How to Format a Book in Word (7 EASY Steps for Self-Publishing in 2025)

How to DIY
Published on Oct 23, 2025
CLICK "SHOW TRANSCRIPT" AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS DETAILS SECTION TO HELP YOU FOLLOW ALONG TO FORMAT YOUR BOOK

Ready to format your book for self-publishing—without expensive software? In this step-by-step tutorial, I’ll walk you through how to format a book in Microsoft Word in just 7 easy steps. Perfect for beginners, indie authors, and anyone using Microsoft Word or Word for Mac to prepare their paperback or ebook for Amazon KDP, IngramSpark, Draft2Digital, Barnes and Noble Press, or any other publishing platform. Whether you're formatting a novel, memoir, or nonfiction book, this DIY book formatting tutorial will save you time, stress, and money!

00:00 Word for Mac book formatting
00:27 Set up your Microsoft Word desktop
00:51 Change your book margins (trim size, margins, bleed)
02:49 Choosing fonts and setting up styles
04:49 Formatting chapter headings, section breaks, and widow and oprhan control
08:42 Formatting the front matter of title, copyright, dedication and table of contents pages
10:55 Headers, footers, and page numbering
12:53 Exporting, key learnings, and why Mac Word is better than Mac Pages

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