6 Book Design Tips for a Classy, Readable Look
Image by Marisa Sias from Pixabay
You’ve slaved over your memoir manuscript for months, maybe years. Don’t trip at the finish line. Make that baby look good! Here are some of my best tips for good book design:
Choose fonts wisely. It may be tempting to choose a funky or frilly font for the text of your book, but you must resist! For the body font, stick with classics like Times, Garamond, or Adobe Caslon Pro. You can get more creative with fonts for chapter titles or subheadings, but make sure they’re still readable and not distracting. Avoid fonts a sixth grader would choose.
Color carefully. If using color in your text, use it sparingly. I sometimes use a color on chapter title pages or, less frequently, for subheadings. Like certain fonts, some colors make the text unreadable. Avoid light colors and those that won’t print well, like neon.
A little space goes a long way. White space on your spread is a GOOD thing. This gives the text room to breathe and the reader’s eye a place to rest. Avoid the urge to fill the entire space, even if the printer’s boundaries allow for it. Large margins for the win!
Don’t forget the extras. To up the professionalism of your book, don’t forget the front matter—title page, dedication and/or foreword, copyright page, and table of contents. If your book is technical and content-heavy, you may also consider adding a glossary to the end of the book.
Picture perfect. If incorporating photographs into your manuscript, make sure they are scanned properly to ensure accurate reproduction when printed. The industry standard is 300 PPI (pixels per inch). You can also use basic photo editing software to color correct your photos and remove evidence of damage.
Judging a book by its cover. We know we shouldn’t do it, but we do. Unless you’re a professional designer, I highly recommend outsourcing your cover design. You want a cover that will invite readers in and convince them of the quality of what’s inside. Don’t shoot yourself in the foot by scaring readers away with an amateur-looking cover.
Have you finished your manuscript but need help with design and publishing? Shoot me a message and I’d be happy to let you know how I can help!
