Affordable Book Design & Typesetting Services
Beautiful books, thoughtfully made.
At Bell & Brier Press, we believe that a book should be as beautiful to hold as it is to read.
From the typography of a chapter heading to the artwork adorning its cover, every element of a book’s physical presentation contributes to the experience of reading it. Our approach to bookmaking combines traditional publishing aesthetics, historical inspiration, and contemporary design principles to create editions with character, elegance, and lasting appeal.
In addition to producing our own editions of classic literature and original fiction, Bell & Brier offers affordable custom cover design and interior typesetting services for independent authors and small publishers.
We specialize in literary fiction, historical fiction, Gothic literature, horror, fantasy, mystery, and thrillers, although we welcome inquiries from authors working in other genres.
Whether you’re preparing your debut novel or adding another volume to an established catalog, we’d be delighted to help bring your book into the world.
Our Services
Custom Cover Design — $350
Give your book a distinctive visual identity with a custom-designed cover.
Includes:
One custom cover concept developed around your book’s genre, themes, and aesthetic.
Front cover and complete paperback wrap, including spine and back cover.
Coordinated typography, layout, and visual composition.
Up to two rounds of revisions.
Print-ready cover PDF prepared to your printer’s specifications.
High-resolution front cover image suitable for ebook listings and digital promotion.
Our designs draw upon a variety of visual traditions, including classical painting, historical illustration, photography, and contemporary graphic design.
Please note: Cover design includes composition and design using suitable artwork and visual assets. Original commissioned illustration, custom photography, and premium licensed assets are not included unless separately quoted.
Professional Novel Typesetting — $400
A well-designed interior should invite readers into the story without distracting them from it.
Our typesetting services provide your manuscript with a carefully considered interior design suitable for professional paperback publication.
Includes:
Interior layout and typography for one paperback edition.
Typeface selection and coordinated typographic hierarchy.
Custom chapter headings and opening treatments.
Professional margins, spacing, pagination, and running headers.
Widow, orphan, and page-break adjustments.
Front matter and back matter supplied by the author.
Up to two rounds of layout corrections.
A print-ready interior PDF prepared to the specifications of your chosen printer.
Base price covers prose fiction manuscripts up to 100,000 words.
Longer manuscripts are charged an additional $25 per 10,000 words, or portion thereof, beyond the initial 100,000.
For example, a 120,000-word novel would cost $450 to typeset.
Poetry, illustrated books, academic works, complex footnotes, extensive tables, or unusually elaborate layouts may require an individual quotation.
Typesetting does not include manuscript editing, proofreading, or ebook conversion.
The Complete Book — $650
Cover Design + Interior Typesetting
Our recommended combination for authors who want a unified visual identity across their book.
Includes everything in our Custom Cover Design and Professional Novel Typesetting packages, with cover and interior developed together as a cohesive edition.
Save $100 compared with purchasing both services separately.
The Featured Edition — $850
Complete Book Design + An Original Bell & Brier Feature
For authors who want to share not only their finished book, but the thought and artistry behind its creation.
Includes everything in The Complete Book package, plus:
An original illustrated article of up to 1,000 words written by Bell & Brier Press.
A discussion of your book’s design, typography, artwork, and the creative decisions behind its presentation.
An introduction to the book, its author, themes, and literary inspirations.
Selected images of the finished cover and interior.
Publication of the article as a public feature on the Bell & Brier Press Substack, with a link to your book or author website.
Our workshop features celebrate the collaborative process of making books, giving readers an opportunity to discover new authors while exploring the craft of book design.
Featured Edition articles are commissioned promotional features, not independent book reviews or guarantees of editorial endorsement. Each article will be clearly identified as commissioned content. Publication timing and the article’s scope will be agreed upon before work begins.
Additional Services & Custom Projects
We are happy to consider additional production requests, including:
EPUB conversion and ebook formatting.
Hardcover editions and alternative trim sizes.
Additional cover formats or promotional graphics.
Revised editions and interior redesigns.
Anthologies, collections, and other specialized literary projects.
These services are quoted individually according to the requirements of the project.
Any additional charges, including premium stock artwork or third-party licensing fees, will be disclosed and approved before they are incurred.
How It Works
1. Tell us about your book.
Contact us with your title, genre, approximate word count, publishing plans, and the services you’re interested in. We welcome a short description of your book and any visual references you particularly admire.
2. Receive a proposal.
We’ll review your project and provide a written quotation outlining the work, deliverables, estimated schedule, and any additional costs.
3. Reserve your project.
Once we’ve agreed on the scope of work and signed a project agreement, a 50% initial payment reserves your place in our production schedule. The remaining balance is due before final production files are delivered.
4. Collaborate on the design.
We’ll develop the cover and/or interior according to the agreed creative direction. You’ll have opportunities to review the work and request adjustments within the included revision rounds.
5. Receive your finished files.
Once approved and paid in full, your finished production files will be delivered electronically, ready for submission to your selected printing or publishing platform.
Ready to begin?
Email us at bellandbrierpress@substack.com with the subject line Book Design Inquiry (or feel free to DM).
Please include your book’s working title, genre, approximate word count, desired services, anticipated publication date, and preferred printer or publishing platform, if known.
We look forward to hearing about your project.
Service Terms & Conditions
We believe good creative work begins with clear expectations. Please review the following policies before requesting a quotation.
These are our general service policies. Every accepted project will also require a separate written agreement specifying its particular scope, deliverables, fees, rights, and production schedule. The signed project agreement will govern if its terms differ from this page.
