Tag: Book Design Tip | Open Heart Designs

Proofreading Tips for Self-Publishing Authors: How to Perfect Your Manuscript Before Publishing

I recently enjoyed some fall days on a trip to Yellowstone National Park for a workshop called Decoding the Language of Nature. Taught by expert naturalists and animal trackers Jon Young and George Bumann, it was an incredible experience—learning about, watching, and listening to wolves, coyotes, bison, pronghorn, birds, and other wild creatures all participating in a continuous flow of intricate communication. Spending time honing my eyes and ears to begin listening in reminded me of how small details shape the bigger picture—something that’s just as true for books as it is for the natural world.

After returning from this remarkable experience, I’ve been diving back into book design and working with self-publishing authors to help them bring their manuscripts to life. A recent conversation with one of my clients about the importance of proofreading sparked the idea for this blog post. I thought it might be helpful to share some essential tips for authors looking to refine their own work before publishing.

While hiring a professional proofreader is always the ideal choice for a polished final product, some authors prefer to tackle the proofreading process themselves. If that’s you, here are a few crucial tips to help catch those pesky errors and ensure your manuscript is ready for readers.

Take a Break
Setting your manuscript aside for a day or two before you begin proofreading is one of the most effective ways to gain fresh outlook. Coming back to your work with rested eyes allows you to spot issues you might otherwise miss. This step can make all the difference when it comes to catching errors in your own writing.
Print it Out
Reading on paper offers a new perspective. Errors, inconsistencies, and awkward formatting are often easier to catch when you’re looking at a physical page instead of a screen. Printing out your manuscript also allows you to make notes and corrections directly on the paper, which can streamline your editing process.
Use a Checklist
Proofreading without a plan can make it easy to overlook small but significant details. Create a checklist that covers common issues, such as spelling, grammar, and punctuation, as well as elements specific to your manuscript, like character name consistency or formatting. This ensures a thorough review and helps produce a more professional final product.
Read Backwards
One helpful trick for catching typos and other small errors is to read your manuscript backwards. By isolating each word, you force yourself to slow down and focus on individual elements, which makes it easier to spot mistakes. This technique helps you catch spelling errors and misplaced words that might be missed when reading normally.
Eliminate Distractions
Proofreading requires your full attention, so be sure to find a quiet space where you can focus. Minimizing distractions—whether it’s turning off notifications, setting aside dedicated time, or finding a quiet environment—will help you catch subtle errors and polish your manuscript effectively.

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Capture Your Reader’s Attention with Stunning Cover Design

Why Invest in Professional Cover Design?

A compelling cover does more than catch the eye; it speaks to the heart of your prospective readers, inviting them into the world you've created. With a blend of artistry and strategy, a well-designed cover can make your book stand out while fitting seamlessly within your genre. It's about creating a visual narrative that resonates with your audience, encouraging them to explore further.

How I Can Assist You

With my expertise, we can navigate the intricacies of cover design together. From understanding your book’s essence and target audience to selecting imagery and typography that amplifies your story I'm here to bring your vision to life and be your guide through the process to ensure your cover is not just beautiful but effective.

Here are some ways that we will collaborate on your book cover:

Personalized Cover Design: Your book's genre, target audience, and core message guide my design strategy. I delve into the specifics, from genre norms to the subtleties that make your book unique, crafting a cover that not only captivates but also communicates.

Technical Expertise: Transitioning from manuscript to print or eBook format is seamless when you work with me. I handle the complexities of file creation and formatting, ensuring your book is ready for platforms like Amazon's KDP and IngramSpark, without the technical headaches.

Collaborative Process: Your vision is paramount. Through regular updates and open communication, I ensure that the design aligns with your expectations, incorporating your feedback and providing revisions to perfect your cover and interior layout.

Showcasing Success

Every project is a story of collaboration and creativity, resulting in covers that not only captivate but also sell. For a glimpse into the transformative power of exceptional cover design, I invite you to explore my portfolio of recent projects and discover how I've worked together with authors to elevate their visions into captivating visual stories.

Ready to Transform Your Cover?

Embarking on your cover design journey is just an email away. Contact me to discuss how we can turn your vision into a visual masterpiece that attracts and delights your target readership.

I would love to be a part of your publishing adventure and look forward to creating something remarkable together!

