As a book formatter, most of my work involves text‑heavy adult manuscripts—fiction, nonfiction, and everything in between. Children’s picture books are a different world entirely. My experience with them is more limited, but every project teaches me something new.
Recently, I helped someone troubleshoot her client’s children’s book. It looked “finished,” but it ran into issues the moment they tried uploading it to Amazon KDP and IngramSpark. What we uncovered is worth sharing, because these problems are extremely common—and avoidable.
Trim Size Trouble
The authors designed the book at 9×12, but Amazon KDP and IngramSpark do not support that size. That meant the entire project had to be resized, and we chose 8.5×11. This affects far more than page dimensions—it affects illustration proportions, text placement, bleed, and overall layout. Choosing a supported trim size for your print versions (i.e., paperback and hardcover) before creating illustrations saves enormous time and frustration.
Safe Zone Snafus
Several lines of text fell outside the safe zone, putting them at risk of being trimmed off during printing. We had to reposition them to ensure nothing important disappeared.
Some illustration elements—like a character’s head—also sat too close to the trim line. Unlike text, these couldn’t be moved without altering the artwork. We adjusted what we could and hoped the rest would survive the trimming process.
Convenience vs. Control
The interior pages of the book were initially created with an online, easy-to-use design program. Convenient? Definitely. But when exported as a PDF, several pages became corrupted. Exporting the pages as PNGs avoided corruption, but the resulting files were HUGE—too large for efficient InDesign work and far too large for EPUB.
Luckily, InDesign’s EPUB export allows PNGs to be converted to JPEGs, which dramatically reduced the final file size.
If you are self-publishing a children’s book:
- Choose a trim size that your publishing platforms actually support. This also helps your illustrator create artwork at the correct proportions.
- Know your safe zones. Anything falling outside of them may be trimmed; anything too close may look off-center.
- Use professional layout tools when possible. Easy, online design programs are great for simple projects, but they limit control over precise layout and export quality for book pages.
- Use JPEGs instead of PNGs for full‑page illustrations to keep file sizes manageable without sacrificing print quality.
A little planning at the beginning of your project can prevent major headaches later. Children’s books are beautiful, complex pieces of design, and they deserve workflows that support that complexity. With the right trim size, safe‑zone awareness, and professional layout programs, your book will move through the publishing process much more smoothly.