I Had Book Formatting Design Done by Fiverr...See the Result

About this video

Continuing his Fiverr-sponsored how-to-publish series, Dale shows how he hired out book formatting and cover design rather than doing them himself. He stresses getting e-book and print interiors formatted at the same time so no readers are left out. Browsing Fiverr’s book layout design gigs by genre, seller details, budget and delivery time, he picked a seller Fiverr recommended, communicated his needs in advance this time (notably that the book would contain images — it ended with just one), and uploaded the manuscript. The seller, Polarbear, delivered within a few days with formatting Dale found eye-catching, proper typesetting tailored separately for e-book and print, extra touches, and step-by-step instructions helpful for beginners. For the cover he used Fiverr Pro, Fiverr’s personally vetted tier, which costs a premium. The designer, Florfi, spent considerable time answering his questions before he paid anything; he gave her bestseller-list links for his niche so the cover would honor the niche while standing apart from it. She delivered within four days with a 3D rendering and the e-book cover. His quality check: don’t approve the gig immediately — screenshot your category’s bestseller list, shrink your cover into it at any position, and see whether it fits and belongs; if not, request revisions. He says his cover matched well on the first try. He closes by pointing viewers to a DIY publishing course resource for those who want to format themselves, and teases a follow-up video breaking down the full cost of self-publishing the project.

Key takeaways

• Format e-book and print interiors together rather than doing one format and leaving readers out
• Communicate with the formatting seller before buying, especially about images; his seller Polarbear delivered in a few days with beginner instructions
• Typesetting matters: a good formatter tailors the reading experience separately for e-book and print instead of slapping up a document
• For covers he chose Fiverr Pro designer Florfi, briefed her with niche bestseller lists, and got the cover in four days
• Test a delivered cover by shrinking it into a screenshot of the category bestseller list before approving the gig

Episode details: published April 15, 2020 · 9:26 long. Summary written by Self Growth Videos from the episode itself. Business results and any income figures mentioned are Dale L. Roberts’s own claims, shared for education — they are not typical or guaranteed.

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