- Start by examining a previously printed sample for specifications and
measurements, or revise and redesign to meet your current needs. Ask yourself:
a. If the type is a readable size and style
b. If the booklet format is easy to read and follow
c. If the size of the book is suited to its current uses
- Choose a common, practical, economical size:
a. 5½" x 8½" page size
b. 8½" x 11" page size
c. 8½" x 4" page size (this fits in a No. 10 business envelope for mailing)
- Design pages to have at least 2-pica margins (1/3 inch), and at least ½"
to 1" margins for larger pages.
- If setting your own type using desktop publishing, completely set all text into
pages with the type measurements and page margins chosen. Watch page breaks so that no
headlines appear at the bottoms of any pages.
- Make a dummy by counting the number of pages of text, including blank pages
after title pages, contents, sections, etc. Take the total number and divide by 4. If
there is any remainder, add blank pages to the total number of pages (and to the end of
your book) so that your number is evenly divisible by 4. This number equals the number of
sheets of paper in the text of the finished book.
- Use small sheets of paper to make an actual dummy, folding them as you would to
create the printed book, adding a sheet for the cover, and then numbering and labeling
each page as it will appear in the printed book, inclding blanks. Taken apart, these
sheets will show the arrangement of the pages necessary to print the book. Note the
example below for a 12-page book with a colored cover.
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