Written by Megan Ryan
A few years ago, it seemed like most potential clients I came across were looking for editors who could also offer formatting for Kindle Direct Publishing. After losing out on several jobs, I decided to try adding this skill to my repertoire. While my formatting story is not a model for success, I hope the lessons I learned might be beneficial to other editors considering expanding their services in any way.
How I Began Formatting
To learn how to format documents for KDP, I studied the information on the website and got familiar with features in Word like page breaks, section breaks, and automatic tables of contents. I might have watched a few videos, but I didn’t seek out any formal training.
After some practice documents, I offered to format an editing client’s book for free to learn on a full manuscript. I got valuable experience, and she got free formatting help: win-win. I successfully (though simply) formatted her book, and it was available on Amazon.
In Over My Head
I completed a few basic, text-only formatting jobs and felt fairly confident that I could produce a neat final product, even if it wasn’t fancy. Then I worked on a file with graphic elements and ran into so many technical difficulties. It took a lot of extra work, and I spent so much time sending photo files back and forth with the author and even contacting KDP help.
I returned completed Kindle and paperback files to the author, but they had a family member rework things in InDesign before they published. The client was gracious about it (and has even become a repeat editing client), but it was extremely stressful. I hated feeling like I hadn’t delivered what they needed.
Not a Fun Part of the Job
From then on, I only took on formatting jobs that did not include images. I had realized my limits and didn’t want to attempt to go past them again. I did a few more very simple files before I hit another snag. This formatting job wasn’t my hardest technically, but the overall project was not my favorite. Adding a service I didn’t really enjoy to it did not help.
That’s when I decided that I was done offering formatting services. I realized the situations when it had been stressful outweighed any pleasure I had in the work. I was also in a better position to choose what to work on than I had been when I began my foray into formatting. So I have not taken on any formatting work since.
Tips from My Experience
There are editors who are skilled in doing both formatting and editing, so my less than stellar experience is certainly not universal. If you are considering adding formatting (or any other new skill) to your client offerings, here are three things to take away from my story:
1. Get some training
Looking back, I am shocked that I didn’t look for some kind of training on formatting before embarking on my first project. Luckily, the PEN Institute will be offering a course on formatting in August 2025, so you can check that out if you are interested in what is involved in ebook formatting. https://peninstitute.com/product/ebook-formatting-for-editors/
2. Decide if you really enjoy the work
After you’ve learned the basics and played around with some files, take time to consider if you enjoy the formatting (or whatever new skill you might want to add). There may be times you need to diversify whether you want to or not, but it’s important to take stock of what you get pleasure from doing so you can focus there when you have a choice.
3. Know your limits
It’s important to know what you can and can’t do and make sure the client’s expectations align with your skill level (and your software’s capabilities). There are times to challenge yourself so that you grow, but make sure it’s not too big of a push. I should have said no to the book with all the images when I hadn’t worked with any yet and didn’t know how Word would cooperate.
I don’t think my adventures in formatting were a complete failure, but I would definitely do some things differently if I were to revisit the skill or add another service in the future. If you have any further tips for editors who are considering expanding their offerings, please let us know in the comments.
Megan Ryan copyedits and proofreads to give authors confidence about sharing their writing with the world. She has copyedited and/or proofread more than 160 books for self-publishing authors and hybrid publishers.
She lives in Michigan with her husband and three children, and she loves holding babies in the church nursery. You can contact her at mryanediting@gmail.com or find more information at https://mryanediting.wixsite.com/mryanediting.