Fine-tuning that print file takes forever, but the aim is to produce something that looks professional, rather than something we simply rushed into print. So here goes:

Page numbers:

1. Set the page numbers to start at 1 where the journal itself begins, not on the title page. This is done in the headers-and-footers-and-add-page-numbers part of Word.
2. Set the page numbers on first pages to be different from others. That way we avoid having a page number on the title page.
3. Add page numbers in Roman numerals to the first section of the journal – authors, artists, disclaimers, contents etc.
4. Add page numbers in regular numbers to the rest.

Headers and Footers:

1. Unlink headers across sections.
2. No headers in the first section – contents etc.
3. Put the section title on the right hand header, book title on the left hand header in each section.
4. No headers on first pages of sections.

Recolor, reposition and resize the images:

1. We can’t afford color printing, so replace every image with a black-and-white version. Photoshop helps you convert them, but some need further manipulation (e.g. so a rainbow doesn’t disappear).
2. Images that fill the page should be sized to fit the page.
3. Other images should be shrunk. Set them so the text flows in a square around them (right click on the image and look for something that sounds right).
4. Move the images to appropriate places in the text but…
5. Note, you’ll have to move the descriptions of the images as well.
6. Small images get “captions” which are placed in text boxes. Make sure you move the text box whenever you move the picture.
7. For large images, move the original caption with the image.
8. Choose a good size and style for captions – probably a smaller font, probably centered (in the box or on the page).

Everything starts on a new page:

1. Put a page-break before each entry.
2. Sections should start on right hand pages. Add extra page breaks if needed, but note, you might take them out when you complete the next step.
3. Sections look better with their titles lower down the page, so change the format of section headers to include more space “above.”
4. Resize the images heading each section so they fit nicely and make sure the text below the image fits too.

White-space is your enemy:

1. If a poem almost fits on a page, alter the line spacing to make it fit properly.
2. If an entry almost ends on a page, see if you can change the size of an image to make it fit.
3. If an entry leaves just a few lines on the next page, see if you can change the size of an image to make it spread further down the page.
4. Or move an image (or ask for an extra one) to fill some of the empty space.
5. If a story break occurs at the top of a page, try to move it! All pages should start with text at the same level.
6. If the white-space looks like a snake growing through a paragraph, use shift enter to move occasional words onto the next line and change the spacing. Or move or resize a picture.

Short lines are your enemy:

1. If a paragraph ends with a single short word, the white-space around the next paragraph looks odd. Use shift enter to move a word down from the line above.
2. If necessary, use shift enter in the previous line to make the word spacing look good.
3. Etc.
4. If a page starts with a one-line paragraph, it looks odd. Use control enter on the previous page to move text to the next page.

Checking those pages:

1. Make sure every section starts on a right hand page.
2. Ask for extra pictures to fill pages which have too much empty space. And give up on or re-assign pictures that you can’t fit in.
3. Redo the page numbers in the contents list – it’s nice if it includes correct page numbers, and it’s so easy to get it wrong.

Check that text:

1. Look for “widows and orphans” and other short, awkward lines.
2. Re-read everything. If you find less than six errors, you’re probably ready to go (and there are probably still sixteen waiting to be found) But still…
3. Confirm that “photo” is written the same way everywhere.
4. Confirm that numbers one to ten are written the same way.
5. Confirm that times, am and pm, are written the same way.
6. Any word you’re unsure of, confirm it’s the same everywhere.
7. Confirm captions for images all have the same format.
8. Take a deep deep breath…Then

Check those edits again:

1. You should have files with everyone’s edits in them. Check that each one has been included or at least addressed.
2. You should also have the file you gave the authors for approval. Compare your new file with this one (Word has a compare option under the review tab). There will be tons of formatting changes. Your job is to search through them for the word changes and make sure they’re all correct, or else fix them (and compare again, in case you fixed them wrong).

Then save as pdf and upload to Createspace.