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Loading manuscript on kindle - help needed
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Linda
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Nov 17, 2017 08:21AM
I am trying to publish an ebook version of my paperback. I have go t the cover uploaded fine but the manuscript doesn't look good. I have done what amazon say - have page breaks but the poems still go wonky. Help anyone?
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I export from MSWord into HTML format and then into Kindle format. Seems to work well for me.
What program are you using? If it's Word and you have specific formats for the poems (such as centered text or indentation) the issue might be with whether Amazon's system is overriding the formatting if it isn't done a specific way. Now if it's a matter of fitting them on the page, that would likely be something you won't have much control over since text size can be changed to fit whatever device the reader is using.
Linda wrote: "I am trying to publish an ebook version of my paperback. I have go t the cover uploaded fine but the manuscript doesn't look good. I have done what amazon say - have page breaks but the poems still..."Hi Linda
Just gone through a kindle publishing proces for a complicated textbook. It can be quite a task to get it to look as it should depending on what you want to accomplish. Could you supply;
- version / type of your Word prosessing software
- a sample of what you want to accomplish e.g. screenshot, pdf or so.
- Maybe an example of where the kindle conversion goes wrong.
and I'll be happy to help.
Br. Karsten
Thanks everyone.Karsten, my manuscript is Words docx. What happens is bits of one poem is on the same page as the previous poem, the titles slip to the side, some of the sentences slip out of place. I have tried changes the font from fancy to ordinary Times New Roman, I have page breaks after every poem which is what Amazon say to do.
It sounds to me like you have some hidden formats in your document. You can view some issues by pressing the show / hide line breaks (a reverse P ) in the toolbar. At least this will show you all exessive linebreaks, which you need to remove.One way to get rid of all formatting is copying each poem and then replacing it with "insert special" - "plain text" - Or you can mark all text and chose "typographies" and select "remove all formatting".
You can do this at once with the complete book, but then you wil have to insert all pagebreaks once Again.
Next step will be removing all excess Spaces; Do a replace of "double Spaces" with single Spaces. Do it repeatedly until no more double Spaces can be found.
Lastly, I am pretty sure that Kindle only recognises headings as pagebreaks and this only for h1 to h3. Maybe also sections where you mark the section and select "typographies" - "Section" - select pane 2 and mark the box page break before section. But I suggest you use a header h1 for the title of your poem.
Sorry if I use the wrong terms in Word, I got a Danish version.
Let me hear how it turns out.
Br. Karsten
Linda wrote: "Thanks everyone.Karsten, my manuscript is Words docx. What happens is bits of one poem is on the same page as the previous poem, the titles slip to the side, some of the sentences slip out of pla..."
Linda
I've had similar problems adding pictures into a couple of books years ago and gave up.
However, in your case (and this is why I mentioned the pictures), I gather the titles are boxed, or an object, rather than part of the extended text (and certainly not headers). If they are text boxes, that's what causes the text to move around when uploaded to Kindle.
It's a guess, but if the text box is an issue, then take it out and add the titles into the normal text.
Karsten wrote: "It sounds to me like you have some hidden formats in your document. You can view some issues by pressing the show / hide line breaks (a reverse P ) in the toolbar. At least this will show you all ..."I am not good with this I can't find the things you mention :(
Roger wrote: "Linda wrote: "Thanks everyone.Karsten, my manuscript is Words docx. What happens is bits of one poem is on the same page as the previous poem, the titles slip to the side, some of the sentences s..."
The poem titles are part of the text not boxed :(
Linda wrote: "What happens is bits of one poem is on the same page as the previous poem, the titles slip to the side, some of the sentences slip out of pla..."If you use a heading (for table of contents purposes) and somehow managed to make the space before the heading also a heading (which can happen easily if you select the space when selecting the title), it will override the page break when Amazon generates a Kindle edition.
Fonts won't matter because there is no way to embed the font for Kindle, but size will. If you're making the heading a lot larger, it could skew the way it's shown.
