Diane Rapp's Blog: She's a Mystery and Science Fiction Writer! - Posts Tagged "self-publishing"

During September, I learned how to convert my e-books into print using Createspace. The process was fairly easy once I got the hang of converting an MSWord document into the proper format. However, reformatting, and changing Headers and Footers proved tricky, so I thought I’d offer readers a few tips for newbies.

I chose a 5.25” x 8” size for the final product and downloaded a “Formatted template” from Createspace to see the “setup” guidelines. (I got too many glitches when I tried to copy/paste my document into a blank template.) To see the “setup” of the formatted document, open the document and click File and then Page Setup. A box pops up with tabs labeled Margins, Paper, and Layout. (Record the exact numbers/words under each tab if you choose a different size.) Before reformatting an existing MSWord file, save a copy with a new name, click File and then Page Setup and change the settings to match the template settings. (NOTE be sure to check “apply to full document” on each tab before saving). Watch the file change before your eyes. The settings for a 5.25” x 8” size were as follows:

Margin Tab:
Top .76” Bottom .76”
Inside .76” Outside .6”
Gutter .14” Gutter position Left
Multiple pages Mirror Image

Paper Tab:
Orientation Portrait Width 5.25” Height 8”

Layout Tab:
Section start New Page
Different first page
Different odd and even
From edge Header .4” Footer .3” Vertical Alignment Top

Save the reformatted file. Next create “Front Material” pages that correspond with the Createspace guidelines: Title Page, Copyright, Acknowledgements (plus dedications, disclaimers, review excerpts, etc.), and a Table of Contents. Copy/paste the copyright numbers that Createspace assigns your book into your Copyright page. Copy the Table of Contents from the Formatted Template and paste it into a blank document before typing chapter names and page numbers. (Hint: Save a copy of the blank file to use for other books.) Create new boxes for additional chapter names by lining up the cursor on the outside edge of the last box and pressing enter (very useful). Don’t put in page numbers yet as they might change before you’re finished.

To save frustration later click Insert and Break and under Section Break Types click on odd/even at the end of each new page you create or insert into the Front Material section. Arrange all the front pages to your desired order (including the table of contents page) before making header/footer changes. After the front materials are finished, insert a final page break and click on Odd. This will insure that the book content starts on the right-hand side of the page. (You may need to insert a blank page in the front material to make this look correct.) Save.

At this point you are ready to insert Titles into the headers. (DO NOT add Header Titles on the front materials.) Go to the first page of the book content and click on View and select Header and Footer. A light box appears at the top of each page and at the bottom of each page and a blue dialog box pops up. Decide whether you want a blank on the header of each chapter title page or if you want it the header blank. If you prefer that the book’s title appears on the chapter title pages, type the title of the book in ALL CAPS in the Header Box on this page click on the “link to previous” icon in the blue Dialog box. (Let your cursor hover over each symbol and a description of the function appears, this symbol looks like two little pages.) Since the default is set to link sections, clicking on this icon actually removes the link to previous pages. Keep the Headers and Footers open and page up to look at the Front Materials pages.

If a title appears in the header on any of these pages, delete the title and go back to the chapter page. Click on the “linked to previous” icon again and type the title if it disappeared. Check the front material pages again. If the title keeps appearing on any of those pages, insert a section break/odd/even on that page (and delete until the next page is in the proper place).

After the first header works, go to page 2 and type the author’s name in ALL CAPS. Click on the “linked to previous” icon and look at the front material pages to maker sure the name did not appear on any of the pages. (If you DO NOT want a title on the first page of each chapter, simply leave the Header blank on the first page of the chapter and type the title on page 3.) The headers should automatically show the titles on all the odd/even pages of the book. If they do not show up, go to the page that does not have a title, click your cursor on the Header box and click “link to previous” icon. A dialog box will ask if you want to link to the previous section, click yes, and the title should show up.

