Learning how to write a book title page is a crucial part of your publishing process and one of the first lessons I learned from a 21-time, New York Times bestselling author.
I still remember him opening a Word document and typing in a book title, showing step-by-step how to format the front matter of a book. A book is not a book without all the parts, which can include your book cover design, back cover copy, and more.
We’ve taught over 8,000 authors how to write, publish, and market their books over the last 10 years and today, we turn our focus to teaching you how to write a book title page!
How to write a book title page: what’s covered
- What is a title page?
- How to write a book title page?
- How do I format a title page for a book?
- Resources for design
- Examples
What is a title page?
A book title page is one of the very first pages in your book, part of the front matter, and shares important information with readers such as the book title, author name, and publisher.
While your front cover will have part of this information (such as the title and author name) the title page helps with referencing books and is a crucial page in your book. You can have some creative fun with it as well, because title pages really are a skill.
Learning how to write a book title page is helpful for a variety of reasons:
- It helps you get started writing your book without having to start at chapter 1
- It helps simplify the process of uploading to Amazon later on
- It adds credibility and professionalism to your draft
Once you flip to the back of the title page, you will find what’s called the copyright page, or title verso.
The back of your title page should include elements such as:
- Copyright
- ISBN
- Publisher (if you have one)
- Date of publication
- Edition information
- Country of printing
- Disclaimers
- Cover design attribution
While we won’t focus on the copyright page today, it’s helpful to have context on what surrounds your book title page. With all these reasons why learning how to write a book title page matters, let’s get into the practicalities of actually how to do so.
How to write a book title page?
How to write a book title page starts with using the right-facing page of your book, or, if you’re still working in Microsoft Word (industry standard), you can use the first page in your document.
According to Amazon KDP, you want to ensure your title page:
- Always falls on the right-facing page
- Does not include page numbers or headers
- Includes the book title, subtitle, and author name
- Does not include “by” before author name
This is the minimum to include in your title page. You may want to consider adding the below as well.
Before publishing your book, work through this checklist:
- Book title
- Subtitle (if applicable)
- Author name
- Illustrator name (if applicable)
- Name and location of publisher (if applicable)
Now that you know what to include on this page, it’s time to discuss how to write a book title page via formatting.
How do I format a title page for a book?
How to write a book title page in Microsoft Word starts with opening your manuscript draft, or a new Word document if you plan to paste your work in fresh. Next, you can follow the below steps to learn how to write a book title page in Word.
Step 1
Once you open your chosen Word document, click the Insert tab on the top left of your document. Next click Cover Page and select the style you wish you work with.
If this is not your first draft but the final draft before you upload and take it to print, make sure your title page is on the right-facing side.
To check, click View, then click Multiple Pages. The right pages of a book are always odd-numbered, so ensure your title page is on the odd-numbered, and therefore right-facing, side.
Step 2
Now that you have chosen your cover page style, it’s time to make sure you can use the font you wish to use.
Microsoft Word often allows users to use fonts for personal use only, so be sure you have a commercial license for the font you want. Learn more here.
Tip: You will likely want your title page font to match the font on your book cover page.
Step 3
If you have a specific cover image you would like to place in your title page, now is the time to do so. Inserting images in Word can be tricky, so I will also show you another way to design your title page (below).
Step 4
At this time, if you haven’t already, be sure to paste in your book title, author name, and your publisher (if you have one). This is a great time to check your trim size and margins. You can click Layout, then Margins, to do so.
Step 5
You can now double-check your work to see if you truly learned how to write a book title page by converting your document to a PDF. Be sure to save your original version in case you need to make edits later on!
Resources for design
You officially know how to write a book title page now and are ready to brainstorm exactly what you want it to look like!
Microsoft Word
Discussed above, Microsoft Word is a great starting place for learning how to write a book title page before you finalize and publish.
It includes templates you can choose from and fine-tune to better align with your branding and support your book marketing efforts later on. While Word is not the end all be all for design, it’s a safe spot to test your skills and brainstorm ideas for your title page.
Canva
You may also want to make use of the free website, Canva, as you learn how to write a book title page. Canva is particularly helpful if you want to insert an image. Canva has a free and paid option, but the free version offers quite a bit of resources you may find helpful.
One of the features I love most (and use frequently!) is their Custom Size feature. You can simply create an account, log in, and click Custom Size at the top right of the page.
Once there, input the size of your book and then design your title page. Canva offers a variety of free templates as well that can help get you started.
Unsplash
While Unsplash cannot carry you through all of how to design a book title page, it does offer a wide array of free stock images you can upload to your title page.
There are many websites that offer free stock images, but Unsplash has been my personal favorite for years. Of course, if you can provide your own imagery, great, but if not, Unsplash has a lot to choose from. Choosing the best image can help make your title page really stand out, grab readers, and get them turning to chapter 1.
Examples
All right, all of this learning how to write a book title page is helpful (I hope!) but at least for me, seeing examples really helps me bring it home. Let’s take a look at some examples of great title pages so you can draw inspiration for your own.
The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and the Horse
This classic children’s book is a fantastic example of a title page that covers the specific elements it needs to while also staying on brand with the theme of the book and it’s marketing.
The four characters that appear throughout the book and its illustrations also appear on the title page. This creates engagement from even before the first page of the story.
The Four Winds
This book is an engaging, historical read about The Dust Bowl and the scarcity that follows the protagonist from page one. This title page is a great example of how to use the same font on the title page as you do on the front cover.
However, this book also uses a small image on the title page. At first glance, the image may not seem too profound, but if you look at the front cover, you’ll see wheat is also featured there as well.
Simply matching your cover image, title page image, and the fonts on both of these important parts of your book will create a cohesive feel for your readers.
Published.
Founder and CEO of Self-Publishing School, as well as bestselling author of his book, Published., is a fantastic example of a great title page. From the font, the shading, and the pencil graphic, this on-brand title page says it all.
Feel free to use these title pages as inspiration as you create your own book title page. Have fun with it and be sure to try several iterations before settling on one.
Just as writing a book takes many drafts to get right, so does creating you book title page. Brainstorm, draft, and edit until you find the perfect version for your book!
How to write a book title page: take your next step
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