Roger wrote: "Linda wrote: "Thanks everyone.Karsten, my manuscript is Words docx. What happens is bits of one poem is on the same page as the previous poem, the titles slip to the side, some of the sentences s..."
I did just that in my new kindle book, textboxes, tables, as well as pics all over the book, even though they claim it can't be done. BUT you need to be prepared to do a lot of Work with both 3. party converters, xhtml and css (basicly partly programming the text book yourselves).
You can download a sample from my kindle book "Boost Your Finances" and have a look, if you like. It is doable!
I can explain how to circumvent standard conversion, but its kind of complicated, so I prefer answering questions, if you have some, Roger.
Enjoy
Br. Karsten
Karsten, please remove the link per our rules.
Linda wrote: "Karsten wrote: "It sounds to me like you have some hidden formats in your document. You can view some issues by pressing the show / hide line breaks (a reverse P ) in the toolbar. At least this wil..."OK Linda
Use H1 heading for poem title
Remove any unnessessary lines
remove double or more spaces
Make sure you use the same font (and size) for the poem text
and try reloading and see how it looks and then we will take it from there...
Br. Karsten
I just uploaded from Word and went through the Kindle manuscript until I got it the way I wanted. I thought Karsten might be right too.
Clyde wrote: "I just uploaded from Word and went through the Kindle manuscript until I got it the way I wanted. I thought Karsten might be right too."If everything else fails, there is allways the userguide ;o)
Christina wrote: "Linda wrote: "What happens is bits of one poem is on the same page as the previous poem, the titles slip to the side, some of the sentences slip out of pla..."If you use a heading (for table of c..."
heading + heading would probably result in 2 pagebreaks.
Karsten wrote: "heading + heading would probably result in 2 pagebreaks."You'd think, but it just slaps a space in there.
Christina wrote: "Karsten wrote: "heading + heading would probably result in 2 pagebreaks."You'd think, but it just slaps a space in there."
I wouldn't be sure. The converter does a lot of strange things and it even manages to come up with different results for the same formatting from time to time.
I managed to mock up a decent layout at last, but will definitely not try to repeat the process unless I have to.
This happened on my reference page. I realized that Kindle doesn't like "hard returns," which I am sure your poems have. You might google "how to remove hard returns from reference." I can't paste the link here.
It sounds to me like you want to use specific formatting, not the reflowable text format that Kindle uses by default. I would recommend using Kindle Textbook Creator or Kindle Create.
First, to show the formatting in Word, your top toolbar should have something that looks like a backward P filled in - vaguely like ❡ without the curl at the bottom. Click it, and you should see a whole lot of symbols turn up in light blue. These are your formatting symbols.Now go to the Smashwords site, and Mark Coker has a free ebook that shows how to prepare your manuscript for his ebook formatting. Follow his formatting guidelines, and in particular, avoid starting a new line the wrong way (odd shaped arrows in light blue turn up if you do).
Hope this helps.
There are videos on Youtube that show/explain how to format an ebook that I found very useful.
When you save, have you 'save as' Web page, unfiltered? You can scroll through the document and should be able to see any oddness in this,
As others have said, if you've used text boxes then this can cause issues.
Insert>page break does put page breaks in btw.
Hope this and the other comments help xx
Thanks everyone. I have been off line for the weekend, I will have a go this week :)
One thing about page breaks and extra lines - some compilers leave them out unless you tell them not to. You have to check what the compiler does.One thing about tables, diagrams, etc - these are best inserted as something like a .png file. Watch how you insert it. If the text box does not compile well, or if you are going to use mathematical equations, it these into .png files somewhere else and insert them, BUT make sure they are not too complicated - the compiler will reduce them to the size of a kindle window, and if you compress them too much they become unreadable. I have seen lot of ebooks with this problem.
Ian wrote: "One thing about page breaks and extra lines - some compilers leave them out unless you tell them not to. You have to check what the compiler does.One thing about tables, diagrams, etc - these are..."
