Set-up Work

This is the step in the process where we take your material and turn it into an appropriately formatted, printer-ready document. This is where Coverstory books adds the greatest value: we have templates ready to use, standard internal layouts defined, and are able to avoid the most common – and expensive! – pitfalls that first-time self-publishers often make.

As we have said elsewhere, having already agreed a fee with you, it is in our interest to get this right!

In terms of the cover, we will already have had dialogue with you as to how your cover might look. Generally it will:

  • have either a uniform gloss or matt finish (not a mix)
  • contain the title and your name on the front cover
  • the front cover will be flat with no raised or bevelled text
  • contain the title, your name and the Coverstory books logo on the spine
  • on the back cover there will be a bar code, a small amount of standard Coverstory books boilerplate, plus a description of the book on which we can collaborate with you (if you have any reviews / comments by others, we can consider adding these)
  • a small photograph of you as author can be added to the back cover if there is room

In terms of cover design, we can utilise photographs or images if they are a) not copyrighted elsewhere, and b) of the appropriate size and quality – typically high-quality .jpeg files. It would also be possible to utilise some kind of geometric pattern or design.

Essentially anything that can be rendered in a good quality .jpeg file.

Once we have drafted your cover, we will send that to you for approval. At this stage, cover design can be an iterative process; we can amend the draft multiple times before we send it off to the printer.

With the cover approved, we then submit it and the internal material to the printer for initial assembly. This is the point at which the funds are committed for the actual compilation of the book. Once we have notification that the book is ready (usually just a few days), we will either a) review the final product through an electronic preview of the book, and/or b) order a single copy for hands-on review. Obviously, we can involve you in this process.

Any changes requested after this point will incur cost. As we have said elsewhere, if this is initiated by Coverstory books, we will fund those changes. If by the author, then we would expect the author to fund them.

Hey presto! You are a published author!