21/07/2026
📚 Self-Publishing & Book Artwork Guidelines
To ensure your book prints, binds, and trimmed cleanly, your file must be set up specifically for book production. Standard flyer settings will not work.
1. Page Count Rules
Multiples of 4: Books are printed on large sheets folded into sections (signatures). Your total page count must be divisible by 4 (e.g., 32, 48, 64, 120 pages).
Include Blank Pages: If your story ends on page 41, add blank pages at the end to bring the total to 44.
2. Margins & The Gutter (Crucial!)
When a book is bound, space in the middle (the spine/gutter) disappears into the binding.
Outside Margins: Keep text at least 0.5 in (12.7 mm) away from the top, bottom, and outside edges.
Inside Margin (Gutter): Add extra space on the inside edge where the book binds.
Up to 100 pages: 0.625 in (15.8 mm) inside margin
100+ pages: 0.75 in to 0.875 in (19–22 mm) inside margin
If text is placed too close to the inside, readers will have to force the book flat to read it.
3. Bleed & Safety Zones
0.125 in (3 mm) Bleed: Required on all outer edges if background colors or pictures run to the edge of the page.
Safety Area: Keep all critical text and icons at least 0.25 in (6.3 mm) away from the final trim line.
4. File Setup & Export Format
Single Pages, Not Spreads: Export your interior file as individual single pages in sequential order (Page 1, Page 2, Page 3...). Do not send 2-page reader spreads or side-by-side pages.
Cover as a Separate File: Send the front cover, spine, and back cover as one combined flat PDF layout (or ask us for a spine width calculation template before designing).
Format: Export as PDF/X-1a or PDF Print (300 DPI) with all fonts embedded or converted to outlines.
⚠️ Designing in Canva?
Canva does not natively support inside/outside gutter margins or automatic page imposing for book binding. If you are creating a book in Canva, you must manually adjust margins for odd (right) and even (left) pages, or export as single pages to adjust in a dedicated layout tool like Adobe InDesign.
