Formatting with Vellum!
Happy Christmastime/Holiday season everyone! I felt like doing a little blogging before New Year to hopefully set myself up with a good habit before all the other good habits jump on my back, demanding attention… so here you go!
I want to preface this blog post with this: Formatting is a HUGE part of the book when you’re self publishing (I am planning on fixing a lot of my own books in 2023), and if you can afford to you will always be thankful to have a professional formatter working on your book!
That aside, I recently decided to purchase Vellum, which is formatting software that allows you to set up your own books for print, kindle, or other e-readers.
There are some MAJOR benefits of buying this software so I figured I’d write a little review, and also include some downsides as well because what’s a review without an honest opinion.
*please note: I am NOT being paid to write a review. They literally don’t know I’m alive!
Right… well, let’s get started on the GOOD:
Easy navigation - As soon as you start a new project it is incredibly easy to figure out what to do. You can edit text in the project, add and remove pages and spacing, and add in title pages, content pages, and other pre-created options you might want in your book.
Options for headers, and styles - You can pick different header choices and styles in their pre-made styles section. There, you have a few variables available to make the book as pretty as you want. There are even options for images on your chapter pages, which I think is really cute, and I love seeing other people’s books with these!
Formatting for different end products - When you come to finalising your end product you can pick what trim sizes you want for paperback, and what kind of e-reader you want to cater for. You can select either one, or as many as you need and the files will automatically generate, ready for uploading to wherever you publish.
Good value for money - I paid just over £200 for the MAC OS version, which I think is great value for ME. I know that is costly for some, and I get it; there are probably cheaper options out there, but for how often I’ll be using this it was a bargain!
Takes the stress out of creating basic books - Before I got this I was trying to format in Word. I had no other options. I have paid for professional formatting in the past and will pay again in the future, but for my novellas it is way more cost effective using Vellum. No more trying to figure out alternate page numbers and right/left trim sizes in Word!
And the NEGATIVE:
Not a lot of options on fonts and headers - I know I said there were good options for the fonts and headers; there are, don’t get me wrong. But there isn’t enough there for MY liking. I wish there were more print-friendly fonts available, purely from someone who likes OPTIONS!
It doesn’t feel like you’re creating a BESPOKE product - Despite being able to bespoke your styles a little… you can’t add font packages or vary much from the pre-created styles. It’s fine if you’re happy with your book potentially looking like someone else’s book, but I love adding personal elements that are SPECIFIC to my story/design, which is where using a real formatter is a much better option!
Overall, I LOVE using it because I create quite a lot of shorter books which I don’t want to spend a lot of money formatting but I don’t know if I’d use it for a full length novel which would include more design features that are not available on Vellum. But, honestly, if you’re happy to keep your processes simple you won’t go wrong with this software; (another note to add - I do not know anything about any other formatting software so I don’t know how it compares).
I want to reiterate that a real person formatting your books will always be the most IDEAL option, they know how to add the extra value that some software simply can’t do.
And there you have it, a short and probably not comprehensive review! Let me know if you enjoy this kind of thing; I would actually enjoy passing judgement on a few other writer-based things in the future!
- Sam
