By colin dunbar with our page size set, we continue with the global settings, and in this post we cover page layout and margins. To reserve space on the inside fold for binding, increase the width of the gutter. Less whether you want to create a booklet for an event or print out an ambitious book project, consider using the prebuilt page settings for booklets that comes with word. Page margins are the spaces around the edge of the page. After you format your manuscript in word, add finishing touches with kindle create. Its been around forever, so most people know how to use it. How to correctly format an ebook for amazon kdp with microsoft word the basics. If you want to write a book, you need word processing software thats up to the task. How to format your book for self publication bookstand publishing.
Apr 17, 2012 microsoft word has lots of features that make creating ebooks easy. Jan 15, 2020 because word is a flexible word processing system, you can simply use a book template within word, and start typing your book directly onto the page. You can use the preset styles in microsoft word or modify them for a custom look. Tech support scams are an industrywide issue where scammers trick you into paying for unnecessary technical support services. However, there are some steps you can make when writing your book in microsoft word. The conversion process from word to kindle mobi or epub is very easy, and you dont need any special computer skills at all. Word can offer you various templates to use but you ideally want to start with a blank. Mar 30, 2015 word has a handy feature that automatically formats what you type, as you type it. These steps include including setting up the correct trim size, setting up the correct margins, formatting the text, and numbering the pages. Using the styles function in word can help you ensure your books font and spacing is consistent. How indie authors can use microsoft word to quickly and easily format their self published books for paperback and print, as well as ebook, for. If you are still floundering, you might like to consider the new free online course of how to format a word document for ebook. You can help protect yourself from scammers by verifying that the contact is a microsoft agent or microsoft employee and that the phone number is an official microsoft global customer service number. The most common file format for an ebook is adobe acrobat pdf.
If i wrote a book in ms word with complex formatting, can i. For the sake of this little discussion, i am using word 20, but much of this also applied to earlier versions too. How to use microsoft word as a desktop publishing tool. This is a guide to formatting your book in microsoft word 2010. Microsoft offers a wide variety of word templates for free and with no hassle. How to write a book using microsoft word the write practice. How to format an ebook using microsoft word how do i format my ebook using microsoft word is a common question most first time authors have. How to format your book for amazon kindle using microsoft word in only 30 minutes 0 comments one of the factors that decides whether your book will be successful or a flop on amazon kindle is the.
How to format your word document for book printing on mac. This tutorial uses settings and options from the latest version of microsoft word, for mac or a pc. There are over a hundred things that can go wrong with your book formatting, and if we wrote about all of them youd be reading from sunup till sundown. This includes changing quotes to smart quotes, automatically creating bulleted and numbered lists, and. Usually the toc commands can be found under a references tab. Its recommended that you adjust these setting before writing the content of your book to prevent formatting issues late on.
If you are a selfpublishing author who wants to know how to typeset a book, there are plenty of tools and resources available to you. How to correctly format an ebook for amazon kdp with. How to format your book for amazon kindle using microsoft word in only 30 minutes 0 comments one of the factors that decides whether your book will be successful or a flop on amazon kindle is the formatting. For example, you can change the font, size, and color. Make sure to apply to the whole document instead of this section. Whether youre planning a holiday party, in charge of the school newsletter, or want a matching resume and cover letter combination, you can find templates for word that fit your needs. How to format a book in word a stepbystep tutorial youtube. I liked that this howto booklet was concise, yet clear in its explanations. How to convert a file from word to epub or mobi file format. Every time you publish a new book, all you have to do is open the word file and add the new title to your backlist section.
On the margins tab, change the setting for multiple pages to book fold. Free book design templates and tutorials for formatting in. Nov 15, 2019 and because were not above a bit of blatant promotion, it should be mentioned that the reedsy book editor is an excellent first option. Whether youre planning a holiday party, in charge of the school newsletter, or want a matching resume and cover letter. If you follow this procedure for using word styles to prepare your publishing document and format an ebook using your new word file, it will be absolutely perfect.
