Perfect Bound Book Setup

Creating the Pages of the Book for Printing

Please note: Artwork supplied in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Publisher files, or similar desktop publishing programs is not considered press-ready and unsuitable for commercial printing.

We do not recommend designing commercial print files with Microsoft programs. While files created with these programs may print as expected, there may also be file issues that we cannot see or predict. Among other anomalies, text or images may occasionally shift or disappear from files created in Microsoft programs, even if they look correct when saved as a PDF.

If artwork or files are supplied in any of these formats, we will contact you to see if you'd like them recreated or converted to PDF. However, please note that additional fees will apply for conversion and/or creating press-ready files. A proposal will be provided verbally or in writing, and a PDF proof will be sent for your approval before printing.

Our team requires all logos and any other design elements or assets to be provided with your file for recreation purposes.

Layout Guidelines

Page Size

We can print custom-sized books, up to a maximum of 420mm tall and 297mm wide (A3 Portrait). Some of the most common book sizes requested are:

• A5 148mm x 210mm  (portrait or landscape)
• A4 210mm x 297mm (portrait or landscape)
• A3 297mm x 420mm (portrait only – for landscape we can wire bind which also looks great)
• 210mm x 210mm (square)

Bleed

It is important to account for bleed. You should allow 3mm for Content.pdf. For Cover.pdf, allow 5mm bleed for softcover books and 15mm bleed for hardcover books.

Note: Cover artwork for both softcover and hardcover books has special setup requirements to accommodate the spine, etc. Please review cover design requirements or, even easier, have our team set up your cover for you. This can be tricky if you don’t do it everyday.

Tip: If you are using InDesign, you can set Bleed under File/Document Setup (you may need to press the “More Options” button). You can find more specific instructions on setting up bleed in the InDesign Secrets.com tutorial on Adding Bleeds to a Document. 

Margins

Same Day Printing recommends using a 12mm margin on the outer edges (bottom, top, and outside edge) of your page. An 18mm margin should be used on the inside/binding edge of the page.

Tip: If you are using InDesign, you can set margins under the Layout/Margins menu. If you don’t know how to set different sized margins, you may want to make every margin 18mm.

It is important to note that every book is different, and your needs may vary from these general recommendations. As a rule of thumb, if you are not sure, consider printing a single book to see how it looks. This gives you an opportunity to get feedback from others. Alternatively, our qualified Creative Team also provide a review service – we can review your artwork and let you know of any core areas of concern with regard to margins, bleeds, or other elements you would like some outside advice on – speak with us for a quote.

Page Count

When filling out the details for a book printing quote and come across the query regarding page count, it's important to understand how this term is generally applied in the printing industry. The page count refers to the number of individual pages in your book, not the number of sheets of paper. Each side of a sheet that has content printed on it counts as one page. Therefore, a single sheet printed on both sides would be considered as two pages. This distinction ensures that your book's layout, pagination, and the estimate for printing are accurately aligned with your project's requirements.

Page Order

You may think you know the page order, but it's essential to be clear. You'll usually supply two PDF files: Cover.pdf and Content.pdf.

• Page 1 of your Content.pdf should be on the right-hand side (facing page) when you open the book.
• Hard Cover perfect bound books have an "endsheet." When you open the cover, there will be a single, blank white sheet followed by page 1 of Content.pdf.

• Soft Cover perfect bound books open directly to page 1 of Content.pdf on the facing page. You can also choose to print on the inside of the soft cover. 

With Same Day Printing you can choose between Hard Cover and Soft Cover perfect bound books. We have included images below to illustrate how this will look on the finished product.

Tip: If you want your book content to start on the left-hand page, you will need page 1 of Content.pdf to be blank.

Page Numbering

We highly recommend numbering your pages. This can be done in different ways, but always be  consistent in placing your numbers.

Tip: If placing numbers at the page edge, remember they will need to be on the outer edge, so odd pages (1, 3, 5) will have numbering on the right, and even pages (2, 4, 6) will have numbering on the left. See this Adobe video on setting up page numbers in InDesign.

Incorporating Blank Pages – and starting new sections on a facing page

One of the most important things to be aware of is that if you want blank pages in your document, you  must include them in Content.pdf.

This is often most important when considering where new chapters will begin. For instance if the last page of Chapter 1 ends on a facing page, and you don’t want chapter 2 to start on the back of the page (left hand side of the spread), you will need to insert a blank page – effectively shifting the first page of Chapter 2 to the next facing page and in case you are wondering! Remember, blank pages are included in your total page count.

Outputting for print

Output in Pages, not Spreads

A "spread" refers to viewing left and right pages connected as one. While you may have designed your perfect bound book in spread mode, it's important to output Content.pdf as individual pages.

We require Content.pdf to be a 1-up multi-page PDF. For a 30-page book, Content.pdf should be a 30-page PDF with bleeds and crop marks.