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by: JoshuaPrizer
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With hundreds of available paper stocks, the decision of which paper to use for your print run can be overwhelming. Most of all, it's a decision determined by the type of book you are printing. A children's or coffee table book? You'll need a thick glossy sheet to help your color images stand out. A novel? Go cheap.

Let's start by clearing up a point of confusion among many looking to print their first book: the difference between bond and offset paper weights. When you purchase paper for your copy machine or home printer, you'll note paper is listed as something like 20# bond. What that means is that when the paper is manufactured at 17 x 22", 500 sheets of that paper weighs 20 pounds. However, offset paper for printing plants is manufactured in 25 x 38" sheets, which is 2.5 times larger than bond paper. So 500 sheets of that same paper stock now weigh 50 pounds. Thus, 20# bond is the same as 50# offset.

Most black & white books with no photos are printed on either 50# or 60# offset. Going with 50# is adequate for most books and will save you some money. However, if you want your book to have a nicer feel to it, check out the extra cost for 60#. It might be worth it to you.

Don't assume that the 20# bond paper you saw at Office Depot is going to be identical to the 50# offset paper you asked your printer to use. It won't be. Different paper manufacturers produce their papers with different brightness, different opacity, etc. So always ask for paper samples from your printer.

Choosing paper stock for a book printed in full color is sometimes a little trickier. You may want to go with a glossy paper stock to make any images "pop" a little more. However, glossy stock often feels thinner than standard paper stock.

Most full color books are printed overseas, where a different standard of paper measurement is used - grams per square meter (gsm). To calculate gsm, multiply the offset weight by approximately 1.5. So an 80# gloss sheet in the U.S. would be the same as a 120 gsm sheet overseas. You'll definitely want a thicker paper stock for your color book versus a black & white book.

I can't say it often enough: No matter which paper stock you think you want, ask your printer for some samples first.

When it comes to cover stock, for a paperback book a 10 pt. C1S cover is standard. However, it is usually very inexpensive to upgrade to a 12 pt. C1S cover. People do judge a book by its cover, so this might be a cost-effective upgrade.

About the Author

Josh Prizer has helped hundreds of people get a book printed. He is a book printing expert. To pick his brain on childrens book publishing, sign up for his Free 7-Part Mini-Course.

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