How to design a book (and an eBook)

Part 2: An insight into self-publishing a book

This is the second part of a series about how we self-published a book. This part is about how to design a print and eBook version of your book.

I have worked exclusively in digital my whole career. I had no clue how to design a book! But I relished the challenge. This article shares my design process and what I learned.

From planning and InDesign to prototype

Learning and inspiration

I started in the same place I start all design projects: getting inspired and drawing ideas in my sketchbook. I had the content, but I was new to book design and knew nothing about it. There are many little details in book design that I’d never noticed or appreciated, such as the positioning of page numbers, or the useful inclusion of running chapter titles. I spent time in book shops leafing through the books to see the different approaches designers had taken. Behance is a treasure trove of inspiration for book design. I soaked up as much as I could and sketched ideas before I progressed on to a digital design tool.

Design tools

I had no experience with print design software, but I knew Adobe InDesign was the industry-standard tool. To get up and running with InDesign, I started with a Skillshare class called…