[RPatton]

I mentioned Design Cuts sometimes has amazing font bundles available. They have one going on right now and it includes a typeface called Hermann from W Foundry. On its own, the entire family would cost $180 (and that's its introductory sale price). In the current bundle from Design Cuts it costs $29.

I have fallen in love with Hermann and paid for a full license, but I am grabbing this bundle because I can embed the font files into ebook without having to pay for an additional license. (I am basically paying $29 for an unlimited ebook license). Not to mention the other fonts in the bundle. This is a great way to get a good print typeface at a reasonable price. (And Hermann is gorgeous. Garamond (and by extension Sabon) inspired the typeface, but the designers juiced it up and it has more ligatures than Mrs Eaves (which is arguably the Ligature dealer in the font world) and swashes and gorgeous italics.)

 

[liambowler]

I love Crimson Text too. I thought I finally found the perfect font for my print books, but when I formatted my latest one for KDP print a month ago, I noticed during the proofing that some of the letters didn't show up, particularly in italics. I tried it again with a different book and got the same results. I don't know if this is the case with other POD places, but for my KDP books I had to go back to Palatino (which is fine).

Oh goodness ... Hi, I'm here because I just received my printed proof and all the italicized d's are just blots. I used Crimson Text. Besides beating my head against the wall and starting over ... is there any workaround for this, do you know?

 

[ShayneRutherford]

Oh goodness ... Hi, I'm here because I just received my printed proof and all the italicized d's are just blots. I used Crimson Text. Besides beating my head against the wall and starting over ... is there any workaround for this, do you know?

What size did you set your text at?

 

[liambowler]

What size did you set your text at?

11 pt

 

[RPatton]

Unfortunately, the only work around is not to use Crimson Text. There's something in the actual font file that the POD printers have trouble reading.

You can use the Github version of Crimson, but it's a different font file, so you'll have to double check that the settings you currently have will still work. Or you can try EB Garamond, which is probably the most similar to Crimson Text.

 

[liambowler]

Unfortunately, the only work around is not to use Crimson Text. There's something in the actual font file that the POD printers have trouble reading.

You can use the Github version of Crimson, but it's a different font file, so you'll have to double check that the settings you currently have will still work. Or you can try EB Garamond, which is probably the most similar to Crimson Text.

Thank you. Do you have any idea of if it's just KDP for some reason? I'm printing my hardcover with IngramSpark (and was going to maybe not order a printed proof because they're taking forever, but I will for sure now!), and the only problems with Crimson posts I've seen are all about KDP printing. Do you have any idea? Thanks for your insight.

 

[ShayneRutherford]

Thank you. Do you have any idea of if it's just KDP for some reason? I'm printing my hardcover with IngramSpark (and was going to maybe not order a printed proof because they're taking forever, but I will for sure now!), and the only problems with Crimson posts I've seen are all about KDP printing. Do you have any idea? Thanks for your insight.

This sounds really odd to me. If the text looks fine in the PDF, and is properly embedded, it should look exactly the same in the print book as it does in the PDF.

 

[Gessert Books]

I think the properly embedded part is the factor. My theory is there is something wrong with a handful of glyphs and those glyphs do not embed. Tracks with OP upthread saying it printed fine at home, since they’ve presumably got the font installed there, so a broken embed wouldn’t cause a problem. This one’s super common though, it comes up with some regularity on the kdp boards.

 

[liambowler]

This sounds really odd to me. If the text looks fine in the PDF, and is properly embedded, it should look exactly the same in the print book as it does in the PDF.

Oh my. Oops. I feel silly but want to update ... turns out the weird d's were, indeed, in the e-proof they sent me. So, still weird because the font was properly embedded in the PDF I submitted, but not like I thought in that the error was there for me to see ... I had somehow skimmed over it, both before and even after when I'd seen it in the print book! Losing some brain cells here. Thanks y'all.

 

[RPatton]

There is a documented issue with the Crimson Text font files downloaded from Google Fonts. The files don't play nice with all POD printers, including Ingram. It's only with POD printers (and maybe offset printing too), but it will work with a home printer, it will look fine in the PDF, but the previewer you see (digital or hardcopy) will show the misprint.

5 Favorite Free Fonts for Interior Book Design - The Book Designer Scroll down to the comment section to read more about this problem.

Unless the file is downloaded from Github, assume you will have problems with any POD printing service. Apparently d in italics and even bold is taking a break. I strongly recommend using EB Garamond or Allegreya (which actually started as a pro font, but they shifted to a pay what you want if you want to pay at all model) instead of Crimson, even Crimson from Github can cause problems because the kerning pairs are a bit wonky.

 

[RPatton]

I think the properly embedded part is the factor. My theory is there is something wrong with a handful of glyphs and those glyphs do not embed. Tracks with OP upthread saying it printed fine at home, since they’ve presumably got the font installed there, so a broken embed wouldn’t cause a problem. This one’s super common though, it comes up with some regularity on the kdp boards.

If you look at the kerning pairs, there is some odd spacing going on. I'm wondering if maybe the d's glyph has spacing issues in its italic form that can't be interpreted, so a blob shows up instead?

 

[Gessert Books]

If you look at the kerning pairs, there is some odd spacing going on. I'm wondering if maybe the d's glyph has spacing issues in its italic form that can't be interpreted, so a blob shows up instead?

Perhaps it's attempting a discretionary ligature there, though my small brain isn't thinking of one that includes a d offhand. That would make sense with the italics aspect though, since things tend to get fancier there. It's not the only Google font that doesn't always play nice in this regard. I once subset Josefin for ebook and it dropped all the Xs, I believe.

 

[RPatton]

Perhaps it's attempting a discretionary ligature there, though my small brain isn't thinking of one that includes a d offhand. That would make sense with the italics aspect though, since things tend to get fancier there. It's not the only Google font that doesn't always play nice in this regard. I once subset Josefin for ebook and it dropped all the Xs, I believe.

That could be it. I didn't dive deep into the actual font file to see what the problem was because, quite frankly, there are better free options available (Allegreya and EB Garamond).

If we think of typefaces as music, then the font files are how that music is delivered. For whatever reason, Crimson Text (and others) is like sending a 45 record to someone who only has the means to play a Long Play record. They'll get sound, but it will be a bit of a mess.

Seriously, for anyone reading this post and formatting a book for print. If you aren't going to go with a professional typeface, then stick with EB Garamond or Allegreya. Either will serve your purposes and put out a nice looking print book without requiring a ton of work. (If you're willing to spend the money though, I highly recommend LFA Alumina, LfA Aluminia Fonts it was re-designed from the original Electra designs, which is a typeface designed specifically for novels and really is beautiful on the page (plus it requires little to no adjustment)).