Indesign Book Publishing & Training/Tutorial
During my undergraduate studies at Miami University, I was the graphic designer for a literary magazine on campus. From 2014-2017, I would create promotional flyers and table tents calling for student submissions. Our group would discuss the writing and art submissions that came in and vote on whether a creative work made the cut. At the end of every semester, I would put together a 5.5" x 8.5" book (around 80-130 pages long), and order 1,000 copies to be distributed across campus.
This experience taught me how to put together long-form content using Adobe Indesign and iron out file specs for print-ready PDFs. The beginning was a little rough, but by the time I compiled my last book, I'd gotten faster and automated the process where I could!
As our magazine encouraged out-of-the-box submissions, I sometimes had to use my best judgement and treat the format of certain works so they stayed true to the author while still fitting inside the space allotted on the page. Below is a sample of a few writing pieces that stood out (some of which I had to tweak to fit).
While creating these magazines, I streamlined my process to the following:
Step 1: Gather all Materials & Clean Up Files For Import
- Open a spreadsheet containing alphabetized author names and titles for reference
- Compile all writing submissions into one continuous Word document, alphabetized
- Compile title and author names in another document
- Put all high-res image submissions into a folder numerically ordered by artist name/title, grouped into vertical and horizontal images, properly rotated to fit
Step 2: Create InDesign Document
- Double-check file settings: page size, orientation, margins/bleed/slug, etc.
- Choose font, create page styles and design elements
- Create Master Pages for writing and art submissions
- Create "Letter from the Editor" and "Table of Content" sections
Step 3: Import Content
- Import Word document - writing content - as main text flow (page break when necessary)
- Import Title and author names separately so Indesign would automatically style them
- Batch import artwork (vertical facing group, then horizontal facing group)
- Drag and drop Master Page styles as needed
- Manually adjust text/images where necessary so they fit the page (especially for poems)
- Create cover page
Step 4: Proofreading
- Double-check "Table of Content" has correct authors and page numbers
- Spell-check and pull up Pre-flight panel to identity any outstanding issues
- Export PDF draft and send to a few other members for review
- Make any changes necessary upon feedback
Step 5: Printing
- Prepare PDF for printing (export with correct margin settings and printer marks)
- Communicate with printer and review proof for errors
- Approve print job (spine design, paper weight/color sections, size, quantity, etc.)
- Complete Invoice
Step 6: Celebrate magazine at launch party!
It was always a rewarding feeling to hold the final product in my hands :)
Though I made a few more books, I was only able to find three of them on my computer. The print-ready PDFs (with crop and bleed marks) can be viewed using the following links:
Towards the end as I was about to graduate, I created an Indesign Tutorial/crash course for the next graphic designer, who had no InDesign experience. The tutorial is simply an introduction to the software in how it relates to magazine printing, and doesn't cover more advanced topics and automation.
