Printing a book isn’t the same as writing one.
A lot of writers finish their manuscript, open Google Docs, and think they’re basically done.
Then they export the file… send it to a printer… and the pages look wrong.
Margins feel cramped.
Chapter titles float in weird places.
Page numbers jump around.
Totally normal frustration. I’ve watched plenty of first-time authors hit that wall.
The truth is simple: Google Docs works fine for book formatting, but only if a few settings are handled correctly. Miss one or two of them and the whole thing feels off.
Let’s walk through the pieces that actually matter.
The First Setting That Determines Everything: Page Size
Before touching fonts or chapter titles, fix the page size.
Most manuscripts should use 6 × 9 inches. That’s the industry standard for many printed books.
Inside Google Docs, open:
File → Page Setup
Then change:
• Paper size → Custom
• Width → 6 inches
• Height → 9 inches
If you leave the default 8.5 × 11, the book will shrink during printing and everything changes.
Spacing breaks. Margins look strange.
Start with the correct page size. Everything else builds on that.
The Margin Trick That Makes Printed Books Look Professional
Printed books need slightly different margins than regular documents.
Why? Because part of the page disappears into the binding.
Use this setup as a safe starting point:
| Margin | Size |
|---|---|
| Top | 0.75 in |
| Bottom | 0.75 in |
| Inside | 0.9–1.0 in |
| Outside | 0.6–0.7 in |
The key detail here is the inside margin.
That extra space prevents text from sinking into the spine when the book is bound.
Without it, readers have to pry the book open just to read the inner words.
Fonts That Actually Print Well
Screen fonts and print fonts behave differently.
Some look fine on a laptop but awful on paper.
Reliable choices for printed books:
• Garamond
• Georgia
• Times New Roman
Most publishers stick between 11 pt and 12 pt.
Body text example:
Garamond — 11.5 pt
Line spacing — 1.15 or 1.2
Too tight and the page feels dense.
Too loose and the book looks amateurish.
Balance matters here.
Paragraph Formatting That Prevents Ugly Pages
Here’s where many manuscripts start to look like blogs instead of books.
Printed books rarely use blank lines between paragraphs.
Instead they use first-line indentation.
Set this once and forget about it.
In Google Docs:
Format → Align & Indent → Indentation Options
Then set:
First line indent → 0.3 inches
Now each paragraph begins with a small indent.
Clean. Traditional. Easy to read.
Chapter Titles Need Their Own Style
Chapter headings should stand out clearly from body text.
A simple formatting setup works well:
Chapter Title Example:
• Font size → 16–18 pt
• Bold → yes
• Center aligned
• Extra space above and below
Example layout:
CHAPTER 1
The First Encounter
Then begin the chapter text a few lines below.
Many book designers also remove indentation on the first paragraph of a chapter.
Small detail, but it improves readability.
Page Numbers (This Is Where People Panic)
Page numbers belong in the header or footer, not typed manually.
Inside Google Docs:
Insert → Page Numbers
Then choose a footer style.
Most novels place numbers centered at the bottom of the page.
But here’s the important step people miss.
Front matter — like title pages — should not display page numbers.
To fix this:
Insert → Break → Section Break
Then disable page numbers for that section.
Now your book starts numbering where it should.
Headers That Make the Book Feel Legit
Printed books often include running headers.
These are small titles at the top of each page.
For example:
Left pages → Book title
Right pages → Author name
You can set these in the header section.
It’s a small touch, but it immediately makes the book feel professionally produced.
Exporting the File the Right Way
When everything is formatted correctly, export the manuscript as a PDF.
Inside Google Docs:
File → Download → PDF Document
PDF preserves:
• margins
• fonts
• spacing
• page breaks
Sending a DOCX file to a printer invites formatting disasters.
Always send PDF.
The One Mistake I See Over and Over
Writers manually press Enter to create spacing.
That works… until editing begins.
Suddenly everything shifts.
Instead, control spacing through paragraph settings.
That way formatting stays stable even when text changes.
It’s one of those habits that separates clean manuscripts from messy ones.
A Quick Pre-Print Checklist
Before sending the file anywhere, scan these items.
Page size: 6 × 9
Margins: inner margin larger than outer
Font: readable serif font
Paragraphs: first-line indent, no blank line spacing
Chapter titles: larger, centered
Page numbers: inserted automatically
Export: PDF
If those are correct, your book will print cleanly.
And once you’ve set this up once in Google Docs, you can save the file as a template and reuse it for every manuscript that comes after.