Discover the Pros and Cons of Digital and Offset Printing

Few things are as exciting as opening the box holding copies of your freshly printed, self published book! After all the months, maybe years, of crafting and developing your story and making careful and intentional choices in its production, it is so satisfying to finally hold the finished book in your hands. In this newsletter we will explore common options for printing and some important differences between them that will empower you to make choices that will help bring your book to life and save you potential disappointment from unexpected results.

Self-publishing authors are faced with many choices during the production process of their book. An important one is the choice between digital or offset printing. While both methods have their pros and cons, the decision ultimately depends on personal preferences and budget. Here's a quick breakdown of each:

Print on Demand (POD) platforms like Ingram Spark and KDP have made self-publishing more accessible than ever before. They offer user-friendly tools and affordable options, allowing authors to publish their work and reach a wide audience through extensive distribution channels. However, it's important to note that POD books can differ significantly in quality compared to books printed traditionally with an offset press. POD relies on digital printing, which is cost-effective for small print quantities but unfortunately lacks reliable consistency in the final product. POD companies also work with multiple printers to get the job done. Each book is printed individually as its own print run and the machine is not calibrated between runs making it impossible to guarantee consistency between printers and runs. Nevertheless, readers will likely never see the book they have purchased side-by-side with the same book that may have been printed elsewhere, so the differences may go unnoticed to them.

Offset printing is ideal for larger print runs and delivers high-quality results. It offers greater consistency and precision in color reproduction throughout the print run. Offset presses also provide options for a wider range of colors and higher quality paper choices. However, with this method there is a large upfront expense, you'll need storage for the printed books, the lead times are longer, and you will need to arrange your own distribution for the book.

In summary, print on demand allows for quick, flexible publishing and easy distribution at a low cost. It's suitable for printing a single copy or a small quantity, and you can even dropship a book anywhere that you like. It will be a fine looking book but, it may not meet your desired level of quality. Offset printing ensures a high-quality product but requires printing a large quantity, storage space, and a higher upfront investment. Additionally, you'll need to manage the distribution process yourself.

Learn how hanging punctuation enhances the reader experience!

Create Visual Balance with Optical Margin Alignment

When you want your page to have visually clean, crisp lines, using hanging punctuation can help! Hanging punctuation was first used in the Gutenberg bible where hyphens and other text features were slightly bumped into the right and left margins to create visual uniformity on the page. It was a very tedious job in those days and usually there was one person dedicated solely to that task. In modern times, advanced typesetting software makes this a simple job. It includes more than just hyphens and punctuation, and is called optical margin alignment.

So...what is it?

This optical margin is the "invisible line" that your eyes see when looking at the right and left edges of a block of text. Take a look at the text samples below:

When characters like quotation marks, periods, commas, hyphens and dashes, and others are not hung into the margins, it creates a visual indent, or negative space, in the block of text as a whole that can sometimes feel distracting to the reader. Using optical margin alignment helps create the appearance of a flush right and left edge by removing the negative space. This more visually balanced text allows the reader a neat, clean, uninterrupted reading experience.

It should also be noted that, while this technique is widely used - especially with justified text, it's not a rule set in stone that it should always be used. It can be used throughout your book, or just in certain places, like excerpts, quotes or lists that, by design, are separated from the main flow of text. Ultimately the decision to use optical margins is a matter of preference that, as a self-publishing author, you can decide if it seems right for your book. Some people prefer the look of their text without the optical margin alignment and that's okay. The overall goal is to create a great reading experience and sometimes we get there in in different ways.

What goes on your Title Page?

Did you know that your book can contain two title pages? The first appears as the very first page when you open the cover and is called a half title page. The only thing on this page is the title of your book, usually small and understated. A half title page is not a requirement, and is mostly a leftover tradition from back-in-the-day when it is said to have been used as protective measure during the printing process.

Whether or not you choose to include a half title page is up to you and the needs of your books, but you wouldn't want to leave out the second type, the title page. The title page is an important page that acts as a welcoming committee to those who've opened the book. It is the official start of your book and its design and content is quite simple, containing the:

full title of the book
subtitle if there is one
author name(s)
publisher name and location

Depending on the genre of your book other information may also appear here, such as an editor name or edition numbers.