It is not nesessarily a must, Ian;
kindle does create quite nice filtered HTML which can be converted to epub via calibre. The epub can then be modified to your liking before imported into kindle. Kindle performs close to a 1:1 conversion from epub to mobi.
I use percent for right justified textboxes, e.g. (page) Width 40% - height auto - making them reflowable.
Tables convert fine, if you can accept justification issues, which you can correct via css afterwards in the calibre editor - Again resulting in reflowable text.
Left-justified Png's I import at desired resolution and then set in pixels, but I assume you can set Width and height in percent as well making the picture adjust to about any screen.
Only problem is, you need to modify xhtml / css yourselves in calibre.
Karsten, of course there are always different ways of doing things, but I feel I have suggested the simplest way that will work on any reasonable compiler, and it does not require any familiarity with various software code.
Ian wrote: "Karsten, of course there are always different ways of doing things, but I feel I have suggested the simplest way that will work on any reasonable compiler, and it does not require any familiarity w..."Your suggestion will not suffice when you need complex formatting. I am simply pointing out, that there are workarounds that let you achieve, what the kindle manuals tell you is un-obtainable unless you hire a pro.
I agree, but if you know enough to know you need complex formatting, I doubt you would be asking this question. 😊 I have compiled and published some rather complicated scientific ebooks, and it is usually possible to get around needing it, but I agree that there will be occasions when someone who knows what they are doing prefers something more professional.
Ahh, you mean Lindas question? Surely not.My original comment related to complex formatting was actually to Roger, who complained about not beeing able to achieve the lay-out he wanted ;o)
Yes, I was referring to Linda's question.
I uploaded my book to KDP months ago, and I am starting to get some hits! Yeah for me! But, two people have purchased the E-Book and it is not compatible with their Kindle Paperwhite... My Ebook is [Print Replica] Kindle Edition.I was editing Mobi and Epub files, but once I realized I could upload the .kpf file I stopped with the other formatting as it was kind of a pain.
Am I now doomed? How can I edit the file to be "Read on any device" as other books have listed under their title? I looked at the Kindle Book Previewer in the 'Edit Book Content' section, and it has a nice preview for tablets and phones. But it says "This book type is not available on Kindle E-Readers"
Thats not good...
Any advice is appreciated.
Thank you,
Tim Notier
Tim wrote: "I uploaded my book to KDP months ago, and I am starting to get some hits! Yeah for me! But, two people have purchased the E-Book and it is not compatible with their Kindle Paperwhite... My Ebook is..."Print replicas are basically PDF files, meaning they can't be reflowed for all devices, so they won't work on most Kindle e-reader only devices. You'll have to republish as a mobi or so a second mobi edition to get it to work on all devices.
Tim wrote: "I uploaded my book to KDP months ago, and I am starting to get some hits! Yeah for me! But, two people have purchased the E-Book and it is not compatible with their Kindle Paperwhite... My Ebook is..."Hi Tim
Though we're hijacking this tread I will provide you with a sort of answer. Have a look at my tread in:
World, Writing, Wealth >All Things Writing & Publishing > A scary story about self publishing (sorry - no links allowed)
If you want to follow my suggested road to a completely reflowable complex mobi file, then I can help you.
If you just need simple reflowable text, you should be able to import Word as well as several other formats to mobi.
However, maybe you should describe your problem in more detail, before we suggest any solutions ;o)
Br. Karsten
Karsten wrote: "Tim wrote: "I uploaded my book to KDP months ago, and I am starting to get some hits! Yeah for me! But, two people have purchased the E-Book and it is not compatible with their Kindle Paperwhite......"Thank you! I am tackling the Mobi process now!
I have no idea why Amazon has this .kpf file - it is not at all helpful.
