We all know that we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but what about its interior? There has been an uptick in Instagrammable book interiors of late, showcasing gorgeous spreads that are deserving of their own photoshoot. The first time I ever saw an entire page image as a chapter header, I was infatuated.
The rest of my book collection looked bland in comparison. Thumbing through pages with little images beneath the chapter number no longer inspired the same awe.
It became my life’s mission (for approximately two weeks) to figure out how this was achieved.
For those of you who don’t know, I do the bulk of the design work myself. This includes book covers, formatting, etc.
My first foray into “schnazzy” (as I so eloquently called it) formatting was actually done on Apple’s default program, Pages. You can see it debuted in my first printed novel Don’t Say “I Do”
Trust me, it was tedious. Time consuming. By the end of the few hour stints it took formatting, I was ready to shove my head through my computer screen so I didn’t have to look at it any longer.
There has to be an easier way became my mantra, with the ceaseless clicking, and scrolling.
And that, my friends, is how I happed upon Vellum.
What is Vellum?
Vellum is a formatting software that makes formatting your books (digital and otherwise) as easy as snapping your fingers. Or really, just a few point and clicks. It does come with a hefty price tag, having cannonballed my wallet for a whopping $249.99 USD. If you’re only in the market for its digital services, never fear! You can purchase Vellum at a cheaper price — $199.99.
Hurts the purse strings, doesn’t it?
Generally speaking, I err on the side of “save your money.” I dragged my feet on purchasing Vellum for a long while. Frankly, I’m annoyed at myself for waiting so long.
What’s the Big Deal?
The big deal? The big deal?
Vellum is, quite easily, the most intuitive, streamlined way I’ve found to custom format your books. If you’re not particularly picky with the layout and don’t mind having a “stock” format, Reedsy is a beautiful option that takes the guesswork out of it — but that’s a subject for next week’s blog!
What Do You Get?
The software includes several 8 pre-designed themes (for both print, and ebook) for you to choose from. Designs that, by the way, are completely customizable. You can change chapter headers, insert images, change the chapter header styles the list goes on and on.
The software itself is incredibly easy to use. It allows you to see your work as you go on various e-readers, as well as in print.
Like Reedsy, it gives you the ability to generate content pages such as your acknowledgments, a dedication page, and a testimonials page (and many more). All with just one click of the button!
I know it sounds like I’m reading a sales pitch, but I promise you. This isn’t a sponsored post. This is just me ranting and raving about a tool that has made my life infinitely easier.
What’s even more impressive is that it gives you the option to generate in several file types. Ebook, of course, but you can generate specific files for Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books, etc. It also gives you a variety of options for your print books.
What Are The Downsides?
As of right now, Vellum is only available for Apple. At the time of writing this, there are no clear plans to expand to Android/Windows . Never fear, though, there are options! Reedsy, for one! And we can’t forget Atticus!
Vellum only accepts .docx filetypes, which can prove to be a frustration if someone doesn’t do the bulk of their writing in Word.
Vellum doesn’t export to Mobi.
You are limited to the eight base templates to work off.
And then, of course, there is the price tag. It’s quite expensive, even if you just get the ebook version.
If you’d like a more thorough examination of Vellum, I’ll be happy to get into the nitty-gritty in a later post! Sound off in the comments below!
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Ivy Whitaker 