[Lexus Luke]

InDesign stops formatting the ePub doc at page 83. It thinks it's done, so I don't get an error message or anything.

I've tried removing all page breaks (which ePub doesn't recognize anyway, because ePub sucks ) and tried separating the chapters to create an ID book. Even tried restarting computer to no avail.

Any ideas what could be wrong?

 

[Terrence OBrien]

I have page breaks in the ePub files for both B&N and Apple. The break is at the end of the chapter and forces the first page of the new chapter onto a new page. I made the B&N file with Calibre on a PC, and the Apple file with Pages on an iMac.

 

[John Hamilton]

Just last week I had terrible issues with InDesign trying to create an ePub file for Isle Royale for the iTunes store. Adobe recommends breaking the book down so that each chapter is its own InDesign file, all linked together in a "book" file. That way you get hard page breaks in your ePub. Also, instances of italic and bold need character styles applied, not applied locally. That and other complications made me abandon InDesign for ePub. Life's too short.

If you want to try anyway, I found the following video tutorial on the Adobe site:

http://tv.adobe.com/watch/instant-indesign/creating-an-ebook-with-indesign-part-1/

I ended up using Scrivener to generate my ePub file. It passed code compliance, and was much easier. Cheaper than going through one of Apple's approved ePub vendors, too.

 

[John Hamilton]

I wanted to add that generating a table of contents in InDesign for ePub is also very involved.  In Scrivener it's generated automatically, as long as your chapters are in their own text file in the "binder," which is very easy to accomplish (as opposed to creating separate InDesign files for each chapter and compiling them together in an InDesign book file).

 

[John Hamilton]

Lexus, are you using CS5 by any chance?  There's a known bug in that version that causes InDesign to sometimes hang when exporting as a background task to PDF, and perhaps it affects exporting to ePub as well.  

The workaround is to create a blank book file (File --> New  --> Book). In the resulting window, click the little plus sign in the bottom right and add your document.  Then click the menu in the upper right of the window, and choose Export to Epub.  Exporting from within the Book file will prevent the program from hanging.

 

[Julie Christensen]

It's probably too late for this now, but I used Word (and Smashword's excellent Style Guide to format) and uploading to Smashwords and Barnes and Noble was a breeze.  Kindle was easy too, once I figured out to save the Word doc as "web, filtered." 

 

[Alan Ryker]

I markup the html to make my kindle mobi file by hand, but then I convert it to epub with calibre. It always comes out perfect.

 

[John Hamilton]

I markup the html to make my kindle mobi file by hand, but then I convert it to epub with calibre. It always comes out perfect.

Apple is rather strict about ePub encoding. If it doesn't pass the ePub Validator tool from Threepress Consulting, it won't pass Apple standard:

http://threepress.org/tools/

Apple specifically warns against using Calibre. I used Calibre to produce an ePub that worked perfectly fine on my iPad, but when I passed it through the Validator tool, it produced dozens of errors. I have to believe they're minor (since the file worked on my iPad), but I suppose Apple is trying to enforce a standard that maximizes compatibility across their hardware line. Or they're just being jerks.

 

[Lexus Luke]

I wanted to add that generating a table of contents in InDesign for ePub is also very involved. In Scrivener it's generated automatically, as long as your chapters are in their own text file in the "binder," which is very easy to accomplish (as opposed to creating separate InDesign files for each chapter and compiling them together in an InDesign book file).

I'm using CS4 and you're right, it's a pain in the batootie! I'm ready to abandon it for ePub.

What is Scrivener? Explain pretty please!

 

[John Hamilton]

I'm using CS4 and you're right, it's a pain in the batootie! I'm ready to abandon it for ePub.

What is Scrivener? Explain pretty please!

Scrivener is a very well-regarded writer's tool. You can check it out here:

http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php

At the moment, it's Mac only, but a Windows version is in Beta. Search KB, and you'll find a lot of high praise for the program. I've switched to doing most of my writing using Scrivener, both fiction and non-fiction. With non-fiction, it really shines, since you can keep so many research assets right at your fingertips, including websites. And it's relatively cheap, with great customer service. Now, if it only dispensed chocolate, or hard liquor...

 

[Doug Lance]

Scrivener is a very well-regarded writer's tool. You can check it out here:

http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php

At the moment, it's Mac only, but a Windows version is in Beta. Search KB, and you'll find a lot of high praise for the program. I've switched to doing most of my writing using Scrivener, both fiction and non-fiction. With non-fiction, it really shines, since you can keep so many research assets right at your fingertips, including websites. And it's relatively cheap, with great customer service. Now, if it only dispensed chocolate, or hard liquor...

The Windows beta is free, by the way.

