Cheap Book Printing: Check Your Layout
Most people don’t think of the layout design of their book as an area that can impact the printing cost, but it can have an effect.
A 32-page signature is standard among most offset printing presses. Printers can easily print full signatures, half signatures, and even quarter signatures. So if the press you are using has 32-page signatures, you’ll want to have your page count divisible by 8 (a quarter signature). Anything other than that will just end up costing you more money as it will result in wasted paper.
So what are some of the tricks to adjust the number of pages? First of all, see if you can adjust your margins slightly. Slight changes probably are not noticeable to most readers, but the price difference will definitely be noticeable to you.
A minor increase or decrease in the leading (line spacing) can have a major effect on the page count. I’ve had books where I’ve had to drop a couple pages to save cost, and just adjusting the leading by a small amount - maybe only 0.2 pt. - can get me those two pages.
However, before spending too much time worrying about your page count, talk to your printer. It may be that the price difference isn’t worth the hassle of adjusting your layout (although it probably is). Also, if you’re using a digital press, you don’t need to worry about page counts since they don’t use signatures. Other presses may use unusual signature breaks as well.
Be sure, too, that you are printing at a standard trim size. Some standard sizes include 5.5 x 8.5″, 6 x 9″, and 8.5 x 11″. Deviate too much from a standard size and you will generate paper waste on the press. That’s paper the printer has to just throw away, but you still pay for it.
So be sure to always ask your printer (before you finish the design and layout) if there is a more economical print size than what you have in mind. It might save you more money than you would expect!
August 12th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
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