#how to typeset

[getfuckedblr]

here’s my guide to making typesets! I use Word to make my typesets, Canva for designs, and Adobe to insert the majority of my designs.

this is a ton of info and I tried to make it as readable as possible, but plz let me know if u need any clarification!

Word: always use the app, the online program doesn't have all of the options needed

paper size: US Letter Borderless

then i flip it landscape, do custom borders, and select book fold. I do 1 inch on top and bottom, .75 in inside, and .5 in outside. i leave the gutter option alone and leave it set to 0. You can choose how large you want your signatures to be (sheets in booklet option on the margins page): I normally do 40 page signatures, but if it's a smaller text you'll want to go smaller for stability. after that, you should have a half page to start your typeset!

Inserting your fic:

the next thing you’ll do is insert your fic; on ao3 click entire story, CTRL A to select all, CTRL C to copy it all. Paste it into your document. word automatically detects the headings, and you should be able to see all your chapters on the left side bar (if you can’t see it, click the page numbers on the bottom left to open the tab).

Formatting:

you can do the next few steps in any order, but we’re going to fix the formatting now. you’ll want to CTRL A everything, pick a font and a font size. I normally use georgia and size 10, going smaller or larger depending on the file size.

To have an indent on every line: CTRL A your work to select all, right click the “normal” style, on the home tab. go to the bottom left, open the drop-down menu, and select “paragraph”. next to special, hit first line. i like to do .3, you can do whatever you want. i then like to make sure the space after is set to 0, the line spacing to single, and then hit save. it should automatically adjust your lines to start at whatever indent you picked.

To fix the spacing: go into the layout tab, and go to spacing. There'll be a before and after option: write in 0, then click enter for both of them. Word is a little bit bitchy so you have to force it do things sometimes. after this you can choose if you want single spacing, or 1.5, or whatever you want.

*sometimes, the way the fic was formatted when posted to ao3 means that even after setting the line spacing to zero, there will still be a space in between each line. this is where you have to troubleshoot. you can either go line by line to delete the excess space (yes, for real. and yes, it's just as awful as it sounds) or, sometimes, not every-time but sometimes, you can highlight the chapter text, go into the home tab on top, click the A with the purple eraser to erase all formatting, and then do all the beginning steps again, and it will get rid of the extra space.*

Now that your format is mostly fixed, delete the archive of our own beta, and anything else you don't want. I normally delete everything up to the title of the work, and leave that for creating my copyright page. Remember to do the same for the end of the work!

Page Breaks and Section Breaks:

the next part is the most crucial. it's how we format both the chapters, but also how we format the headings and footer. this was the part that took me the longest to figure out: it's the page breaks and section breaks. page breaks mark the place where one page ends, and another begins. section breaks will create a new section in your document, so you can break the beginning few pages from the rest of your textblock. This will allow you to insert page numbers that start on page one, instead of at the first page of the document.

I like to go the end of the description, and then click on the first chapter. then I'll add a section break. you can find this in the layout tab, click breaks, and then click section break. so now our section 2 starts with chapter one. After this, add a blank page after the description and before your new section, and then click on the first chapter. (adding a blank page allows for smoother formatting later with headers and footers)

I then go to each chapter, delete the authors notes at the start and end of each chapter, and add a page break at the start of each chapter. i like to use the heading tab on the left to click each chapter, so I know I'm actually starting the new page right where I need to, and other formatting won't delete the page break.

when I create a compilation fic, where I have muitlple fics in one typeset, I use section breaks at the starts of each new fic. this will allow the page numbers to continue, but I can then edit each sectio to change the fic title and the authors name. if you're really fancy, you can do this for each chapter title as well, you would just hve to use a section break for each chapter instead of page break. *Remember to click link to previous to turn it off, so you are only editing that section, and not all the other sections. this can be found in the heading and footer tab on the top, which will automatically open when you click on the heading or footer.*

Adding page numbers, authors name, text name:

To add a page number, I click the footer, which automatically opens the header/footer tab on top. Then, I click page numbers, add page numbers. I turn on different odd and even pages, which is also found in the header/footer tab. you'll have to insert page numbers on both an even and odd age to get them to show up once you click that option. Page one should be an odd page, page two should be an even page. I like to put the page numbers on the outside of the page. Then you'll click format page numbers, click "start at" instead of "continue from previous section", and write in 1. now your typeset starts at 1 on chapter one instead of the start of your document! you'll need to go back and delete the numbers that showed up on the first section, but remember to deselect link to previous before you do that! or you'll end up deleting your page numbers again.

to add text on page numbers:

click into the header/footer again. double click directly on the page number, then start typing. You ca highlight the whole thing to change the font, font seize, etc. I normally do the same size as my text, and I'll either do georgia font or garamond font. I google "copy paste line for text" to get that line dividing the page number from whatever text I have next to it.

to add graphics on an entire work:

you can go into the header or footer, go to the insert tab, and insert a picture. Doing it in the header or footer will ensure it's on every single page that shares that header or footer. I have done this in the past, and find it's cute, but it's also tricky because it needs to be small enough to fit inside the header or footer, and won't really be able to interact with the text because it's different on each page, while the graphic will stay in the same position regardless.

