Your book, formatted by hand.
Ebook and print formatting for independent authors. Files come back ready to upload, and they work on every device, without the strange glitches that automated converters leave behind.
Marsh / The Quiet Road / 1
Chapter One
The Gate
The house had been empty for eleven years, and the road out to it had been empty longer than that. Ivy had taken the east wall by the time anyone came back for the keys. The gate, when it finally opened, opened on nothing but the sound of itself.
Nora set the lamp down on the step and waited for her eyes to adjust. Somewhere past the hedge a bird went off like a struck match, and then the quiet came back down over everything.
By morning the fog had gone off the fields and the whole place looked smaller, the way things do once you have slept in them.
1
The same chapter set by hand. Chapter opening, drop cap, scene break, page number.
Who formats your book?
Hi, I'm Rowan Hart.
Hart Formatting is just me. I handle every part of it, from your first email through to the finished files, so you're working with the same person the whole way through. If a question comes up halfway, you ask me and I answer.
I started out doing this as a favor. Someone I knew was getting a book ready to publish and needed the interior sorted out, so I took it on and learned it as I went. I kept tinkering with it long after the job was finished, and I never really stopped. The tinkering is the part I enjoy, which is lucky, because that is most of what this work actually is.
I still build every book by hand instead of pushing it through a converter. It's slower. It's also why your file won't come apart on somebody's ten-year-old Kindle or bounce back rejected when you go to upload it. I take a few books at a time so I can actually pay attention to yours.
Rowan Hart · North Texas
Services
What do you actually get?
Ebook
- Works on Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Apple Books, and anything else that opens an ebook.
- A table of contents readers can tap, and a file that opens on chapter one instead of the copyright page.
- Italics, block quotes, scene breaks, letters, journal entries, and text messages all keep their look.
- Passes Amazon's checks the first time, so no rejected uploads and no second attempt.
.epub / .azw3
Print interior
- A print-ready PDF for KDP, IngramSpark, or both.
- Margins sized to your real page count, so no text disappears into the spine.
- Page numbers, headers, and chapter openings that suit the book instead of a stock template.
- Read through page by page to catch the stranded words and awkward breaks that software leaves behind.
Both
- The paperback and the ebook match, so a reader who buys both gets the same book twice.
- Title page, copyright page, dedication, and back matter set up once and adapted to each format.
- Spine width worked out for whichever printer you use. KDP and IngramSpark calculate it differently, and guessing costs you a reprint.
- Find a typo in the first thirty days and the files get fixed at no charge.
.epub + .pdf
Pricing
What does it cost?
Ebook
Files for every major store, up to 80,000 words.
Print interior
Paperback interior, sized to your trim, up to 80,000 words.
Ebook and print together
Ebook and paperback together, matched. This is what most authors book.
Manuscript cleanup
Tabs, stray spaces, blank lines, and inconsistent chapter headings sorted out before formatting starts. Only needed if your file needs it, and I'll tell you honestly whether it does.
Extras
Photos, tables, footnotes, poetry, or anything over 80,000 words. Priced once the manuscript turns up.
Half up front, half when you sign off on the proof. If the free sample chapter is not what you hoped for, you owe nothing and you keep the sample.
How does it work?
Four steps, and the first one is free.
Send the manuscript
A Word file or a Scrivener export, either is fine. No need to clean it up first. Mention the paperback size if you've already picked one, and say whether you want ebook, print, or both.
Get a chapter back
One chapter comes back fully formatted, free, so you can see exactly what the book will look like before any money changes hands. A price and a delivery date come with it.
Read the proof
The rest of the book gets built, title page and back matter included. A full proof lands in your inbox, and nothing is final until you have read it through.
Upload and be done
Final files, already checked in the KDP and IngramSpark previewers so there are no surprises. One round of corrections is included after delivery.
Questions
The things authors ask first.
Does my manuscript need to be clean before I send it?
Cleaner is better and it keeps your price down. Ideally that means chapter headings styled consistently, indents made with paragraph styles instead of tabs or spaces, and no extra blank lines between paragraphs. If your file isn't there yet, don't lose sleep over it. I'll quote cleanup as an add-on and sort it out before formatting starts.
How long does it take?
Usually one to two weeks once you've approved the sample chapter. If you're up against a deadline, just ask. Depending on what's already on the bench I can often work something out.
What if I find a mistake after delivery?
One round of corrections is included, and anything you catch in the first thirty days I'll fix for free. After that there's a small fee to reopen the files.
Do you edit or design covers?
Neither. I only do formatting. If you need an editor or a cover designer, ask and I'll send you a couple of names I trust.
Can you format poetry, photographs, or footnotes?
Yes. These take more work than straight prose. Poetry needs its line breaks protected so they survive on a small screen, photographs need placing and sizing for each format, and footnotes have to be turned into links a reader can tap and get back from. I price those separately once I have seen the manuscript.
Who owns the files?
You do, entirely. No royalties, no ongoing fees, and no obligation to come back to me for the next one.
Contact
Tell me about your book.
Word count, genre, and roughly when you'd like to publish. That's plenty to start with. I read every email myself and usually answer the same day. And if your book isn't a good fit for me, I'll say so and point you toward someone better suited rather than talk you into it.
Email me