and experience.

Here’s a current before-and-after example. HappyMind(before) the client’s attempt at book layout, and Happy Mind(after) is our design. (You may want to open or print both PDFs to compare the pages side by side.) See the difference? The “before” example looks something like a book, and the author, who eventually became our client, thought it was just fine…until he saw our “after” version. This wasn’t an isolated occurrence. When we show customers the difference between their attempt at book layout and our own every day, they are usually blown away. They’ll say something like, “Wow! I thought my layout was just fine. Now I see how bad it really is!”

It’s been clinically proven that quality typography improves reading comprehension. More importantly, an amateur job won’t satisfy the distributors, reviewers, and book retailers, the “gatekeepers” of the book industry, who will immediately spot a beginner’s efforts and reject your book as “self-published.”

Many people think that converting a word-processed file to a PDF is all the printer needs. That’s true. But it’s not all that YOU need. Printers won’t turn away a PDF that was made from a word-processed document. They’ll print your book because that’s what they’re in business to do. Their success is measured in how many books they print. Your success, on the other hand, is measured in the number of books you sell.

Your book design, inside and out, establishes your credibility in the eyes of the buyer. Buyers may not be able to pinpoint exactly what is wrong, but without a professional interior design, your book will not measure up to those that are professionally prepared. For the success of your new publishing endeavor, we hope you’ll give this issue some serious thought, and choose an experienced book designer to give your book the professional look it deserves.

1106 Design works with authors, publishers, business pros, coaches, consultants, speakers . . . anyone who wants a beautiful book, meticulously prepared to industry standards. Top-quality cover design, beautifully designed and typeset interiors, manuscript editing, indexing, title consulting, and expert advice. All available from one convenient source. All offered with our most important service, hand-holding. Attractive pricing choices to fit almost any budget. Prompt, personalized service. Satisfaction guaranteed. We’ll take better care of you and your book than any “self-publishing company.” How may we help you? Post your comment here or email us at office@1106design.com

What Do Book Designers Do, Anyway?

With the availability of text processing tools now available to everyone, book design has become a misunderstood craft. It’s not uncommon for book designers to receive a request to “convert my Word file into a PDF for the printer.” While there are certainly some so-called designers who will do just that, the result will be…um…just like your Word file and nothing like a real book.

Experienced book designers don’t just “click a button” that makes the text automatically snap into final form. We work line by line, word by word, and sometimes letter by letter to achieve optimal spacing between words and letters to maximize reading comprehension and minimize reader distractions.

Here are just a few of the issues book designers attend to during the formatting process to give your book a professional appearance:

The first step in designing the interior of your book is to create a sample chapter. A good book designer doesn’t use a template. We always choose fonts and images that are in keeping with your subject matter to give your book a unique (and appropriate!) look.

Normally, several samples will be developed, because there are multiple ways to design any book. These samples will include subtleties in the use of font styles and sizes that make a book look like a real book, and not a word-processed document. Once these initial concepts are presented, it’s necessary to work back and forth with the author/publisher on this sample until all the details are hammered out. Only then is the rest of the book layed out to match the sample.

Here are just a few of the things book designers attend to during the layout process:

We ensure facing pages end on the same baseline without the first line of a paragraph landing on the bottom of a page, or the last line of a paragraph landing on the top of a page. When the text doesn’t cooperate with these rules (which is often), we rework previous paragraphs and pages as needed.

We fix paragraphs that end in a word with less than five characters (including punctuation) or a word fragment (the stub end of a hyphenated word).

We banish “ladders” (too many hyphens in a row) and find and fix hyphenated compound words, both of which distract the reader.

We eliminate word stacks—when the same word falls one above the other on several consecutive lines of text.

We adjust any overly tight or loose lines that software often allows to slip through.

We watch for rivers of white in the text—when word spaces fall in a pattern that is distracting to the reader.

We eliminate hyphens at the bottom of a right-hand page so that the reader won’t have to hold a thought while the page is turned.

We make sure the last page of a chapter has at least four lines of text.

These items are only the beginning. Software out of the box only goes so far . . . it is this level of human intervention that turns your manuscript into typographic art, and when you see the results, we know you’ll agree that this time is well-spent.

1106 Design works with authors, publishers, business pros, coaches, consultants, speakers . . . anyone who wants a beautiful book, meticulously prepared to industry standards. Top-quality cover design, beautifully designed and typeset interiors, manuscript editing, indexing, title consulting, and expert advice. All available from one convenient source. All offered with our most important service, hand-holding. Attractive pricing choices to fit almost any budget. Prompt, personalized service. Satisfaction guaranteed. We’ll take better care of you and your book than any “self-publishing company.” How may we help you? Post your comment here or email us at office@1106design.com

The Parable of the Pumpernickel Baker

Once upon a time, there lived a talented baker named George. Long before dawn each morning, while most people slept, George arrived at his employer’s successful bakery. The boss was demanding and grumpy, always telling George what to bake and when to bake it. “The customer is always right,” the boss said.

