Book Layout and Design
While your cover is the most important part of your book, the interior is the second. Here’s what you can expect at each price level.
Be sure to have your manuscript professionally edited before you start formatting. Most editors will ask you to remove all your typesetting before they begin. Here is how much you can expect to pay for editing.
Amazon’s KDP offers a decent selection of free templates in Microsoft Word. If you’re not very familiar with Word, it can take a while to get the hang of it, but when your budget is low, it’s better than trying to do your own formatting in Word, alone. Choose the book size you want and good luck. Read more about cheap or free book templates here.
$50–$60 A predesigned template that’s well thought out
I like this choice because you know exactly what you’re going to get, and you can buy it to use in Word, Apple Pages, Affinity Publisher, and Adobe InDesign. One template works for all sizes and eBooks. A lot of my clients have me drop the manuscript into this for them.
$180–$250 Interior book formatting designer
The interior layout is usually used for many clients.
Fiverr has plenty of designers, usually in other countries, who can do a good job. Your manuscript will probably be dropped into an existing template. Prices seem to run at about $1/page, and you get to choose your designer based on portfolios and reviews. Write book layout design into the search box.
$600–$1,000 Book interior layout design services
A custom-designed layout by a professional graphic designer
This is hands down my favorite choice because you get exactly what you want and no one else will have anything like it. Obviously, it’s pricey, but sometimes you’ll find a graphic designer starting out who needs a good portfolio, or someone willing to barter. This price is for a print book with a lot of headings, images, bullets, and footnotes. If you buy your print and e-book formats together, the price for creating each version goes down.
When it comes to your final decision, budget is what leads most authors to their final choice, but the right interior can make all the different when the reviews start coming in. Keep future sales income in mind!
If you’d like any further advice or suggestions, feel free to contact me.
