I use a nice style for my ebook/epub output, but I can’t find any way to get similar functionality when creating the print files for something like KDP. You get a PDF that is basically a WYSIWYG of the layout in your document.
The only way to change the output is to create a completely new page/format layout like the ones you choose when you create a new document, as far as I can see.
So, for example, if I wanted a Fiction 9x6 that used 10pt fonts for the body text, I would need to create one from scratch, or modify the existing 11pt version and rename it. Is that the only way to do it for PDF/Print output?
Amazon’s Print service is basically a Vanity Press where you don’t pay up front and they get most of the money (you get 60% minus print costs, and they make money on those too, then you pay tax too…) and they charge per page. People want print books, so the only way to do it economically is to use a larger book size with a smaller font, or get Vellum to do that for you.
The templates in Papyrus Author are designed for specific output formats. They cover many of the most commonly used formats, although not every one. So yes, if you want the output to look different to the existing templates you will need to make the changes.
Alternatively, once you have one project with the format you want, you could apply that to any other .pap file through the “Adopt Styles from Other Document” option. This was discussed in a previous thread Can I change the format and size of a project.
Both of these options mean you only have to make the format changes once, and not every time you create a new project.
Thank you. Now the bit I don’t understand.
How do I change the default font size in a format/project?
When I load up 6x9Fiction it starts with 11pt “Standard” body paragraphs, so what exactly do I change so I could make one than loaded to 10pt “Standard” instead, then save it?
I’m sorry, I’m a writer, not a Papyrus Wizard.
Right, I now understand how to change it by creating “Standard 10pt [global]” and changing the Chapter header to be followed by that instead of Standard, BUT is it possible to set that as just that project style, or is that going to make a global change so every other project style will do that, which is probably undesirable.
I am struggling to understand how to create a project template called “6x9 Fiction 10pt” for example, yet still have other projects able to be in 11pt.
Sorry if I am not explaining this very well, I am not good with the terminology used by you and the people who understand how PA works. Are changes to Global Styles (to make them available in other documents) saved in the project template, or just applied generally across PA?
The important thing to check is whether the chapter heading is a “local” or “global” Style.
For example, the paperback project template “6x9” uses “Chapter Numbered” but it is set as a “local” Style (the global option is unticked):
If you have used this template as the basis for your bespoke template, then changing the Style of following text will not affect any other documents.
If the chapter heading Style does have the “global” option ticked, then it would affect other documents using this Style. In this case, create a new heading Style which is local so you can assign the following text without affecting other documents.
In this example, whether the body text “Standard 10pt” is global or not doesn’t matter. This setting only relates to whether you want to be able to select “Standard 10pt” as a font in any document. For your template, it is the setting on the chapter heading that is important, because that is where the following body text is assigned from. If it is “local” the assigned following text will only apply to the template. If it is “global”, it will affect any document that uses that heading Style.
