If you have a Word document that you'd like to import into BookSmart, you can create a Trade- or Pocket-sized book. We can only import .doc files, so please save your .docx file in .doc format before attempting to import.
Optimize your file in Word before import
Do you have a large .doc file with multiple chapters/sections that's laid-out in a specific way? We recommend optimizing your file in Word before importing it into BookSmart. Please format your document according to these settings.
1. Adjust page size
Adjust your .doc page size: 5" x 8" for Pocket-size books and 6" x 9" for Trade-size books.
2. Adjust page margins
Adjust your .doc page margins to match the values below. If your text program warns you that margins are set outside printable areas, please click Ignore.
- Top = 0.1”
- Bottom=0.9”
- Left=0.7” Right=0.7”
- Gutter=0”
3. Remove paragraph spacing and replace it with explicit carriage returns
- Select all the text in your document with Ctrl+A / Command+A.
- Go to the Format > Paragraph menu option.
- At the bottom of the Paragraph dialog that is displayed, you'll see Spacing Before and Spacing After fields; set the value in both of these fields to “0 pt”.
- Click OK.This will remove all the space between your paragraphs and make your document one vast block of text, which isn’t pretty, so follow the remaining steps to add explicit carriage returns to your text.
- Go to the Edit > Replace menu option.
- In the Find What field enter this special paragraph mark: ^p
- In the Replace With field enter TWO paragraph marks: ^p^p
- If you want double-spacing between your paragraphs "Replace With" should have THREE paragraph marks: ^p^p^p (and so on).
- Save your changes. Use Save As if you wish to keep the original file as is.
You can now import your Word document into BookSmart using the text importer and your paragraphs will remain nicely spaced.
4. Remove any indentations or tabs
These will be omitted in the import, so you should view your document without those indentations.
5. Remove tables
Do you have tables inside your .doc? The .doc importer will skip over tables, because BookSmart cannot support them. If you want the table's content to appear in your book, convert the table to text, and it will print (but not in a table format). If you choose to omit the content of the table completely, it is best to remove the table from your .doc file before importing it into BookSmart. This will help preserve the formatting of the surrounding paragraphs.
6. Remove any images
The importer will also skip images, and it's best to remove them from your .doc file prior to import for optimum formatting.
7. Final gut check
Check the number of pages, font size, etc. in your .doc and make sure what you see is approximately how you want your book to look. Please note that content on a given page in your document might not end up on the same exact page number in BookSmart.
8. Save multiple chapters as separate .doc files
If you have a Word document with multiple chapters or sections, save each chapter as a separate .doc file to import individually. To avoid having to separately reformat each .doc, simply take the .doc you just formatted in the steps above and Save As a different file name to create a working backup document.
Your .doc files are now ready to import into BookSmart!