George would just shake his head and get back to the work he loved, crafting the tastiest varieties of bread, rolls, cakes, cookies, pies, and pot pies that the neighbors had come to expect. Each afternoon, when he left for the day, he said to himself, Someday, I’ll open my own bakery, and I’ll bake whatever I want. He saved his money and waited patiently for that day to arrive.

At long last,  the perfect building for George’s bakery became available. It was located on a busy street, near a bus stop, a school, a factory, and many homes. This is wonderful, thought George. I’ll have customers all day long, and maybe during the factory’s night shift, too.

For weeks before the grand opening, everyone in the area eagerly anticipated the breads, rolls, cakes, cookies, pies, and pot pies they’d be able to buy. The factory workers and tired commuters looked forward to a savory, ready-to-eat dinner; the schoolchildren waited for a sweet after-school snack; everyone looked forward to their favorite varieties of breads and rolls.

George was more nervous than he expected, so he played it safe. On grand opening day, customers streamed into George’s bakery, but curiously, the only item for sale was pumpernickel bread. Dozens and dozens of loaves of pumpernickel bread. Nothing else. Oh, well, they thought, it’s only the first day. Maybe tomorrow there will be more breads, rolls, cakes, cookies, pies, and pot pies. Some customers bought a loaf  of pumpernickel bread, because they had waited so long for George’s bakery to open, but most customers decided to return the next day.

The next day, and the next, and the next, they gave George another chance, but again they found only pumpernickel bread. Each day, one or two people bought a loaf. Finally, an exasperated customer asked George, “This is a bakery! When will you offer white bread, rolls, cakes, cookies, pies, and pot pies?”

“It’s expensive to bake those things,” he replied.  “I want to make sure my bakery is a success first.”

“Oh,” said the disappointed customer.

Gradually, the flood of new customers slowed to a trickle. After a few visits, the factory workers went back to brown-bagging it and the schoolchildren realized they would find no cookies at George’s bakery. Everyone else reluctantly accepted that George would only offer pumpernickel bread, no matter what they wanted.

Finally, the day came when not one customer showed up. George was puzzled. Isn’t my pumpernickel bread any good, he wondered? So he walked out front and stopped a gentleman on the street. “Why don’t you come in to my bakery,” he asked?

“Because I don’t like pumpernickel bread,” the man replied simply. “I buy quite a lot of white bread, cakes, and pies.”

“Oh,” said George. “But I can’t afford to bake those things. At least not until I make some money from my pumpernickel bread.”

“Very well,” said the gentleman.

We know how this parable ends, don’t we? Poor George’s bakery failed. He went back to work for his grumpy, demanding boss who understood that it was necessary to give customers what they want.

New publishers who decide to test the market with only an eBook are making exactly the same mistake that George made. They rightly offer their eBook on Amazon and other online retailers where millions of customers can see it 24/7, but then fail to offer the book in other formats that customers want to buy.

It’s undeniably attractive to publish only an eBook. The costs are minimal and it’s scary for any new publisher to invest in cover design and typesetting when they don’t know if their book will be a success. But guess what? Plenty of people still prefer a printed book, no matter how much eBook devotees bend and twist the statistics. No business owner can lock out a significant portion of their potential market and hope to succeed.

Today, publishers are not just book providers, they are content providers. Consumers want to receive information in different ways at different times. Some people buy printed books to read at home, a welcome change from looking at a computer screen at the office all day. Others buy Ebooks to read at the airport. Others listen to audio books while driving. Some consumers buy the same book in multiple formats. It’s risky to provide content in only one form. Publishers may sell some books in that format, but it’s impossible to count the number of sales that were missed.

My advice? Offer that eBook, but also print POD at Lightning Source. Yes, there’s the one-time charge for cover and interior design, but at least  you will be offering your book to everyone who may want it. If and when the day arrives that you are selling only eBooks, you can always stop printing.

As Dan Poynter, The Book Futurist, says: “Some writers plan to publish digitally only—to save money. This is a mistake. If you publish an eBook, you are perceived as a writer. If you publish a pBook (paper), you are regarded as an author. Paper books are retained; PDFs disappear in a click. Self-publishers should offer editions to fit any lifestyle: Paper, eBook, LARGE PRINT for the visually impaired, audio book, etc. Give the buying customer what he or she wants.”

Just like George’s very smart boss.

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