Illustrations. Ebooks often include photos, pictures, charts, and other illustrations. However it's important to realize that because illustrations contribute to a larger file size, some ebook publishers only accept text submissions.
There is more than one way to add illustrations to your ebook, but one method is to use a scanner and then convert the pictures to .gif or .jpg files. You can then format the photos any way you like using software such as Photoshop or the GIMP.
You can't really add illustrations directly into Word (you can, but it's a nuisance) so if you plan to create an ebook with a lot of pictures, it's a better idea to use a desktop publishing program. Always leave enough of a margin between the illustration and the text, and add captions when necessary.
Front matter. This includes the title page, a copyright page, acknowledgements, and a table of contents. To put together the copyright page, take a look at the copyright page of a print book and use the same formatting and information, using your own name and book title, of course. Leave out unnecessary items, such as the Library of Congress information. The only time you'll need an ISBN number is if you're going to sell electronic copies of the book on disk at a later date.
The table of contents is easy, Word automatically generates a table of contents when you use Headings formats for the chapter titles and subheads.
With an ebook it's better to label the first page as Page 1, even if it's the title page. Print books don't follow this format, but it works well for ebooks.
Back matter refers to all the information you opt to include at the end of the ebook, such as an index, bio, and contact information. Here you can also advertise other books you're selling.
Time for Acrobat
Now that you have everything formatted in Word, it's time to convert the file to PDF format. This is very easy to do. Simply use the Print command in Word and choose Save as File under the General pull-down menu. Select Acrobat PDF as the file type and choose the Destination as File. Click the Print button and that's it! Your file is now a PDF, and can be read in Adobe Acrobat. Or, you can visit the Adobe website and convert the ebook for free online.
If you own a full version of Acrobat, there are more options to play around with. For example, the full program allows you to hotlink all the URLs in the ebook underline links or make them a different color so that they'll stick out and your readers won't miss them. There's no point in creating hotlinks in the original Word document, as they will disappear during the conversion process anyway. Save this step for Adobe.
Convert Word To A Pdf File
Writing an e-book is not as difficult as it may sound - in fact, anyone can do it! Most people write Ebooks for marketing purposes, for example, to spread the news about their website or product promotion. Of course,Ebooks are also a great idea for any author who cannot get published the traditional way.
So how do you format an e-book yourself if you are not working with an online publisher that usually handles all the formatting issues for you? Luckily, it's very easy to prepare a manuscript for Ebook distribution. Most people use Microsoft Word and then convert the file to PDF format.
The Majority of e-books are sold in Adobe Acrobat's PDF file format, however, the designing of your Ebook will first be done in Word (some people may have to use Pagemaker or Quark for more complicated designs containing illustrations).
The good news is that you don't have to own a version of Adobe Acrobat to convert a Word file into a PDF format. At the same time, owning the Adobe Acrobat program will allow you to add neat features to your Ebook, such as hotlinked URLs, forms, and pages imported from other programs. This gives an ebook a higher quality appearance. Adobe costs about $200.
The Design
A good Ebook has to be well designed and well organized - you don't want it to come off looking cheap and unprofessional. Fortunately, it's very easy to use the features available in Word for proper formatting.
Page size. Ebook pages are usually between 5x7 and 6x9 (5.5x8.5 is the typical format). Set the custom page size in the Page Setup menu of Word.
Margins. Use the Format: Document command and set margins to at least three quarters of an inch on all sides. If you want to include a header or footer in your Ebook, set the top and bottom margins a bit larger. Turn off the Mirror Margins option as well.
Headers and footers. Your Ebook should have a running header at the top of the page for most people this is the book's title and the page number. Input this information flush left, flush right, or center. There are a few different combinations, so choose something you like. It's recommended to use a smaller font for the header/footer and italic or bold to make it stand out a bit. Make use of the Border command to create a line between the header and text this comes out looking quite nice.
Font. Stick to standard fonts such as Times, Times New Roman, Century New Century Schoolbook, or Palatino. Arial or Helvetica are a good choice for chapter headings and subheads. As far as size goes, use 11 points for the main text, and 12-14 for subheads. Test the fonts you're considering before making a final choice to find a winning combination some fonts look better on the screen than when they are printed.
Formatting is rather easy, so don't let it intimidate you. Play around with Word and your Ebook will turn out great.
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