A Good Book Is Not Just A Good Book
A tiny introduction to beautiful layout and typesetting
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A good book is not just a good book.
A good book becomes a great book when it accommodates the reader.
You may think your job is done with the writing, and that’s all you need. It’s true — as a writer, that should be your job.
But in self-publishing, you need more than good writing.
Sure, you could just “get the job done”. That’s what many writers do.
They think putting text on a page is all they need to do. Just place it there, black and white, words on paper, that’s all we need. Typesetting? Never heard of it.
A good book, however, shows up in a way that lets the reader… read.
It has generous margins to put your thumbs on without covering half the text.
It uses a beautiful typeface — definitely serifs, but most definitely with the subtle, sturdy kind that actually hook one letter up to the next.
A line-height that keeps your eyes on the words, not in the spaces between them.
The headings are clear and beautiful and announce the arrival of a new chapter in style, without taking up precious processing power in the reader’s brain by appearing too lavish and attention-grabbing.
It’s a book, for goodness sake. The reader has arrived.
Now let her breathe. Let her enjoy your words.
This article was originally published on July 2, 2020 as an email to my mailing list subscribers.
