Are you having technical difficulties with self-publishing?

The good news is that the hard part’s done—you’ve written the book! Whether you’re encountering trouble converting your files to the proper format or you’re more comfortable with pen and paper than keyboard, we can help.

Use the Talents You Have

Computers have tremendously changed life as we know it, especially in the publishing industry. They have made it incredibly easy to create and edit manuscripts, design and lay out texts and covers, and communicate with authors and printers—if you’re fluent in today’s technology. Not everyone is tech savvy, but that doesn’t mean anyone should lose out on publishing opportunities. In this blog post, we’ll discuss some simple solutions to common technical challenges that self-publishing authors face.

We Can Make It Digital

If you’ve got a handwritten manuscript that you need help turning into a digital file, we can help. Just send us your manuscript and we’ll convert it to a Microsoft Word document. There are plenty of ways for you to get your paper manuscript to us:

  • Send us a photocopy or the original by registered mail
  • Scan it to PDF, then send it as an e-mail attachment or share it with Dropbox

File Formats

Manuscript are best dealt with as Microsoft Word documents or in Rich Text Format (RTF). These are industry standards, and they are compatible with most common software. To make sure that different professionals can view and deal with your manuscript correctly, it’s important that it’s in one of these formats.

If you’re not sure what format your document is in, locate it in File Explorer, go to View, and click on Details. In the Type column you can see your document’s format.

Which Word Processor Should You Use?

The most popular word-processing program today is Microsoft Word. Microsoft regularly issues new versions, but don’t worry if yours is an old one—as far as we are concerned, they are all good.

Some people create their documents with Google Docs, a free online platform. If you choose to write your manuscript with this platform, it is important that you save it on your computer in one of the formats we mentioned earlier. To do that, open the document in Google Docs and click on File in the upper left-hand corner. Then place the cursor over Download As, and a menu will open up to the right. Click on Microsoft Word or Rich Text Format, and File Explorer will open up. Now you can save it like a regular Word document.

There is another popular, free word-processing program called OpenOffice, and it is similar to Microsoft Word and Google Docs. However, due to lack of compatibility with other programs and computers, we do not recommend using it to prepare your manuscript.

Track Changes and Comments

There are two special features that make Microsoft Word very useful in the editing process: Track Changes and Comments—both found in the Review tab.

One way editors communicate with authors is by inserting comments in the text. Without Microsoft Word, you will be unable to read these comments.

Track Changes is exactly what it sounds like—Word tracks all of the editorial changes that are made to the document. You can choose to see any changes made, including formatting changes, additions, deletions, and the identity of the person making the changes.

The ABCs of PDFs

PDF, or Portable Document Format, is a file format that captures the document as an image, not a collection of letters. Among other things, this protects the document from unwanted changes when it is opened on a different computer.

Although most computers have built-in programs that can read PDFs, I highly recommend you install Adobe Acrobat Reader DC. It is a free download from Adobe, one of the most prestigious computer software companies in the world (before downloading, I would recommend opting out of their offer to install McAfee Security Scan Plus). This program enables you, editors, and graphic designers to insert comments and corrections on top of the document. You won’t be able to change the actual document, but you will be able to mark it up for the person who controls the original file and can make these changes.

E-mail

E-mail is the lifeline of modern publishing, where publishing teams often work together in a virtual office but each member might reside in a different city or country. As a managing editor, I am constantly receiving and sending e-mails to authors, editors, graphic designers, and printers. Without e-mail, we simply wouldn’t be able to work together due to distance and time differences.

Can you publish today without e-mail access? It’s not easy, but it can be done. There are two possible solutions:

  • Ask a friend or neighbor to send and receive messages and attachments on your behalf
  • Before beginning the publishing process, have a thorough consultation with me, deciding on as many details as possible, and then trust us professionals to implement them

One word of advice about receiving attachments by e-mail. Please—before opening the attachment—download it to the appropriate folder on your computer, and only then proceed to open it. Otherwise, any changes you make to the document before you download it—corrections, comments, etc.—will only be temporary, and when you reopen or send the document, they will be gone. Many, many hours of hard work have been accidentally wasted due to this common mistake.

Sharing Files

Another technology you should be familiar with is file sharing, commonly used to send audio or video files. Due to the large size of these files, it’s possible that e-mail servers will not facilitate the transfer of attachments. There are two simple solutions:

If you have any questions about the technical side of publishing, please feel free to add your comments to this blog post, and we will do our best to explain.