Interior File Specifications

We support books in the following languages at Pothi.com:

• English and other Latin script languages
• Indian languages
• Languages that are written from right-to-left (RTL languages) such as Urdu and Arabic

For languages other than English, certain additional requirements apply to the interior and cover file specifications. This is to eliminate the possibility of printing errors when preparing the files.

File Formats

Submission in PDF format is best, but other convenient formats are accepted as well.

Accepted formats are:

• PDF (preferred format)
• Microsoft Word document (.doc, .docx)
• Openoffice.org document (.odt)
• Staroffice document (.sxw)

While we accept manuscripts in a number of formats, we recommend PDF, especially if your book includes lots of images in the interior, is layout-heavy, or uses non-standard fonts. This also applies to books that are in Indian languages and to books in RTL languages.

In these cases, it is better that you convert it to PDF yourself and confirm that the layout is good. You can use Adob PDF Writer for this purpose. There are also several free tools available for your use, such as cutepdf.

If you are using a program other than Microsoft Office, Openoffice.org or Staroffice to typeset your book, please convert it to pdf before submitting.

Please ensure that all fonts are embedded in your PDF file, and that all images are flattened before submission.

The colorspace of the file should be either Grayscale or CMYK.

Pothi.com does not make any content changes or additions to the files submitted for publishing. So, make sure that anything you might want printed on the book is included in the file, even the blank pages where needed.

Manuscripts in Indian Languages

Before converting to PDF, you would need to ensure that the fonts are embedded in the document.

Manuscripts in RTL Languages

• The number of pages in the interior file needs to be an exact multiple of eight (e.g. 8, 16, 24, etc.) Else blank pages may appear in the beginning of the book.
• The interior file should have the pages in reverse order, i.e. the first page of the file would be the last page of the book, page 2 in the file will be the penultimate page of the book, and so on. The last page of the file will come out as the first page of the final book.
• The file needs to be uploaded in PDF format with the fonts embedded.

 Page Size and Margins

The page size of the file submitted should be the same in which you want it printed. If you have just finished writing your book in a word processor, the page size is likely to be in A4 or letter. You need to change that to the desired page size for printing. Check the standard sizes supported below.

Minimum 0.6" margin should be there around the content on all pages. If you are setting gutter, then minimum margin of 0.5" with 0.25" gutter would work.

Standard Fonts

If you are submitting your files in a non-pdf format, please restrict the fonts used to the following standard fonts. Any other fonts used may not appear correctly in the printed file and may actually spoil the appearance of the book. If you are submitting pdf files, please embed all fonts used in the file.

List of standard fonts

• Arial
• Arial Unicode
• Baskerville Old Face
• Calibri
• Century Schoolbook
• Comic Sans MS
• Courier
• Georgia
• Mangal
• Palatino Linotype
• Times New Roman
• Verdana