Just because a title page is simple doesn't mean it has to be boring (says the designer!) A common design technique is to echo the cover by adapting artwork and/or font styles used there to appear on this page. If complex artwork is used on the cover, you may have to simplify it so that it doesn't overwhelm the page and that it prints well in black and white (if that's how your book's interior will be printed.)

Here are a couple examples of title pages that I've recently designed.

What goes in the front matter of your book

Do you wonder what kind of content should go in your front matter? Front matter is all of the pages before your first chapter or part and contains information about your book, provides a way to navigate the book, and introduces it to your reader. These pages are numbered with lowercase roman numerals (i, ii, iii, iv, v, etc.) and, although they shouldn't be printed on the title page through the table of contents, they are included in your total page count. Page 1 usually starts at the first chapter or part.

Tips for organizing your front matter.

The Chicago Manual of Style indicates that the order of the front matter should be:

Book half title
Series title, other works, frontispiece, or blank
Title page
Copyright page
Dedication
Epigraph
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations
List of Tables
Foreword
Preface
Acknowledgments (if not part of preface or in the back matter)
Introduction (if not part of text)
Abbreviations (if not in the back matter)
Chronology (if not in the back matter)

Clearly, not all of these elements will be in every book, but this will give you guidance on how to organize the parts that you do have.

Tips on how to prepare your manuscript for the book designer.

Preparing Your Manuscript for the Book Designer

So you've finished writing your book and are ready for the layout and design stage. Before you send it off to your formatter there's a bit of "house cleaning" to do first to ensure that they can clearly see and understand the formatting needs of your book. Remember, the designer is not as familiar with your content as you are, so preparing a clean document to send to them saves time (and cost) and helps eliminate guess work or misunderstanding of how an item is intended to look on the page.

So! roll up your sleeves and get ready to clean up your working document.

Tips for preparing your manuscript
for the book designer.

Send the final and complete manuscript in Microsoft Word. Including all the front matter, the book block and any back matter. If your chapter has titles, include a table of contents, but don’t add the page numbers. This is one of the last things your designer will do after all of the text is set.
Organization and consistency is key. Manuscripts that are complex, especially non-fiction can become messy very quickly and, if not organized properly, can make it difficult for your designer to know how to proceed. So make sure that each element, such as chapter titles, section titles, each level of subheads and bullets, quotes, or other similar content is formatted the same throughout.
Make sure the information hierarchy is clear. For example, with part titles and numbers, chapters titles and numbers, sub-heads, and sub-sections it is important to make sure each of these elements is formatted the same way throughout the manuscript - and each are different from one another. The idea is to make it so the designer can easily spot the distinct parts and format them accurately.
- For example: Format all part titles bold and 24 points, then make all chapter titles bold and 20 pt, so when the designer looks at your Word manuscript, they can easily see that those two items are not the same thing.
- The same would be true for subheads. To indicate which is which, maybe format level one subhead as bold and 14 points, and then perhaps make level two subheads italic and 12 points.
If you’ve used unusual characters, foreign letters or words or other symbols, point these out to the designer.

Format the manuscript simply

Use only one font throughout the manuscript. Times New Roman is just fine. It can be used for everything - the chapter titles, subheads, everything. If a complimentary font is desired, this will be communicated before the project starts and the designer will apply it appropriately in their professional layout software.
Use of bold and italic is perfectly okay. The designer can easily see and retain that formatting.
Tables should be formatted simply with no extra spaces or tabs in the cells
If there is a pull quote or a boxed text feature, indicate this in your manuscript by typing [boxed text starts here] before the text that should be boxed, and [boxed text ends here] after that text.

Things to avoid:

Tabs or multiple spaces to indicate indents.
Double spaces after periods.
Hard returns. These are not "real" paragraphs and usually happen on accident when you press shift + enter to force text to drop to the next line. If these exist in your document its hard to tell if you meant to start a new paragraph or you simply wanted a specific word to be on the next line.
Make sure to hit the enter key once after a paragraph.
Multiple fonts. Please only use one font for your entire manuscript. Your designer and you will discuss fonts before your project begins.
Text boxes or Word art. These are available as formatting tools in Microsoft Word, but will not translate well upon import to professional layout software. If you need something special such as boxed text or other special formatting use the method described above to show your designer where it should be placed and speak with them to communicate your intention.
Microsoft Word is not a great layout tool. As much as you may want to, please don’t try to predesign the pages in book form. This is your designer's job and all your hard work will only have to be stripped out of the manuscript before it can be worked with in professional layout software.