I wanted to add that generating a table of contents in InDesign for ePub is also very involved. In Scrivener it's generated automatically, as long as your chapters are in their own text file in the "binder," which is very easy to accomplish (as opposed to creating separate InDesign files for each chapter and compiling them together in an InDesign book file).

You can automate the TOC generation by using a consistent style for all of your headings.

 

[Alan Ryker]

Apple is rather strict about ePub encoding. If it doesn't pass the ePub Validator tool from Threepress Consulting, it won't pass Apple standard:

http://threepress.org/tools/

Apple specifically warns against using Calibre. I used Calibre to produce an ePub that worked perfectly fine on my iPad, but when I passed it through the Validator tool, it produced dozens of errors. I have to believe they're minor (since the file worked on my iPad), but I suppose Apple is trying to enforce a standard that maximizes compatibility across their hardware line. Or they're just being jerks.

I see. I only upload to apple through smashwords, so I didn't know that. For fun I just ran the epub from Burden Kansas through it and it came up with 1 error. Since my html is so simple I imagine calibre can't muck it up too bad. It seems to have only done something wrong with one of the 2 images.

 

[Todd Russell]

Scrivener is a very well-regarded writer's tool. You can check it out here:

http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php

At the moment, it's Mac only, but a Windows version is in Beta. Search KB, and you'll find a lot of high praise for the program. I've switched to doing most of my writing using Scrivener, both fiction and non-fiction. With non-fiction, it really shines, since you can keep so many research assets right at your fingertips, including websites. And it's relatively cheap, with great customer service. Now, if it only dispensed chocolate, or hard liquor...

I'll second the Scrivener nod. I bought it recently and am using it for my new WIP. Good program, very useful.

 

[John Hamilton]

You can automate the TOC generation by using a consistent style for all of your headings.

I found the process rather Byzantine. All that manual hyperlinking and cross-referencing and text formatting! For anyone curious, here's the mind-bending Adobe video that explains it:

http://tv.adobe.com/watch/instant-indesign/creating-an-ebook-with-indesign-part-2/

 

[Doug Lance]

I found the process rather Byzantine. All that manual hyperlinking and cross-referencing and text formatting! For anyone curious, here's the mind-bending Adobe video that explains it:

http://tv.adobe.com/watch/instant-indesign/creating-an-ebook-with-indesign-part-2/

Eh. It's really not very complicated and once you set it up, it makes it much easier in the future. To each their own, I suppose.

 

[John Hamilton]

Eh. It's really not very complicated and once you set it up, it makes it much easier in the future. To each their own, I suppose.

Well, no, it's not nuclear physics. Perhaps someday when I don't have deadlines crashing down around me, I'll take the time to learn the process. For now, Scrivener is doing exactly what I need.

BTW, eFiction looks like a nice publication. Good luck with it!

 

[Terrence OBrien]

Apple is rather strict about ePub encoding. If it doesn't pass the ePub Validator tool from Threepress Consulting, it won't pass Apple standard:

If a Mac is available...

I used the Apple Pages eBook ePub template, and everything worked fine. The template has a number of styles for things like normal text, chapter heading, subchapter, etc. I had six styles in my Word file, imported the PC Word file to Pages, and just changed them to the corresponding styles in the template. That took about ten minutes using the global change feature. It generates a TOC automatically if one uses the template chapter heading style.

The file can remain as a Pages file, or it can be output as ePub or Word.

The template worked so well, I pulled it into my PC Word system and use it as a standard.

 

[Doug Lance]

Well, no, it's not nuclear physics. Perhaps someday when I don't have deadlines crashing down around me, I'll take the time to learn the process. For now, Scrivener is doing exactly what I need.

BTW, eFiction looks like a nice publication. Good luck with it!

Thanks! InDesign makes the whole magazine possible.

 

[John Hamilton]

Apple is rather strict about ePub encoding. If it doesn't pass the ePub Validator tool from Threepress Consulting, it won't pass Apple standard:

If a Mac is available...

I used the Apple Pages eBook ePub template, and everything worked fine. The template has a number of styles for things like normal text, chapter heading, subchapter, etc. I had six styles in my Word file, imported the PC Word file to Pages, and just changed them to the corresponding styles in the template. That took about ten minutes using the global change feature. It generates a TOC automatically if one uses the template chapter heading style.

The file can remain as a Pages file, or it can be output as ePub or Word.

The template worked so well, I pulled it into my PC Word system and use it as a standard.

Just wanted to add that Pages is only $19.99 on Apple's Ap Store, and it produces nice, clean ePub code for uploading to the iTunes Store, if you don't mind performing the workflow above. It's one of two programs officially "blessed" by Apple (the other being InDesign).