In todays post, ian andrew, former microsoft trainer turned selfpublished author, provides a simple beginners guide to using word to format ebooks. Feb 28, 2017 when writing your book you should separate the writing from the formatting. How to use microsoft word to create an ebook pcworld. Word has a handy feature that automatically formats what you type, as you type it. Jul 20, 2017 but while vellum, for example, is a favorite among mac users, a very common starting point is microsoft word. However, what if you have an existing document you want to automatically format. In a few clicks, it can help you format your title page, table of contents, and individual paragraphs and change you books. If you have a completed manuscript with botched book formatting on your hands, this article will teach you how to fix it using microsoft word. How to format a book in microsoft word with pictures getting started.
Formatting a book in word how to format a book so the first page is on the right this thread is locked. In a few clicks, it can help you format your title page, table of contents, and individual paragraphs and change you books look and feel by applying themes. Where is the format menu in microsoft word 2007, 2010. So id like to share with you something ive been working on for a few months. Even if you dont use a book template, you can still write a book using microsoft word just be aware that you may have to spend more time formatting your book when its time to publish it. Im an expert word user, so just by reading this, i can tell that prepping my book for publication will be a fairly. As i said in my previous post about using word to format ebooks, i get that some of you are keyboard wizards and witches, warriors all, scurrying away with fantastical word processing programs, like scrivener, but, there are quite a lot of us, mere twofinger mortals. In my experience, and after researching the various methods, i found that using scrivener for all my books you can keep your research within the program including the urls you may have used with the actual. Usually they are blank space, but you can also put headers or page numbers in the margins. How to make your own free book cover in ms word the. How to format your book for kindle using microsoft word in 6.
How to automatically format an existing document in word 20. Using styles also saves you time because you dont have to format the font and spacing for each part of your book. In a commercially published book, paragraphs are indicated by a tab at the beginning of the paragraph. Provided by alli partner member the book reality experience. Since im writing this for people who have no budget and have to learn how to do everything themselves, i recommend formatting your book for. Microsoft word is universally recognized, and youre probably already familiar with it. How to format your book for kindle using microsoft word in. Open and edit office files on your chromebook chromebook. You can help protect yourself from scammers by verifying. The book design wizard helps you format your book using microsoft word. With a few customizations, it can make writing your book easy. Word is the standard, accepted across platforms, and is easy to access for nonwriters your beta readers. Novels are simple, in terms of software, but ultimately editors and agents want the satanic tm microsoft word file.
Open one word document, in the group of the menus tab at the far left of the ribbon of word 2007201020, you can view the format menu and execute many commands from the dropdown. This video is the first in a new 10step series on book formatting in microsoft word. How to reduce the size of a microsoft word document. The problem with this is that ms words gutter option wont work when it comes to book formatting. How indie authors can use microsoft word to quickly and easily format their selfpublished books for paperback and print, as well as ebook, for.
Build your book format a paperback manuscript word for. How to convert a word document to epub or mobi for kindle. Now you are ready to convert either word to epub format, or word docx or doc to mobi kindle format. If i wrote a book in ms word with complex formatting, can. Where is the format menu in microsoft word 2007, 2010, 20. This includes changing quotes to smart quotes, automatically creating bulleted and numbered lists, and creating hyperlinks from web addresses. Using this builtin system, determine what you want your toc to look like. Youll be doing the actual design of your book in your wordprocessing program, however. How to format a book the free and easy way ebook formatting. Word for office 365 word for office 365 for mac word 2019 word 2019 for mac word 2016 word 20 word 2016 for mac more. Though there are various professional tools for creating an ebook, you can create your own copy using any microsoft word. Jun 24, 2017 how to correctly format an ebook for amazon kdp with microsoft word the basics.
There are a lot of different programs that you can use for writing a novel, including a pencil and paper, but there is a reasonable chance you are using microsoft word. But when it comes to selfpublishing, you may not know how to format your. Formatting a book in microsoft word book formatting made easy. This will be a crash course in the minimal skills you need to create a winning cover in ms word. Microsoft word has lots of features that make creating ebooks easy. With our page size set, we continue with the global settings, and in this post we cover page layout and. Well go through everything you need to do to format a book.