Ian wrote: "I have no idea why Amazon has this .kpf file - it is not at all helpful."As I remember it, it is a way to create complex document matching the print lay-out without the troublesome formatting issues requiring detailled knowledge of xhtml / css / epub formatting - but limited to just that: your chosen print format and thus probably only suitable for high resolution screens.
I've not had the energy to try again. Well it is Christmas - nearly and I have so much to do :)
Karsten wrote: "Ian wrote: "I have no idea why Amazon has this .kpf file - it is not at all helpful."As I remember it, it is a way to create complex document matching the print lay-out without the troublesome fo..."
The {Print Replica} will work on any Kindle Fire device, or any Kindle app, but not PaperWhites and other Kindles... in an effort not to upset readers who have already bought the eBook, I am uploading the .Mobi file.
It took a little effort, and the pictures within the chapters aren't as structured (dead center, all the same exact size). The Kpf file was idiot proof, but I don't ever want a review that has one star stating they couldn't even sync it to their device...
I know someone who has a PaperWhite that I am sending the file to, hopefully it looks good, then I will replace the .kpf file with the .mobi on KDP...
Tim wrote: "Karsten wrote: "Ian wrote: "I have no idea why Amazon has this .kpf file - it is not at all helpful."As I remember it, it is a way to create complex document matching the print lay-out without th..."
Checking any reader if possible is definitely a good idea. Those minor adjustmenst you talk about should be doable in your Word processor.
One of my problems was that to make the Pictures look good, they needed to be loaded in an oversized format, and then made auto-sizeable via css.
The mobi creator did the exact opposite. It reduced the size and thus quality of all Pictures.
Good luck.
Linda wrote: "I am trying to publish an ebook version of my paperback. I have go t the cover uploaded fine but the manuscript doesn't look good. I have done what amazon say - have page breaks but the poems still..."Hi Linda,
I used Kindle Create 3 for my Kindle book. I uploaded my word doc and did my final formatting there. It's a great tool to use. It also allows you to pick a theme for your book and preview what it would look like on a kindle device. For my book, I highlighted each poem's title and clicked on the title icon in word. Kindle Create uses these titles for your book's TOC. I'm not sure if it's of any help to you, but I figured it was worth mentioning. :) Good luck! I hope you'll keep us posted.
For Kindle - if working in Libre Office, convert to docx file. If in Word it's already a docx file.
Convert to pdf.
Then upload this pdf file to Kindle.
Hope this helps. It works for me.
When dealing with Kindle, the best way is to send the file to them in Kindle's format. I send a mobi file, and the easiest way to do that is to use Calibre for the translation. It's a free program.By using Calibre, you can look at the results on a Kindle reader or app, and tweak as necessary, before you upload. That way you know it's right for them before it's sent.
Wow, I didn't know about Calibre. Thanks for the great tip. It's really nice to be able to see what the layout actually will be, and fix it if you like. Thanks again, Jay.Cece
Brenda wrote: "Linda wrote: "I am trying to publish an ebook version of my paperback. I have go t the cover uploaded fine but the manuscript doesn't look good. I have done what amazon say - have page breaks but t..."I just started using Kindle Create for my ebook and loved it. So, Brenda, I gather you used it for paperback? Was that for Createspace or something else? Thanks
Mod
Hi Jay,
What type of files does Calibre convert to mobi? And is it easy to use?
Mod
Hi Lisette,
I've heard about Kindle Create but never used it. Is it software based that needs to be downloaded?
Eldon wrote: "Lisette wrote: "Brenda wrote: "Linda wrote: "I am trying to publish an ebook version of my paperback. I have go t the cover uploaded fine but the manuscript doesn't look good. I have done what amaz..."Hi Eldon,
It does need to be downloaded. I'm including the link for you. I found it very user friendly and I was pleased with the final result. There's probably lots left for me to learn, but that'll come with time. I created my book in Word before opening it in Kindle Create. The only drawback is that you can't download a mobi file for review purposes.
https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/top...
Mod
Thanks Brenda!
