Is your manuscript ready for typesetting?

Is your manuscript ready for typesetting, or is there still writing to do? I’d check the chapters and any unanswered questions before paying for the layout. Choose the version you want to use, write down what still needs settling and agree how you’ll pass on corrections. That gives the designer something they can work with.

Typesetting is the work of arranging your manuscript into book pages. Seeing those pages can help you notice things you missed in a Word document. But if two chapters are saying different things, or a quotation still needs checking, the layout won’t sort that out for you. You’ll need to return to the writing.

In brief: check that the chapters belong together, settle the important source questions and choose one manuscript to send. Ask to see a few sample pages before approving the design for the whole book.

01What might still change in your manuscript?

Look at the chapter list and remind yourself who the book is for. Can you explain why each chapter belongs there? Is there one you still expect to move, cut or substantially rewrite? If so, tell the designer. Moving a chapter after the pages are laid out can mean doing some of that work again.

With a book drawn from sermons, I’d also look for places where you keep starting the same explanation. You may have needed to do that on different Sundays. Someone reading the chapters together needs to see how the teaching develops.

The guide to what happens after a first draft looks at that earlier work. Here, I’m concerned with what you pass on when the manuscript is ready to become designed pages.

02What still needs a decision?

Some changes are straightforward: a name is misspelt, so you correct it. Others need more thought. You might be unsure whether to include a personal story, or whether you’ve explained a biblical claim carefully enough. Write those questions down separately so they don’t get buried among the small corrections.

For each question, note the chapter or passage, what needs deciding and who needs to look at it. Keep anything that would stop you publishing the book visible until it’s settled. It’s easy to overlook an unanswered question once the pages start looking finished.

For example, imagine a chapter that includes a story from a private pastoral conversation. Before using it, the author needs to consider what they have permission to share and whether the person could still be recognised. Changing a name may not be enough. The story may need further permission or may need to be left out. This is an illustrative example; seek appropriate advice if a sensitive story raises questions you can’t resolve.

03A handover you can actually use

Create one short page beside the manuscript. It should answer the following questions.

Handover question	What to supply
Which text is going into design?	One named, dated manuscript and its approval status
What is still unresolved?	The specific chapter, passage or permission decision; who will resolve it
What needs special treatment?	Heading levels, quotations, reflection sections, tables and actual image files
Where do corrections go?	One agreed log with page, location, exact change and completion status
What will you approve first?	A representative sample, including an ordinary spread and a demanding page

There’s an example in the Temple People working proof that’s worth discussing at this stage. On printed page 72, a paragraph about holiness appears in the body and again as a larger quotation. That might be exactly the emphasis I want. But I still need to read it and decide whether it helps. If your manuscript contains callouts, exercises or repeated quotations, explain what you intend them to do before someone makes the layout decisions.

Those are working pages I’m still considering. You can make the same check with your own illustrations or reflection sections: what belongs in the ordinary text, and what needs different treatment?

04Give the designer a usable manuscript

Make it easy to tell a chapter title from a section heading, and a quotation from your explanation. If you’ve used spaces and repeated line breaks to make a Word document look like a book, ask the designer what they need instead. They need to know what each part is, rather than copy a layout you’ve improvised.

Include the front and back matter you have actually approved. If the acknowledgements or process statement are unfinished, identify them as outstanding rather than leaving a placeholder that could accidentally enter the print file. Keep a separate list of any images, their sources and the permission status relevant to their use.

Ask the designer what file format and organisation they need. A clear handover is more useful than guessing their workflow.

05Keep track of which file you’re using

Save a dated production copy. Record its filename and the person who approved it. Keep working drafts, but make it difficult to mistake them for the production source.

Once layout begins, agree where you’ll send corrections. If you change your own document but don’t tell the designer, you can end up with two versions that both seem final. Keep a list of changes and check that each one has reached the latest proof.

Keep a note of what you checked and which version you checked it in. Otherwise, it becomes difficult to remember whether a correction reached the latest file or still exists only in your notes.

06Review a sample before the whole interior

Ask to see an ordinary page, a chapter opening and a page containing your most demanding material, such as a long quotation or several subheadings. Read the sample at approximately its intended size. A layout that looks spacious on a large screen may feel very different on paper.

Read the sample as you hope someone will read the book. Is it comfortable? Can you follow the quotations and headings? Once the style works, you’ll still need to check the complete interior.

07Questions before the handover

Must every word be permanently fixed? No. Proofing can reveal necessary corrections. The aim is to resolve predictable substantive changes before they disturb the designed book.

Can I begin design while the last chapter is being revised? You can discuss a design direction, but name the risk clearly. Sample design and approval of a complete production manuscript are different decisions.

Does a system review replace an editor? A system can identify issues for consideration. It does not establish that independent human editing or theological review has occurred.

If you’re unsure whether your manuscript is ready for this stage, email me and tell me what you have. We can look at what still needs work before you spend money on design.

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