If you have always thought about publishing or writing a book, the time could not be better because it is easier than ever before to self-publish your book. Part of self-publishing your book is being involved with the whole process and knowing that your book turned out exactly how you wanted it to.

If you want to be involved in every aspect of your book then you can easily design and customize your layout yourself. All need is a willingness to learn and a little patience.

If you decide that you want to create your own book from start to finish then you have a few software choices to get you started.

MS Word

Believe it or not, you can design an e-book just using a basic word processor. Microsoft Word is the most obvious choice because it is the most commonly used and it comes with most computers. If you do not have Microsoft Office, there is also Open Office which you can use and it is available for free online.

There are a few other options like Apple Pages, Scrivener, and Storyist all of which are story development tools in addition to being word processors. Word Perfect is an old-fashioned option but still available for those who like to use it.

Programs for Layouts

There are two programs that are easy enough to use that you don’t have to be a layout artist to get the design that you want. Adobe InDesign and Quark Xpress can easily guide you through the layout design process. You can put together all the parts of your book and then move and change them however you want. Once you have it looking the way you want the programs will output it into formats suitable for a variety of devices.

Word and Layout Programs

Since the drive to self-publish and create books has become so popular, there are now programs that will combine the functions of a word processor and the functions of a layout program into one easy program. Microsoft Publisher can be used to make a variety of publications from fliers to business brochures to posters. It even comes with a number of templates that you can use to make the whole process easier.

Apple Pages this is a very easy program to use and it can used to create your layout and write your book just by choosing the right document type. It is incredibly easy to use Pages and Storyist both offer Epub options which make it easy to create a book that is perfectly ready for publishing online.

How Do You Choose?

Each type of software has their good and bad points, and it really depends on individual preferences which one is best for you. You may want to give both types of programs a try before making an ultimate choice on one of them. Here is a basic rundown of what you can expect from the three types of programs.

Word Programs

The Good:

  • You probably already know how to use it.
  • It’s affordable, you probably already have it.
  • It is the easiest to learn how to use.

The Bad

  • You may not be familiar with all of the different features you need to use to create a book.
  • It’s not easy to get exact placement of images.
  • It does not have advanced editing functions and it does not have many options for page output.

Layout Programs

The Good

  • Complete control and precise placement of every aspect of your book.
  • Support for all types of reproduction devices.
  • Plenty of add-ons and additional programs that you can use to have even better functionality, including image editing.

The Bad

  • They are costly and may not be the best use of funds if you only plan to create one book.
  • It has a huge learning curve.
  • The range of commands and different functions can be overwhelming.
  • Word and Layout Programs

The Good

  • They are mid-range in price between word processors and layout programs.
  • Easier to learn than layout programs
  • Comes with easy to use templates

The Bad

  • Having the bit of both programs may leave it wanting for some users.
  • Maybe too simplified to do what many users will want.
  • The lack of functionality can be frustrated.

What To Choose

If you are on a budget or you are not sure if you want to publish more than one book, then a word processor is a good place to start. Microsoft Word has enough functionality if you take the time to learn it to create a very professional looking book.

You will save money picking a program that does a bit of both but you may end up going back to one of the other choices when you experience the lack of functionality. Layout programs are expensive but may be worth the money if you plan on doing a lot of self-publishing or you really want to create a professional look.