![]() Good typesetting also ensures your margins are not too big, not too small, but just right eliminates rivers of whitespace and removes ladders (when there are a number of hyphens in a row). How does typesetting achieve smooth reading? Through technical details, such as removing widows and orphans. ![]() For instance, you wouldn’t your war memoir to use a chapter header font of Comic Sans (although, apart from your Grade 4 book reports, when is this ever really an appropriate font?). Typesetting also involves choosing the relevant font for the content of a book. Without typesetting, the call experiences static and the author’s voice drops in and out. Think of it as a phone call between an author and a reader: with typesetting, the connection is clear and the message gets through. Therefore, the goal of typesetting is to create a seamless flow of words that allows a person to read without obstruction. It distracts the reader and pulls them away from the content by interrupting the pace, tone, and atmosphere. Likewise, a book with design flaws will contribute to a negative reading experience. Publishing a book with grammatical errors or typos is guaranteed to leave your audience with a bad impression. Whether or not they should DIY is a different question, and one with an answer that depends on the type of book you’re publishing. ![]() However, since typesetting can be a largely technical art, are self-publishing authors able to do it themselves? Thanks to the growing number of adept typesetting softwares out there, the answer is yes. They also, typically, want to keep the process as cost-friendly as possible because going the self-publishing route means going without the marketing, editorial, design, and other teams that come as part of the traditional publishing package. Indie authors want control throughout the writing and publishing process. As world-famous typographer Erik Spiekerman says, “Design works not because people understand or even appreciate it, but because it works subliminally.” Or at least, that’s what good interior design is meant to do. What’s more, it will do so without the reader being any wiser. The cover may grab a reader’s eye, but what the reader sees when they crack open the book is what will hold their attention. If people judge books by their covers, then typesetting is the difference between a brief or a lasting impression. Today’s guest post is by Arielle Contreras of Reedsy. Photo credit: iandolphin24 on / CC BY-NC-ND
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