Welcome

Need ebook formatting? Contact Meg at binarybindery@gmail.com at any time with questions, project queries and quote requests.

Source Files

Please know that Binary Bindery can turn just about anything into an e-book. Authors can turn documents over in any condition, and Bindary Bindery will sort them out.

If ever in doubt, ask questions! We're more than happy to answer any question and create solutions. Contact Meg:

We can quote from basically any file type, but we can accept only the following filetypes as source files:
  • .doc
  • .docx
  • .rtf
  • .txt
  • .odf
We cannot accept the following filetypes as source files:
  • .html
  • .pdf
  • .xml
Source files should contain:
  • All desired content, including front- and back-matter
  • All content in the desired order
Source files don't need:
  • Table of contents
If we're re-booting existing e-books, Binary Bindery requires the original .doc, .docx, .rtf or .odf source file, not the EPUB or MOBI. Other producers do weird things to files that can be very hard or impossible to undo. We prefer to start over from scratch.


Prepping A Source File


IF YOU HAVE USED Track Changes in Microsoft Word™, make sure all changes are accepted or otherwise resolved. Unresolved changes can leave mistakes in your source file that will make their way into your ebook.

IF YOU HAVE USED hyphenation in Microsoft Word™, turn it off. When your .doc or .docx travels from your machine to mine, sometimes it becomes impossible for me to shut hyphenation off. This will leave hyphens in inappropriate places in your ebook, and no one wants that, especially the reader.

Authors should not feel obligated to take care of the issues listed below, but authors often ask what they can do to speed up the process and ensure a better EPUB/MOBI result.
Here's a list of common issues that can slow down production with a lot of fixing or back-and-forth between author and producer:
  • No page-breaks in the source file: adding them (or leaving them in) shows us exactly where you want those page breaks.
  • Text chapter headers: For EPUB/MOBI, chapter headers should best be kept short and sweet. Whenever possible, please stick to plain old "Chapter 1" format, and bump the text-header onto a subheader line. Longer explanation.
  • Text chapter numbers: For EPUB/MOBI—and their small-screen audience—it's best to stick to numeral chapter numbers like "Chapter 1" instead of Chapter One. On small screens, Chapter Eleventy-Billion might wrap, creating an ugly mess.
  • Ellipses, en- and em-dashes are notorious for causing rendering errors. Take control of these symbols for best results. Read more here.
  • Blank lines: Blank lines are the bane of digital publishing. Though used regularly as a standard print convention (where placement on the page can be controlled), blank lines as a formatting signal (marking things like time passage or point-of-view swap) ought to be outlawed.
    • Due to screen resolution, screen size and end-user settings, it's anyone's guess where a blank line will render on a user's screen. When blank lines render on the very top or very bottom of the screen—which is very likely on small screens—readers don't notice them, which can result in confusion. Which kicks them off the page, which invites them to put the e-reader down. And anything that might cause a reader to put a book down is considered a cardinal editorial sin in Binary Bindery land.
    • For Binary Bindery productions, authors who refuse to use fleurons (scene-break characters) in place of blank lines might be asked to submit a vial of their first-born's blood (kidding) as well as an email expressly requesting the omission (not kidding).
    • Standard fleurons look like * * * or # # #.
    • Binary Bindery has more elaborate fleurons available upon request, though bear in mind these can add considerable weight to file size.
  • Embedded links: Not every e-reader device is web-enabled. Binary Bindery uses activated hyperlinks instead. Links will still be clickable for web-enabled readers, but an activated hyperlink is always visible to readers who may have to type a web address into a different web-enabled device. Consider using something like http://tinyurl.com to keep links short, easy and less annoying to type.
  • Underline font: Reserve underline font for hyperlinks only. Readers might mistake underlined font for a hyperlink, leading to confusion a/o disappointment.
  • Bold font: Depending on a reader's settings, bold font can be almost impossible to differentiate from regular font. Please don't rely on bold font for emphasis or anything else. (At small font sizes, bold font can appear identical to regular font.)
Remember: If ever in doubt, ask questions! We're more than happy to answer any question and create solutions. Contact Meg:

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