Images:

Do not place images into your Word Document. Instead include the image name and its caption in your manuscript in the area where the image should appear.
- For example: [imagename.jpeg, caption text]
Send the high resolution files (minimum 300dpi) in a zip file to your designer separately.
Name your images with the chapter number and something short that describes what is in the image.
Make sure you have permission to use any photo that you send. Do not send images that you find in a Google search. These will likely not be high enough resolution and you probably won’t have the necessary permissions to use them in your book.
If you need stock photos ask your designer for a trustworthy site to find the image you need. The price can range all the way from free to much more expensive, but generally you can find what you need for only a few dollars.

Do you have an Amazon Author Page?

Set up your Amazon author page to promote your book!

Did you know that you can have your own author page on Amazon? Yes you can - and it is pretty easy to set up. It only takes a few minutes and it's free!

Amazon Author Central enables authors to utilize the Amazon author page as a way to connect with readers. The Amazon author page is a valuable marketing tool that you can personalize. It's essentially a landing page on Amazon where readers can learn about you, see all the books you've published, see your recent blog posts if you have one, follow you and more.

Here's a list of the things that you can add to your page:

Books: After claiming your page you'll need to add your books to it by searching for the title or ISBN.
Bio: Use this section to enter a short bio. Make sure to include your website if you have one. Some people use this area to list upcoming events, new release dates, their social media links and contact email. Get creative!
Photos: You can upload multiple images. Include a professionally taken photo of yourself so people can see you and any other images that are relevant to you or your books.
Videos: If you have created a book trailer or have other videos that help you connect with your audience upload them here.
Blog: Do you have a blog with an RSS feed? Be sure to include it on your author page. Whenever you update your blog, the blog teasers that appear on the author page on Amazon update automatically, within 24 hours of being posted on your blog.
Customized URL: An author page URL is an easily shared link to your page on Amazon.com. It can be customized with whatever you wish it to be as long as it hasn't been taken by another user. In that case you'll need an alternative. Use your author page URL in your email signature, blog posts, Facebook posts and tweets.

What goes on your front cover?

Tips for book cover design success.

Last month I talked about what content to include on your back cover, so, naturally, I thought I would expand on the important elements to include on your front cover. As with the back cover, it is critical to know who your audience is as you begin developing the copy and design of the front cover.

Because it is the first thing that potential readers will see, everything that is placed on the cover needs to be well thought out and intentional. The actual visual approach that you take with the design will vary depending on if your book is fiction or nonfiction, but in both cases the front cover should immediately speak to your audience when they see it.

Here are some things to include:

Title. The title will want to be the most prominent element on the page and set in a font that is fairly simple and easy to read. Keep in mind that if you are selling your book online the front cover will be thumbnail size when presented to online shoppers in browsers and reading devices. Therefore the legibility of the title needs to be crystal clear in both the larger printed version and the digital thumbnail size.

Subtitle (if applicable). This element is #2 in priority after the title. It also wants to be very legible and easy to read at small sizes. Often the subtitle is set in a smaller less "fancy" font than the title, but is still complimentary to the title. The design of the title and subtitle work together to create a typographic grouping that works with and enhances the rest of the design.

Series Number (if applicable). If your book is part of a series you can choose to include this information on the front cover. Usually it is quite small and worked into the typographic design of the title and subtitle or, in some cases, across the top of the page. Some authors choose to only put this on the spine or back cover, but if your book's fans will mostly be reading it as an ebook it can be helpful for them to see the series number on the front cover.

Endorsement. If you have an endorsement from a person with a well-known name, great for you! Endorsements can help add credibility to your book and it may work well to give a big name endorsement some prominence on the front cover, but limit it to one and keep it short. Start collecting endorsements and reviews early!

Author Name. Of course readers will want to know who the author is! This element is most commonly placed in the lower third of the front cover. Unless you are a super well-known and established author, the prevailing advice is to keep the author name small.

