The cost of having a book made varies depending on the size of the book, the page count, upgrade options chosen, and the amount of prepress work required. Pre-designed books cost less as they reduce the amount of prepress time needed, whether the pages are created through our online software, a hired designer, or through your own programs such as Indesign or Photoshop. See below for questions about setting the book up yourself.
If you are not able to design your own pages, we do offer design services in house. An appointment can easily be arranged with one of our skilled designers, for $160 per hour, who can also help with retouching, custom color correction, and creative feedback. You can also simply leave detailed instructions for the designer to build the book over 2-3 business days. This service is $85 per hour.
Shipment, tax, and special packaging are not included in any prices online or quoted.
Our online software requires very little be done to the files before designing your book. It is recommended to work with JPG files that are no larger than the size of your book, saved in sRGB at 300 dpi. It is also highly recommended that you organize your photos into one project folder and keep that folder in one place. The software links directly to the location of these files, so moving the files after they have been brought into the book software will break the link and the program will no longer be able to find the image.
Custom Books
If you are designing your own book, these are the basic specifications to bear in mind as you are laying out each page:
Bleed Margin 1/8th inch on all 4 sides. It is recommended to keep all text 1/4 inch from the edge of the page. Anything within the outer 1/8th may be cut off or into. Please see the diagrams below for examples.
Gutter (bind side only) 3/16th inch to 3/8th inch depending on the type of binding and paper stock used. Please see the diagrams below for examples of each.
Color Space RGB, Adobe 98 RGB, or SRGB (preferred for best results). We do not print in CMYK or Grayscale, but do offer Tri-toning for B&W images upon request.
Resolution 300 dpi at print size. Ex: If youre printing an 8.5x11 book, please make each page 8.5x11 at 300 dpi.
View page specs here: Hard Cover 8.5x11 | Hard Cover Layflat 8.5x11 | Soft Cover 8.5x11
Spine and Covers The Spine width and Cover size will depend on the kind of paper chosen and the type of binding required.
Soft Cover Books
The size of the front and back covers for Soft Cover books are equal to the internal pages, including bleed. To determine the spine width, you will need to know what paper weight is being used in the book. The formulas needed are:
N divided by 2 = S then S multiplied by X = Spine Width
- N = Number of pages in the book
- S = Number of sheets in the book
- X = Paper weights:
- 80 lb text = 0.004
- 100 lb text = 0.005
- 80 lb cover = 0.007
- 100 lb cover = 0.0095
- Watercolor = 0.095
Hard Cover Books
Dust jackets for Hard Cover books vary depending on multiple factors. Templates are available upon request via e-mail. Please e-mail the size of the book, the number of pages, and the paper type desired to books@aandi.com for a Photoshop template. The template will be e-mailed to you within 24 business hours and will contain guide marks necessary for distinguishing the front and back covers from the spine and flaps. If the book is a custom size, more information will be required before a custom template can be created.
-WHY ARE YOU ASKING FOR MY EMAIL ADDRESS?
The email address we request upon downloading the software is used to alert you of helpful information, new services and discounts. You may unsubscribe from this email list at any time. Your personal information is used by A&I Books only and will never be shared with any 3rd party
-HOW DO I DOWNLOAD/INSTALL BOOKCREATOR?
To download the BookCreator software, go here. Choose the version for your computer - Windows or Mac OSX. Once you have successfully downloaded the software, an installer file will appear on your desktop. Double-click the installer.
Windows PC
When the installation is complete, a BookCreator icon will appear on your desktop and a program group will appear on your Start Menu.
Mac
When the installation is complete, the program can be accessed from within the Applications folder.
Once the software is installed, a shortcut 
is placed on your computer desktop. There is no need for internet connection until you are ready to upload your book.
-WHAT IS LAYFLAT?
Layflat is a special type of paper with a clear plastic hinge in the gutter, allowing the pages to lay flat. This feature is great for 2 page spreads as one looses none of the image or text in the gutter.
-WHAT DOES THE LOW-QUALITY WARNING ICON MEAN? WILL MY PHOTOS LOOK PIXELATED/UNCLEAR WHEN PRINTED?
The low-quality icon indicates that your image dpi has dropped below 250 and will look 'soft', or may look pixelated. You will need to either upscale your photos to a minimum of 250 dpi in Photoshop or choose a smaller book size to optimize the photo resolution you do have.
-I DON'T THINK I'LL NEED ALL 40 PAGES. HOW DO I DELETE REMAINING BLANK ONES?
You can delete pages using the Page Menu at the top of the screen, or by selecting the page to delete and clicking Ctrl+D (Command D for Mac).
- MY BOOK LAYOUT STARTS WITH A WHITE BACKGROUND. CAN I CHANGE THIS TO BLACK?
Pages and covers can be changed to any color using the Background Tool which is to the far right on the Tool Panel.
-WHEN I APPLY A BOOK CREATOR BACKGROUND TO THE COVER, WHY DO I SEE A WARNING SYMBOL?
The Backgrounds that come with Book Creator cannot be used for covers. However you can make your own background in Photoshop and import it to your backgrounds.
-HOW CAN I USE MY OWN BACKGROUNDS IN BOOK CREATOR?