Inserting page numbers. Createspace wants page numbers centered at the bottom of the page from start of the book content. Front Materials are numbered in small Roman numerals. Before inserting page numbers in the footer, SET UP the page numbers by clicking on Insert and Page Numbers. A dialog box will appear. On Position choose Bottom of Page Footer. On Alignment choose Center. Unclick the box next to Show number on First Page. Click on Format and another dialog box will appear. Click on Start At and enter the number 1 in the box. Click okay. The dialog box closes.

Now click View and Headers and Footers. Move your cursor to the footer on the first page of your book content. Click on the # symbol in the dialog box to insert the first page number. If the number is NOT 1 click on the second # symbol that has a yellow arrow above it in the dialog box, click Start At and enter 1. The number 1 should appear in the footer. Click on the center alignment in your word processing tool bar to make the number center.

Check to make sure the number did not appear in the footer of any of the front materials pages. If it did, delete the numbers from the wrong pages. Go back to page 1 of the book content, click the “link to previous” icon again and insert the page number. Recheck the front materials. If the number keeps appearing, you must insert a break odd/even at the end of the page that has the bad number. Go to page 2 of your chapter and insert the page number (click #) centered. Check page 3. If 3 does not show click “link to previous.” This time you want the footer to link to the previous page. Check page 4 and do the same if necessary. After you link an odd page and an even page to the previous section, the numbers should show up in consecutive order throughout the book.

Check the book content for page numbers. If numbers fail to continue in order at any point, there might be a “page break” at the end of a chapter that messes with your numbers. Try deleting the wrong page number and click on “link to previous” before you click # to insert the page number again. If the correct number does not appear, delete the page break after the last line of the previous chapter and “insert break odd/even” again. Insert the page number and check the rest of the book.

Page numbers in the front material should be small Roman numerals. Type them separately and click the “link to previous” on each page. Insert Break odd/even if necessary to make this work. Do this after numbering the rest of the book because the other page numbers are not linked to your front material. Look at each page to be sure the correct Roman numeral shows after you insert breaks. Don’t forget to add page numbers on the Table of Contents. SAVE.

After everything looks right in the MSWord document, upload it to Createspace. Some glitches might occur after Createspace converts the MSWord document to a PDF, so preview the file. In one of my books, a blank page appeared before the title page that did not show on my original document. I couldn’t get rid of that blank page, so I converted the file to a PDF and uploaded the PDF. The blank page disappeared!

To convert any document to your own PDF, download a free copy of “PDF Redirect” (search for it on the Internet). It becomes a “new printer” on your print program. Select the program as your printer and then “Print” to the program. It converts the document to a PDF file that you can save. Examine the file and fix anything that looks wrong using MSWord. After corrections create a new PDF and check it again. After your book file is uploaded to Createspace, use their “previewer” to examine the document page by page. Double check the front materials and page numbers. If you see problems, fix the MSWord file, and upload again until its right.

Design a Cover. I picked a cover template and inserted my own JPEG picture. I copy/pasted the description already written for the back cover, uploaded a picture of me, and my logo. Make sure the JPEG of your book picture has enough pixels to pass muster. If you upload a picture that’s too small, the cover won’t be approved. (Createspace lists the minimum size needed for each design.) After trying one template, I switched to a different template that accepted a smaller picture. Pre-made designs are available if you prefer to use them.

After the cover is finished, submit your files for review. Createspace sends an e-mail within 48 hours (usually less) that tells you what is wrong, or the files are approved. Order a proof! You see things in a real copy that go unnoticed on a computer screen. Fix any problems and resubmit for review again. If you’re confident the corrected file is good (look at a digital proof), skip ordering another proof and approve the book for print. When choosing prices for distribution, I suggest you pay for expanded distribution ($25). It expands the options and it’s the only way to sell in Canada. Be sure your prices are high enough to receive a royalty in each category. Order copies to sell—it’s so much fun to hand a copy of a signed book to a willing buyer, smiles all around.