The directions below are for ms word 7 and 10 the most. It can be confusing, especially if youve never done it before. You can use styles to format an ebook or update its formatting to work on a different platform. In microsoft word, you can create a book format by setting specific page margins. Even with thinner books, though, it doesnt hurt to account for the fact that the binding will eat up some of the page. Feb 21, 2017 novels are simple, in terms of software, but ultimately editors and agents want the satanic tm microsoft word file.
When writing your book you should separate the writing from the formatting. You want to ensure they see your every last word, so give your words room to breathe on the page. Were saying that not only because its easytouse and powerful, but its also completely free. Some of the most popular downloadable book word templates are discussed here. If you want to learn to be a serious writer, use and learn screenplay, which.
But the mobi ebook format, or kindle book format, is the only file type that can be added and read on kindle devices and kindle apps it is very easy to. They have them for short story format and for manuscript format. Free book design templates and tutorials for formatting in ms word. The orientation automatically changes to landscape. How to format your book for amazon kindle using microsoft. Nov 01, 2017 the thicker the book, the wider these margin need to be so that the text doesnt get eaten up by the spine. Change the setting for multiple pages to book fold. However, there are some steps you can make when writing your book in microsoft word that will make the job of formatting your book easier and help prevent errors in the book formatting process. Plus, that makes it really easy to update your manuscripts. In my experience, and after researching the various methods, i found that using scrivener for all my books you can keep your research within the program including the urls you may have used with the actual pages and a whole lot more was best for.
The good news is that, with a few clicks of your mouse, you can convert your manuscript directly into an ebook. Each version of word is different, so i recommend you consult the help menu for instructions. How to format your book for self publication bookstand. Open one word document, in the group of the menus tab at the far left of the ribbon of word 2007201020, you can view the format menu and execute many commands from the dropdown menu of format. You can select individual characters, specific words, or entire paragraphs.
Free book design templates and tutorials for formatting in ms. Plus, once you have the basics down, you can create a book format template for future use. Microsoft word has the builtin capability to link styles with table of contents listings. Obviously, you can see all commands of format tab from the dropdown menu, like font, text effect, paragraph, watermark, text. Free book formatting templates in ms word and indesign. Usually they are blank space, but you can also put headers or. The book word format templates could be many and varied as these look to address the various facets of the book. Common mistakes made when writing a book in microsoft word. Well walk you through the steps to format your word document for printing a book that is a 5. Essentially you can either pay for a service provider to. An extra line space is used only to indicate a change of section or scene.
From our experience, most authors make the same mistakes when with their book format. The most common and most economical trim sizes is 5. How to format your book for self publication be sure your book is in one electronic file. Because word is a flexible word processing system, you can simply use a book template within word, and start typing your book directly onto the page. Oct 20, 20 so id like to share with you something ive been working on for a few months.
Formatting print books with word selfpublishing advice. How to format your word document for book printing on mac or pc. How to format a book in microsoft word new youtube. By colin dunbar in todays self publishing world, its a good idea to have your book available in as many formats as you can. Our free book formatting templates have this stuff built in. Here are the basics steps on formatting your manuscript in microsoft word for self publication. Book outline template a book outline template word doc helps you with main arrangement of the book right from the cover page till the conclusion. If you want to learn to be a serious writer, use and learn screenplay, which has a novel template and has far more features than. Authors have enough costs and publishing challenges to deal with already, so ive built an amazing package of book formatting templates in ms word and indesign you can download for free. Kindle formatting by colin dunbar in todays self publishing world, its a good idea to have your book available in as many formats as you can. You can be confident that when you publish your ebook, it will be a pleasure for readers to read on any device. If youre a writer, youre probably no stranger to microsoft word. Tips for formatting your book correctly in microsoft word. Click size more paper sizes and set the document to 6x9 or your book size.
Its been turning and turning in your mind, but its just too vague to put into words. We will start with a blank document and set our page size and margins. You can follow the question or vote as helpful, but you cannot reply. If you are like most selfpublishing authors, you want to tackle the task of designing your book on your own but you might be. In the page setup group, click the small arrow at the bottomright. These steps include including setting up the correct trim size, setting up the correct margins, formatting the.