Perfect Bound Books: How to Supply Artwork Guide
Perfect binding uses a strong, flexible thermal glue to attach a wrap-around cover to the "book block" (the internal pages). To ensure your book is bound correctly, your artwork must be supplied in a specific format.
Perfect bound books must be supplied as two separate PDF files. This allows the cover to be printed on a heavier card stock while the internal pages are processed separately.
This must contain two spreads:
The Outer Cover: A single spread containing the Back Cover, Spine, and Front Cover.
The Inner Cover: A single spread containing the Inside Front Cover, Spine (left blank), and Inside Back Cover.
All remaining internal pages supplied as a single multi-page PDF in the correct reading order.
To ensure the book block can be gathered and trimmed correctly, please follow these pagination rules:
Divisibility: Page totals for perfect bound books must be divisible by 2.
Reading Order: Supply internal pages in numerical order (Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, etc.). Do not supply them as printer spreads.
Example: For a 12-page booklet, you would supply:
Cover: 2 spreads (Outer and Inner).
Inners: 8 pages (All remaining text pages).
The cover of a perfect bound book must be designed as a continuous wrap-around spread to accommodate the thickness of the book.
InDesign Export: When exporting your cover file, you must select "Spreads" in your PDF settings.
Spine Calculation: Your spine width must be accurately calculated based on your specific page count and the thickness (gsm) of your chosen paper. If the spine is too narrow or too wide, the cover will not fit the book block.
Safe Margin: Avoid placing any text within 10mm of the inner edge (the "gutter" where the page meets the spine). This ensures your text doesn't get lost in the fold and remains easy to read.