Blank Pages:

you want blank pages at the start and end of your textblock: this is what you'll be glueing your end papers to. even more, you'll want to ensure your total page number is both divisible by 4 (each page of paper will have four pages of your text on it, two to each side) and fits into your signature count. If you're working with a 40 page signature, and you have 420 pages, that's fine. You'll end up having the last signature only be 5 regular pages instead of 10, which is plenty enough to sew. you really just want to try and avoid only having one of two pages in that last signature, as that won't be very strong in holding up your end page, or be very stable in sewing on to your book block.

to make sure they're blank, with no page numbers, you'll want to insert a section break on the last page of text. Deselect link to previous, delete the page numbers and you should be all good!

Printing/Saving:

I'm on a mac. I don't know how you would do this on anything but a mac. let that be a warning lmao. but I will CTRL A everything, ensure it's US Letter Borderless, and then hit print. if you don't tell the document it's the right size, it'll be funky when you go to print because of the margins. to insert images, i click save as pdf. it'll save it in the correct order to print for your signatures, and then I upload it into adobe to edit further. that'll have to be a different post bc this is entirely too long already.

If you want to print directly from here, ensure it's printing the right size, flip on short edge, double sided. and you're all done!

[pininiu]

BREAK TIME ARRIVED, used what little free time I have from the real world to do this cuz the jazz mecha pilot AU by @keferon ate me since its conception

I wanted to make a little something ever since I read the Blurr side story while waiting for the 2nd chapter and then I just saw it drop so now I’ll be reading it on the side (I’m not emotionally prepared yet)

and some extra sketches I made

Art block be damned even if it sucks, don’t mind the obvious way my brain was degrading

Magazine is roughly based on F1 Magazine formatting, 2nd one is based on the Transformers Spotlights comic featuring Blurr

[wistfulvulpine]

get your tickets to the Rat Race

[lucabyte]

I don't know how everyone isn't also always constantly thinking about how burial rites seem to be potentially one of the few things Siffrin instinctively remembers about their culture. But rest assured. I am in fact always thinking about it.

Textless version where they're just hanging out. It's fine!

[b4kuch1n]

study of this masterwork

[ranmaru-kageyama]

MINIGRAM 61: "Seasonal Sense" Translation

[edda-grenade]

sketches for illustrations for a matter of love

aka the moment where solas drops an even worse bombshell on saar than he does in canon trespasser

[wrongfulruffian]

Finished binding Ice Cream Before Dinner by cloudydaisies on AO3. I loved this story, in my opinion it is how season 8 should go haha.

I agonized over the color and vinyl choices, but I'm really happy how it came out. I looked at pictures of cotton candy ice cream and old-fashioned ice cream shop signs as inspiration haha! This is one of my favorite binds that I've done so far.

[everymangatenshinhan]

[owlwinter8]

I bound “The Lives Worth Saving” by cywsaphyre, my favorite Naruto fic!! Despite having been abandoned well over a decade ago, this fic still has a warm place in my heart. It was the first fanfic I really became obsessed with and even after all these years, it’s amazing how much of the story I've been able to remember beat-for-beat 🧡 Cover art creds: 頂上 by @my_nameisyoon

[metiredlr]

Lil background Oni Gensaku u mean everybting. To me. Tears in my eyes look at them

[magicalgirlfia]

Guilty Gear XX♯Reload Comic Anthology Translation: Hardboiled 2180

This is a comic from the Guilty Gear XX Sharp Reload Comic Anthology, which I wanted to start translating. The original scans of this comic are by @tillman and can be found on archive.org

Here is a link to The Tongue-Cut Sparrow story I was talking about. It’s not very long or important to the overall manga but it might give a bit of context!

You can find the next translation here

​​Usual disclaimer: I am not fluent in Japanese and all of this is a one Fia job so everything might not be 100% accurate but I always try my best!

[zabberzim]

It’s time I reveal to the Tumblr community my first attempt at making a comic a year and 3 months ago :

The LanDot soulmates comic one anon asked about a month ago 🪐💥

[luckyblinkies]

could we PLEASE get some esteban blinkies 🥺🥺

of COURSE you can dear sweet jonah :]

[terezis]

i was goign to make a cute little year in review graphic for all the scanlation i did this year but then i got bored two slides in. but for posterity i want it to be known that i translated cleaned and typeset 1,008 pages of manga this year. that's a really embarrassing number. but i'm not embarrassed enough not to post about it

1,008 pages. that's a lot

[cmdonovann]

another binderary book!!! this might be one of my favorites ive done so far ✨

it's "we rise in the dying" by kolyarostov, which grabbed me by the throat when i read it and i could not get it outta my head. no author copy for this one, alas, bc i dont know the author personally and wasnt sure i could afford to send one. but i do recommend the fic if you like youtuber rpf, lol, go give them a kudos :3

bonus pics to show off my homemade paste paper covers!!!