Book Typesetting

What is book typesetting and why is it so important?

When you open up a book, you expect the pages to look a certain way, right? Well it turns out that the interior layout of a book is key in creating the ultimate reading experience. In the publishing world, this is called typesetting: the process of setting text onto a page. 

It involves making vital decisions on various elements on the page such as the following:

• trim size
• book block
• margins
• alignment 
• widow and orphan lines
• lines following a subhead 
• line spacing 
• paragraph spacing
• font type and size
• proper dashes
• word stacks
• quotation marks
• justification
• headers and footers
• illustrations

Successful typesetting is invisible. In other words, the text must be arranged in a professional and pleasing way so as to not distract the reader. Every typesetting factor is part of a subtle and complex system that communicates to the reader on a subconscious level, and it’s easy to get it wrong. Although is may seem simple, typesetting is one of the hardest processes, separating amateur books from professional books. 

Wouldn’t it be a pity to spend so much time and energy writing a book, only to lose readers because of poor typesetting?

Investing in proper typesetting is paramount. If you need help or would like to learn more, please reach out!