Design. Buyers do judge books by their covers! All of the previously mentioned elements need to work seamlessly with the overall design of the book. Hire a professional book cover designer to avoid a front cover design that is easily recognized as amateurish. The design of your book cover can be made up of images, or illustrations, it can be strictly typographic, or it can be a combination of all these things. Whichever direction you choose should reveal the tone of your book right away so that upon first glance the reader can instantly get a sense for the content inside. The design should also be reflective of other books in your genre - similar, but distinct, so that it "fits" with the other books on the shelf and also stands out. Finally - don't forget to look at a gray scale version of your cover - some e-readers don't display color, so the cover must still look good and be readable in gray scale.

After the audience is defined and the research and planning is done then is it ready for the design phase. When I design the front cover of your book some of my goals include:

Readability of the title font
Seeking creative continuity from the front cover, over the spine and onto the back cover (and inside/outside flaps if it's a dust jacket).
Making sure the cover scales down to smaller sizes well.
Creating a cover that is unique but fits in the genre.
And finally...ensuring that you - the publisher! - absolutely love your book's cover design.

Back Cover Copy – What goes here?

Learn about which elements should go on your back cover to help sell more books.

Ever wonder what to put on the back cover of your book? This area should be used as a marketing tool that helps people see the benefits of buying your book. The copy that you put here should be aimed specifically at your audience, using language that they resonate and connect with. Ultimately, the back cover content is what sells the book. After the front cover or spine has snagged their attention, the copy that appears here will hopefully seal the deal and result in your reader making the purchase. And, because attention spans are short, this content needs to be easy to quickly read.

Here are some things to include:

A tagline. Appearing at the very top of the page, use an enticing one or two line sentence to provoke interest or intrigue. Keep it short to grab your reader's attention and pull them further down the page into more details about the book.

A book summary or blurb. This one or two paragraph block should be written with your reader in mind. However, it shouldn't be written in the same style as your book. Think of it more like ad copy, and to write effective ad copy it is critical to know who your reader is and then talk directly to them using language that they'll relate to. The book summary can help your reader understand why they want to buy your book and communicate to them how this book will benefit their life.

Reviews, endorsements, testimonials. Include 2-3 of your best reviews on the back cover. These short statements of praise from others helps add a feeling of credibility to your book. Seeing that other people, maybe some of them well-known, have read, endorsed and recommend your book, builds a sense of trust with your potential reader. Be sure to include your reviewer's name and credentials if they have them.

Author biography and photo. Give people a way to start getting to know you as an author. Include a short bio about yourself and why you wrote the book. Keep it brief and clear, saving the longer list of achievements and story for your "About the Author" page in your book or on your website. Use a simple, professionally taken head shot for the photo.

Publishing Information. This section is for your ISBN bar code and could include the bookstore category, price (if you choose to include that), and your website address.

After you have all of the copy for the cover, only then is it ready for the design phase. When I design the back cover of your book some of my goals include:

Maintaining visual continuity that may come from the front cover and/or elements of the interior style.
Keeping the information on the back cover easily digestible with the most important copy presented in a way that grabs the eye.
Using various design techniques to eliminate any potential for an overcrowded, or cluttered feeling.

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5 Proofreading Tips for Self-Publishing Authors

Practical Steps to Help You Polish Your Own Manuscript

Download all 10 Tips

These 5 tips will help you begin to refine your manuscript. But there’s more to consider if you’re committed to a truly polished final draft! To access all 10 of my proofreading tips to help you through the process, you can download the full resource here by signing up for my newsletter.

What’s Next?

Final Thoughts

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Why Invest in Professional Cover Design?

How I Can Assist You

Here are some ways that we will collaborate on your book cover:

Showcasing Success

Ready to Transform Your Cover?

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Tips for organizing your front matter.

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Tips for preparing your manuscript for the book designer.

Format the manuscript simply

Things to avoid:

Images:

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Set up your Amazon author page to promote your book!

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Tips for book cover design success.

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

Learn about which elements should go on your back cover to help sell more books.

Help for Independent Presses

Book Design & Production

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These 5 tips will help you begin to refine your manuscript.
But there’s more to consider if you’re committed to a truly polished final draft!
To access all 10 of my proofreading tips to help you through the process, you can download the full resource here by signing up for my newsletter.

Tips for preparing your manuscript
for the book designer.