When creating an ebook that you’re self-publishing, you want it to appear as professional as possible. Appearance, of course, certainly is no substitute for content. Still, a good, reader-friendly layout can make the ebook easier to follow.
One way to accomplish that is to include “page breaks” in the text so that different sections and parts of the book start on a new ebook page. For example, the title page should be on its own, as should the half-title page, dedication and acknowledgements. The table of contents and each new chapter, as well as any appendixes and the index all ought to start at the top of a new page just as they would in a paperback. The alternative is to have these different sections all run together so that they start in the middle of or even at the bottom of a page.
If formatting your ebook in Microsoft Word, these page breaks are easy to create. After the last word that you want to appear on a page, hit ENTER twice. In the ribbon at the top of your document, tap PAGE LAYOUT. Then on the right side of the page’s ribbon, tap BREAKS. A pulldown menu will appear; on it, select NEXT PAGE. A rule with the words “Section Break” should appear on your Word document. In addition, all of the text that will appear on the next page of your ebook will be pushed down to the next page of your Word document.
When you upload your ebook, these different sections now will appear on a new ebook page.
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My name is Rob Bignell. I’m an affordable, professional editor who runs Inventing Reality Editing Service, which meets the manuscript needs of writers both new and published. I also offer a variety of self-publishing services. During the past decade, I’ve helped more than 300 novelists and nonfiction authors obtain their publishing dreams at reasonable prices. I’m also the author of the 7 Minutes a Day… writing guidebooks, four nonfiction hiking guidebook series, and the literary novel Windmill. Several of my short stories in the literary and science fiction genres also have been published.