Ten Steps To Prep Your Manuscript for Book Production Services

Welcome to a Painless Publishing Experience

You have dedicated a significant amount of time to working on your book. After completing final edits with your editor, you are now eager to submit your book to selfpublishing.com. 

Outlined below are ten essential steps to prepare your manuscript before submitting it to selfpublishing.com's Book Production Services. 

1. Ensure that you submit your work in a Google Document or Microsoft Word format. If you have used a different word processor, kindly convert the file to Microsoft Word yourself. This will allow you to review the document and identify any errors that may occur during the conversion process. We accept the following file types/formats: DOC, DOCX, RTF, ODT, and Pages. If you have saved your manuscript in a different format not listed here and are unable to convert it to Microsoft Word, please inform your coach before submitting it for design. Click here to use our Book Outline Template Google Doc. 
2. Submit your manuscript as one complete file. This helps to avoid any issues with merging multiple files. If you need help in merging your files, please click here for step-by-step instructions on how to merge multiple files.
3. Avoid using "hard returns" (the enter or return key) at the end of a line. Instead, start a new paragraph and let your program break the lines automatically. If you want to learn how to check for hard returns, please click here.
4. Don't manually type headers, page numbers, or other information on each page. Use your word processor's header/footer function or automatic page numbers. If you want to learn how to insert a header or footer properly, please click here. 
5. Layout changes will occur during the formatting process. Your formatted interior may look different than it did in your Microsoft Word or Google Doc. Your manuscript's margins will likely change when converting your manuscript document to a different book size. 
6. Conversion errors may occur when converting your file to a usable format. These errors can include shifting characters, broken paragraphs, or added section breaks.
7. Do not submit your book as an Adobe PDF file. Our designers can only add or remove pages from these files and cannot edit the content. Therefore, it's required to submit your manuscript as a Microsoft Word or Google Document file instead.
8. Ensure any images in your book are 300dpi (dots per inch) or higher. Please click here if you want to know how to check the image resolution.
9. Ensure your book includes all front and back matter. Most books include this front and back matter:
   
   1. Copyright Page
   2. Dedication Page
   3. Lead Magnet Page (optional)
   4. Table of Contents
   5. Acknowledgements Page
10. Do not submit your book for Book Production Services if you're going to make further changes to your manuscript. If you're going to be making changes (any change, including your title, subtitle, chapter names, content changes, edits, dedications, etc.) your manuscript is not ready for Book Production.