Start with the work your book needs. If your manuscript is ready, ask for cover design, typesetting and final artwork. If the content still needs editing, charts or photography, ask who will provide each item. If you need physical copies, get a separate production quote or ask for an itemised combined quote.
SG Design Pro provides book design and artwork files. Printing is currently unavailable. We can prepare the artwork to the specifications of your chosen printer.
Which kind of book design partner fits your project?
- Publication designer
- For a manuscript, school magazine or commemorative book with prepared content. Ask for examples of complete spreads, chapter openings and captions, alongside cover samples.
- Editorial or annual report agency
- For a report that needs interviews, writing, charts or coordination with several teams. Ask which editorial tasks are included and who signs off the final copy and data.
- Book printer
- For physical copies. Ask about paper, binding, proofing, quantity and delivery. Confirm whether the printer accepts your artwork or can quote any additional preparation separately.
Three Singapore publication portfolios to look through
Use these examples to compare the type of work each studio shows. Check the scope and availability for your own project directly with each studio.
- Diseño shows how a school annual organises class photographs, awards and activities. Use the example to think about how repeated page types and section navigation should work in your book. See the Josephian Annual 2015.
- Ingrid Design presents an institutional annual report that includes packaging and a playcard format. If you want a publication with inserts, ask which components need separate artwork and how a physical proof will be checked. See the NIE annual report.
- Walk Production describes editorial layout, copywriting and print file handoff across several report and book formats. Ask how the quote separates content work, design and final file delivery. See the publication services and examples.
Send each studio the same brief
For example, for a school anniversary book, share the finished size, an estimated page count with the cover counted separately, one typical chapter and a few representative photos. Say whether captions and names are final, who approves the proof, and when the finished files are needed. If the event date is fixed, ask your printer when they need approved artwork.
- Content. List who supplies final text, photographs, permissions, captions, charts and translations.
- Layout. Describe how many pages follow a template and which spreads need custom layouts. Ask to approve a few representative pages before the full book is laid out.
- Review. Confirm how many rounds are included, who combines feedback and how changes after sign-off are priced.
- Files. Agree which files you will receive, including the print PDF, any digital reading PDF and editable files where included. Give the designer your printer’s requirements for bleed, cover dimensions and export.
Use our publication design quote guide and comparison sheet to check that suppliers are pricing the same deliverables. If you also need physical copies, use the printing quote comparison guide for that part of the brief.
What should I check before I choose a studio?
Ask to see a complete spread with the same challenge as yours. For a text-heavy book, look at headings, footnotes and long paragraphs. For a photo book, look at image placement and caption hierarchy. For a bilingual publication, check how both languages fit on the page. Ask who created the content, layout and final artwork for the example.
See SG Design Pro’s book design service and indicative design estimate if you have a manuscript or publication brief to discuss.