Making a stapled book manually can be an ordeal because pages can't be
printed in numerical order. Each sheet of paper holds four book pages,
but the actual order of the numbered pages can only be determined once
you know how many pages will be in the finished book. Adobe InDesign
handles this chore for you with its “Print Booklet” option. All you need
to do is set up your book as you would read it and then configure the
booklet settings as desired. Use ordinary letter-sized paper to print
your book.
Instructions
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1
Launch InDesign. Open the New
Document window by pressing “Ctrl” and “N” on your keyboard. Select
“Print” from the Intent menu and “Letter-Half” from the Page Size menu.
Estimate the number of pages you need and type this in the Number of
Pages field. Set the margins as desired, using the same size for both
the inside and outside margins. You can adjust the inside margins for
"margin creep" later.
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2
Click “OK” to close the New
Document window. The black lines on each page indicate the page size and
the blue lines within indicate the margins.
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3
Select the “Text Tool” from the
Toolbox and drag it within the margins of the first page to create a
text field. Type your text in the field or paste it in by pressing the
“Ctrl” and “V” keys after copying it from another document.
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4
Continue typing text in the text
field until it is full, signified by a “+” icon in the lower right
corner. Click the “Selection Tool” in the Toolbox, then click the “+”
icon. Move the cursor onto the text field of the next page and then
click the text box. The text will automatically flow from the first page
to the second page. You can edit or format the text as if it were in a
single text box. Repeat this step to link as many pages together as
required.
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5
Add pages as needed by clicking
the “New Page” icon at the bottom of the Pages panel on the right side
of the screen. Remove pages by clicking them in the Pages panel and
clicking the “Trash” icon.
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6
Make sure every page in your
book has text before you attempt to print the book. This is important
because a blank page will not be included in the printed book. If you
require blank pages place a single period on the bottom of that page.
Alternately, provide an explanation of the blank page for your readers
or use the old standby “This Page Intentionally Left Blank.”
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1
Click the “File” menu and select
“Print Booklet” when the book is finished. Select “2-up Saddle Stitch”
from the Booklet Type menu to print the book in a format that can be
stapled.
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2
Click the “Creep” menu, which
adjusts inside margins to account for the thickness of the paper being
folded down the middle. Input a positive number to increase the inside
margins on the cover pages by that amount. The inside page margins will
not change and pages between will be adjusted incrementally. Type a
negative number to decrease the margins on the inside pages and leave
the cover margins unchanged, with pages between adjusted incrementally.
The value you set depends on the number of pages used and the thickness
of your paper.
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3
Click “Preview” in the left menu
to see a how the book will appear when printed. Use the bottom scroll
bar to scroll through the pages.
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4
Click “Summary” and scroll to
the bottom of the page. If any technical conflicts are detected in the
design of the book, InDesign will highlight them here.
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5
Select your printer from the
Printer menu. Click “Print” if you have a duplex printer. If your
printer can only print one side of a page at a time, select “Odd Pages
Only” and click “Print.” Turn the pages over when the print job is
finished and then print the book again selecting “Even Pages Only.”
