Publish your book
At last, you’ve made all the
revisions, had someone critique your family history book, and proofread for
typing and spelling errors. Now it’s time to publish your book. That’s just
another way of saying make it available for others to read. You can be your own
publisher.
Step 7—Ready to print
Saving your written book in PDF
format gives it stability. Text layout programs, WordPerfect, and OpenOffice
and any on a MAC have a save for PDF option. MS Word on a PC doesn’t. You can
purchase Adobe Acrobat Pro to make a PDF copy of your book complete with hyperlinks (for eBooks on your computer). Books for print don't need hyperlinks. If you don't need hyperlinks, download an open source PDF maker that uses your printer to convert to PDF—PDFCreator (no space, no hyphen). It’s free, it works.
You can print the book on your
home printer. Laser printers use far less ink than inkjet printers. Acid-free ink is only available for ink-jet printers. Therefore, pages printed with laser printers will not last as long as those with ink-jet printers using acid-free ink.
You can
also put your text on a flash drive and take it to your local office supply or copy
center and let them do the printing. They will also cut your pages if you
decide to bind the book yourself.
Writing a family history book
is well worth the effort. When you’re finished, pat yourself on the back and
graciously accept accolades from appreciative family members.
Other book types
If all this research and
extensive writing is too much for you, there are other options for a family
history book.
Photo book with text Make an attractive coffee-table
style book with your edited family photos.
Upload the photos to one of the photo services like Shutterfly or Flckr and choose from among their many
book templates. Add your own short stories and comments. There is a fee, of
course, but you will end up with a beautifully laid out, bound family history
book.
Writing a journal Write your own life history in a
journal. You can incorporate some of the family stories in it as well. This
does not have to be thematic. Periodically add to it as you think of things to
write.
If you have trouble writing
about yourself, make a recording of you telling your story. Then transcribe the
tape. The journal can be hand-written in a blank journal book or on the
computer. You can have your printed pages bound at your local copy center or
hand-bind it yourself.
1|2|3|4|5 <Back
Step 1 & 2—Storyboard to print
Step 3—Choose a book-binding
style
Step 4—Build a story frame
Steps
5 & 6—Writing the book
Back to Write a book main page
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Copyright September 2009 Family History Coach. All rights reserved Last update April 27, 2010
