How To Format an E-book

When it comes to converting a manuscript to an e-book format, less is definitely more. The way written material appears on a computer screen may not be the way it will appear on an e-reader. Using proper formatting techniques will generate a consistent look for your e-book, regardless of the device being used to read it.

Below is a summary on how to format your text so that it will convert well into a variety of e-book formats and later on, I talk about what gets taken out of your document during the conversion process. At the end of this article I also point you to a cool, free, tool you can use to convert your documents to multiple e-book formats.

Smashwords is a publishing and distribution platform for e-books. When an author uploads their manuscript to Smashwords (note, they only accept MS Word documents), it is processed by their Meatgrinder, which is an engine that verifies the document's formatting. If it is well done, the book is accepted for publication and distributed. If the document still contains critical issues, it is denied and the author must go back and correct the problem areas in the text.

Of all the e-book distribution platforms, I've found that Smashwords is the most scrupulous when it comes to formatting. For this reason, I recommend abiding by their standards. Following their guidelines means that your book will translate well into the following formats:

• HTML
• JavaScript
• .mobi files for Kindle
• .epub files for most other e-readers
• .pdf
• .rtf
• .lrf for Sony Reader
• .pdb for palm reading devices
• .txt plain text

Smashwords offers a free download of their Style Guide and I strongly recommend that everyone obtain a copy and read it. Much, if not all, of what you need to know is already in that book.

I can tell you from personal experience that the formatting process is extremely tedious when working on an existing manuscript, but it is well worth the effort. Cutting corners only leads to glitches later on.

On a more positive note, when you start a new project, setting up your document from the beginning with their guidelines yields little to no heartache at all.

As I mentioned above, often times the way a document appears on a computer screen is different from the way it will appear on an e-reader. A lot of elements get stripped from your document when it goes through the conversion to process.

Font

• Unless your font is embedded into the document, it will not get carried over during the conversion process. The default font on the e-book reading device is what will be used to display your text.
• The size of your font may not be consistent from one e-reader to the next, i.e. your title or chapter headings may turn out to be the same font size as the entire body of work.

Text

• After conversion, one possible glitch is that your sentences can overlap each other, especially when adjusting the font size on the e-reader. Other times, sentences can become inverted so that the second and third lines, for example, have switched places. I've experienced this personally when reading improperly formatted .pdf documents on my Nook.

Indents

• If you use the tab key to create indents, they will be stripped away during the conversion process and none of your indents will appear in the e-book.

Style

• If the use of italics, bold lettering, centering and other basic formatting features is not done correctly, none of those changes will carry over to your e-book after conversion.

Page Breaks

• Using the "Enter" key to create page breaks does not guarantee that the break will occur when you want it to. When viewed on an e-reading device, instead of seeing a page break, what the reader will see is a little extra space between sections of your text.
• Headings, used in MS Word or in an HTML editor, will generate page breaks on their own when converted to .epub format. If your document has page breaks and headings this may result in extra blank pages once the document has been converted. My suggestion is to use the "Title" style in MS Word to create your chapter/section headings and insert page breaks manually at the end of each chapter/section.

We all know the story about the ugly duckling. The little fellow turns into a beautiful swan at the end. I would suggest taking the same approach when it comes to formatting your existing material. Start with no formatting whatsoever then build your styles as you go.

For existing Manuscripts:

1. The best way to start your formatting is to "go nuclear," as it is mentioned in the Smashwords Style Guide.

Text editors strip everything out of your manuscript so the recommended course of action would be to copy all of your material to a program like Notepad (or a similar application), then bringing it back into a blank MS Word document that has been prepped according to the Smashwords Style Guide.

What to do:

a. Within your existing manuscript press the CTRL key and the A key, together, to highlight all of your text.

b. While it is highlighted press the CTRL key and the C key, together, to copy the material.

c. Open a new file in Notepad.

d. While the cursor is blinking, in Notepad, press the CTRL key and the V key, together, to paste your manuscript into that new document. Your material should look pretty ugly at this stage. You will lose all of the formatting you have done.

2. Next, open a blank MS Word document and prep it using the guidelines in the Smashwords Style Guide.

3. Now, highlight your "ugly" text in Notepad, using Ctrl-A, then copy it using Ctrl-C and paste it in your blank MS Word document, using Ctrl-V.

4. Start cleaning it up.

a. This is the part where you will have to go through your document and apply the styles and the "look" you are going for. The Style Guide explains in detail the correct way to go about achieving the results you want.

b. It is tedious work, but still, you should do it. As I mentioned before, cutting corners will only result in glitches later on.

Note! If you are starting a new manuscript, you can immediately begin working in an MS Word document that has been prepared according to the Smashwords Style Guide.

In the end, you should have a document that is flexible and easily converted to multiple e-book formats.

Calibre is a free program that allows you to convert your well-formatted documents into other file types for e-readers. This is a wonderful tool if you plan to distribute an e-book yourself and would like to carry multiple formats.

It does not work with MS Word documents, so when your manuscript is finished and formatted, in MS Word go to "save as" and select "Web Page (*htm, *html)" from the file menu. This will create a web page version of your manuscript and that file can be used in Calibre for conversion.

DRM stands for Digital Rights Management. DRM is what prohibits your material from being shared and passed around. Calibre does not provide DRM for the file it creates and neither does Smashwords.com, so keep that in mind when considering your distribution platforms. Other distributors like Amazon, Barnes and Noble or Lulu.com (to name a few) do protect the material you publish through them.

I wish you all happy formatting, and remember to "vote up" this article if it has helped you in any way. Don't forget to share it with others.