FAQs

Am I involved in the design process?

Yes! As part of the base cost, after we've interviewed you to get a sense of your vision for the book, we'll put together three sample layout spreads. We'll use your own manuscript so you can see how your words will look in print. Each sample will use different fonts, font sizes and leading, a different runner head and pagination treatment, and a different chapter start treatment. If your manuscript has footnotes or sidebars, we'll show you a variety of those, too. You can choose one of the three samples, or we can put together a unique sample that pulls specific elements from the three.

We recommend that you print out the sample spreads before making a decision. Sometimes looking at a layout on screen won't give you the same feeling for font sizes and readability that looking at a printed copy will. 

Can I change my mind on the layout?

We'll make as many changes to your selected sample layout as needed to get to an approved layout you cansign off on. Once you've approved a sample interior layout and we've started using it to lay out the book, we need to stick to that design. However, we'd be glad to give you a price to make changes to it mid-stream.  

How long will it take to get a finished layout ready for the printer?

One to two weeks, on average. The turnaround depends on factors like length of manuscript, speed of decision-making, complexity of the interior (whether there are added charts, tables, photos, sidebars . . .) If you have a rush job, just call us. We can discuss the timing and extra charge.

Can I be assured that the quoted price won't change?

Absolutely. We stick to our quoted price. If you decide to add something or make a change along the way, we'll be glad to give you a price for that add-on.

Can I send you chapters and photos as they're ready?

No. We need to have all the materials sent at once. This assures us that the manuscript is finished with all the chapters in the correct order and that the process will be as streamlined as possible.

After you've sent me a draft of the book interior how do I make changes?

The easiest and most efficient way is to open the PDF file that we send you in Adobe Reader. You can download the latest, free version for either Mac or PC, at get.adobe.com/reader.  Once you have the PDF open in Reader, go to Tools > Comments to be able to highlight words or sentences, cross out words, set an insertion point, or make other edits. You don't actually make the changes yourself. You give us editing comments, and we make the changes on our end. These changes generally take a day to make, then we send you another draft.

If Adobe Reader doesn't work for you for some reason, we can discuss other alternatives for getting changes to us.

Our base price includes three rounds of changes, so you'll get three PDF drafts to proof. 

My book includes photos. Is that an extra charge?

Usually not, but it depends on how many there are. Generally, if there are less than a dozen there's no extra charge. We change the format of your photos to either grayscale or CMYK (depending on whether your book is in black and white or color). We convert them to the standard print resolution of 300dpi. We'll do minor touch-up, color correction, and contrast repair so the photos show uniformity between them. 

If you have more than a dozen photos in your book, we'll let you know what the cost will be to process them.  

It's important that the photos you submit are your own, or that you have obtained the rights to reprint them. Photos downloaded from the internet (unless purchased from a stock photo website) are generally not in the public domain and illegal to use without permission. In addition, photos from a website are usually not high resolution anyway, and have been compressed for web viewing which greatly diminishes their quality. 

How do I get my photos to you?

You can either send them by email to robin@bookformatters.com if they'll fit in a couple emails, or we can set up a Dropbox for you to upload them. You can zip them together or send them individually. DO NOT send them in a Word or PDF file. Any projects with photos embedded in Word or PDF will be upcharged.

How do I know if my photos are high resolution? 

Printing resolution is 300dpi at 100% of the size that they'll appear on the page. If your book is a 6" x 9" format, and want your photo to appear full size on a page, your photo should be at least 6" wide at 300dpi. If you don't know the resolution of the photo you can email us a sample and we'll be glad to check it. Photos downloaded from a website ARE NOT high resolution. They're usually 72dpi, for screen viewing.  

Can I send you my manuscript in Publisher or PowerPoint?

No. We accept manuscripts in either Word or Pages. 

Do you print books?

No. We don't offer print services. But we'll be glad to direct you to some printers for either print-on-demand jobs or print inventory jobs.   

What if there are printing problems?

We're happy to work with your printer to resolve any problems that come up. If you alert us when you plan to upload the book, we'll be available just in case we need to turn around a fix quickly.

Why do you need to know what printer I'm using?

Each printer has different printing specifications - most often for the cover, but sometimes for the interior, too. If images bleed off the edge, the printer has specs for exactly how much bleed to allow for this. If it's a hardcover, the specs will tell us how much of the cover image will be needed to wrap around the casing. The final page count and paper quality will tell us how wide to make the cover spine. To streamline your book project, you'll want to be able to upload the final PDF to the printer in the correct format to avoid any printing delays and avoid the cost of resubmissions.

Can you prepare files for Ingram Spark or KDP?

Yes. We've worked with all these online book printers and others. We just need to know what printer you've chosen so we can design to their own specs.

What if my book contains tables or charts?

If you provide the table or chart as a high-resolution jpg, tiff, or png, we can use it as-is. In most cases, we'll take your graphic and rebuild it in Illustrator so that the fonts, colors, and overall look are compatible with the rest of the interior. There may be a charge for this. We'll be glad to give you a quote as soon as we see your graphic. 

How do I get an ISBN and bar code for my book? 

You can go to bowker.com to register your book for an ISBN. This must be done when the book is near completion, because there's a questionnaire that needs to be filled out and some of the information - like page count, an image of the cover, and the interior PDF - won't be known earlier. When you purchase your ISBN, you can also purchase and download a bar code to place on the back cover. Please check with us before generating the bar code so we can advise you of the best format to get. If your printer is Ingram Spark the cover template you’ll need to generate will have a bar code attached to it.

Can I have the working book files?

Yes. You've paid for them, and you own them. We'll give you the final InDesign file, and all supporting graphics, edited photos, and fonts. Just let us know that you want the files when the project is done, and we'll be glad to send them to you.

Will you be able to make changes to my book in the future?

Of course. We archive all work for three years and can make changes, updates, or a whole new edition. Just call or email us and we'll be glad to give you a price.