1. In Photoshop, create the background at least the size of your cover at a minimum of 250 dpi. (If your book is hard cover, include an extra 6 inches or so on the sides for the dust jacket flaps.) Save it anywhere on your computer as a JPG.
2. In Book Creator, go to Categories Button on the right of the backgrounds window, click Add and select your background. You can name the background and, if you’d like, you can select a category for it. Leave the box checked below the Category box and click OK.
Please note that a background will only import to one product at a time. (i.e. A background imported to the 4x4 Hardcover book product will only appear in that product and not in any other sized products.)
- WHEN I SUBMIT MY FINISHED BOOK, WILL IT BE REVIEWED FOR ANY ERRORS BEFORE IT IS PRINTED?
When you place your order, the software will check and prompt you for errors such as low-res images, blank pages and empty text boxes. You can also click Preview in the Toolbar to view a larger on-screen version of your finished product before uploading. It’s especially important that you keep an eye out for text that is too close to the red crop lines around the page.
-I DOWNLOADED THE MAC VERSION OF THE SOFTWARE BUT CAN'T SEEM TO OPEN IT. I GET A MESSAGE ASKING WHICH APPLICATION TO USE TO OPEN. PLEASE ADVISE.
Often when one gets this message it is because there was an interruption in the download process. Try downloading the software again and check that:
-
1. Pop-up blockers are disabled
-
2. Your computer does not “go to sleep” during the download
-
3. You have Mac OSX 10.5 and above.
-I JUST GOT A NEW COMPUTER. IS IT POSSIBLE TO SEND A PROJECT FROM MY OLD COMPUTER TO MY NEW ONE?
Although it’s not an incredibly convenient process, it is possible to move a Book Creator project to another computer.
Your files are stored in a folder called A&I Book Creator Projects. This can be found in the My Documents folder on a PC or in the User folder on a Mac. You can move your project(s) to another computer with Book Creator installed on it, along with the folder containing the images used in the project. Place your project file(s) in the A&I Book Creator Projects folder in the appropriate place on your computer (My Documents or User).
When you launch Book Creator on the new computer and open your project, a window will alert you that images are missing. Click “Find Pictures”. You will need to click on each image individually, and “Update” them one-by-one according to the new image location.
-ONCE I'M FINISHED CREATING MY BOOK, HOW DO I ORDER IT?
Click on the Shopping Cart on the far right of the Toolbar. This will take you to a secure site for you to sign in to an existing account or create a new one, select product and shipping options and pay for your product. Once you complete the online process, be sure to complete the uploading process in the Book Creator software itself.
-HOW DO I REORDER A BOOK THAT I'VE ORDERED BEFORE?
Reorders can be placed through Book Creator just like the first time you ordered. Launch Book Creator, Open an Existing Product, click the Shopping Cart and place your order. Remember to complete the uploading process in the Book Creator software once you've completed the online ordering process.
-I CREATED MY BOOK AS AN 8X8 AND I'D ALSO LIKE TO ORDER THE SAME BOOK AS A 5X5. IS THIS POSSIBLE?
No, a product must be re-created if you'd like to order a different size or cover option, even if it is exactly the same. The multiple-size option is scheduled to be added to Book Creator in the next version, expected to be released summer of 2010.
-CAN I PLACE AN ORDER FOR THREE BOOKS?
There is an option in the ordering process for entering multiple copies. If you are ordering multiple copies of the same product, please enter the amount and then click "Update Total".
-CAN I ORDER SEVERAL DIFFERENT PRODUCTS AT ONCE? I DON'T SEE AN OPTION FOR THIS SERVICE.
At this time, Book Creator does not allow for ordering multiple products at the same time, only multiple copies of the same product. For instance, if you want to place and order for an 8x8 book, a 5x5 book and a calendar, you must place three separate orders. We apologize for the inconvenience and anticipate this option to be added in a future version of Book Creator.
-I JUST CREATED A BOOK THAT I WOULD LIKE TO ORDER, BUT WHEN I HIT THE "START" BUTTON AND IT IS "CONNECTING TO THE SERVER...", I GET A MESSAGE BOX THAT SAYS "AN ERROR OCCURED WHILE COMMUNICATING WITH THE SERVER. NO RESPONSE FROM THE SERVER?
Please close the software and open it again. If that does not work, please reboot your computer and reopen the software.
-HOW DO I ADD NATIONAL HOLIDAYS TO MY CALENDAR?
Calendars now automatically include all US national holidays. If you downloaded Book Creator before October 1, 2009, you will need to re-download the software for this feature.
-HOW DO I ADD AND DELETE HOLIDAYS FROM A CALENDAR?
Double-click a date box to add or delete text from that field.
-WHEN I TRY TO LOG IN USING MY NAME AND THE GROUPON ID#, IT DOESN'T WORK. CAN YOU HELP ME?
When you place your first order with A&I Books, you will need to create an account with us. Please click on the "Don't have an account? Click here" beneath the log in fields. Once you place your order you will be asked for a "Voucher" code which is where you will enter your Groupon number.
-MY GROUPON VOUCHER CODE ISN'T WORKING?
Please email books@aandi.com or call A&I Books during regular business hours at 323-856-5280.
-HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO REDEEM MY GROUPON VOUCHER?
Your Groupon voucher expires one year from the date of purchase.