1. Project Acceptance
Bell & Brier Press reserves the right to accept or decline prospective projects based on available capacity, technical requirements, artistic suitability, subject matter, and other legitimate business considerations.
We do not provide services for projects that we reasonably determine involve plagiarism, unlawful infringement, fraudulent representations, unlawful threats, or material that violates applicable law.
Acceptance of a design commission does not imply agreement with, endorsement of, or responsibility for an author’s opinions, claims, or literary content.
2. Manuscript Requirements
Typesetting projects must be submitted as complete, substantially finalized manuscripts, preferably in Microsoft Word (.docx) format.
Clients are responsible for proofreading, copyediting, factual accuracy, and final approval of their manuscripts before production begins.
Substantial additions, deletions, rewrites, or structural alterations requested after typesetting has commenced are not included in the base service fee and may require an additional quotation.
Clients must supply accurate author names, titles, back-cover copy, ISBNs where applicable, and other necessary publication information.
3. Scope of Services
Our services are limited to the deliverables identified in the individual project agreement.
Unless expressly included, our fees do not cover:
Developmental editing, line editing, copyediting, or proofreading.
Fact-checking, legal review, or permissions research.
ISBN purchase or registration.
Copyright registration.
Uploading, publishing, or distributing the finished book.
Printing, shipping, author copies, or print-on-demand charges.
Original illustration or photography.
Premium stock licenses and other third-party purchases.
Additional editions, formats, or trim sizes.
Editable design source files or proprietary templates.
Marketing, publicity, or sales services beyond those expressly included in The Featured Edition.
Specialized production needs will be quoted separately.
4. Revisions and Approvals
Each standard package includes up to two rounds of revisions within the agreed creative direction.
A revision round consists of one consolidated set of client feedback submitted in writing.
Included revisions are intended for reasonable refinements, such as adjustments to typography, spacing, color, placement, or other elements of the approved design direction.
Requests for entirely new concepts, major redesigns, repeated changes to previously approved elements, or revisions beyond the included rounds may require additional fees.
Such fees will be quoted and approved before further work begins.
Clients are responsible for reviewing proofs carefully. Final approval constitutes confirmation that the client has reviewed the supplied materials and authorizes their preparation for publication, subject to any remaining corrections agreed in writing.
5. Fees and Payment
All prices are quoted in U.S. dollars.
A 50% initial payment is required before work begins, with the remaining 50% payable before delivery of final production files.
Additional fees for extended manuscripts, special formatting, additional revisions, licensed assets, or other services will be communicated in advance and require client approval.
Payment schedules and methods will be specified in the project agreement. Any applicable taxes or transaction charges will be identified on the invoice where required.
Final production files will not be released until the agreed balance has been paid.
6. Cancellations and Refunds
Clients may request cancellation at any time by notifying Bell & Brier Press in writing.
In the event of cancellation, the client is responsible for services already performed and approved third-party expenses already incurred.
Any portion of payments received that exceeds the agreed value of work completed and authorized expenses will be refunded, subject to applicable law and the terms of the signed agreement.
If Bell & Brier cancels a project, we will provide an accounting of the work performed and refund any amounts paid for services not completed, except as otherwise agreed or required by law.
Initial payments are applied toward the cost of the project and are not automatically forfeited upon cancellation.
No final production rights or files will be transferred for unpaid work.
7. Scheduling and Client Communication
Project timelines are agreed individually and depend on manuscript length, project complexity, current availability, and timely client feedback.
Estimated completion dates are not guarantees unless expressly identified as binding deadlines in the signed agreement.
Clients are expected to provide requested materials, feedback, and approvals within the periods agreed during the project.
If a client does not respond to a request for necessary feedback or materials within 30 calendar days, the project may be placed on hold. After 60 calendar days without a response, we may close the project following written notice and provide an accounting of completed work and any balance or refund due.
Reopening a paused or closed project is subject to availability and may require a revised schedule or quotation.
We will communicate any material scheduling changes as promptly as reasonably possible.
8. Ownership, Copyright, and Licensing
Authors and publishers retain ownership of their manuscripts and other original materials supplied for the project.
Upon receipt of full payment, the client will receive the commercial usage rights specified in the signed agreement for the final approved designs, including publication and promotion of the commissioned book.
Any transfer of copyright in original, client-specific artwork created by Bell & Brier will be expressly documented in that agreement.
Third-party artwork, fonts, photographs, illustrations, software assets, and other licensed materials remain subject to their respective licenses and are not transferred beyond the rights those licenses permit.
Public-domain artwork remains in the public domain. Bell & Brier does not claim ownership of underlying public-domain works.
Unless separately negotiated, editable working files, unused concepts, preliminary drafts, production templates, and proprietary design resources remain the property of their respective owners and are not included among the final deliverables.
We will identify any material licensing restrictions relevant to the agreed use of the finished book.
Any proposed use of generative AI artwork will be disclosed to and agreed with the client in advance.
9. Rights and Responsibilities of the Client
By commissioning a project, the client represents that they own or have secured the necessary rights and permissions to use all text, imagery, trademarks, quotations, and other materials they provide.
The client is responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce any copyrighted or otherwise protected material included in the manuscript or supplied for the design.
Bell & Brier Press is not responsible for disputes arising from unauthorized, unlawful, or infringing materials provided by the client.
Any further warranties or responsibilities concerning third-party claims will be set forth in the signed agreement.
10. Confidentiality and Portfolio Use
We respect the privacy of unpublished manuscripts and works in progress.
Client manuscripts and nonpublic project materials will be used for the purposes of evaluating and completing the commissioned services and will not be publicly disclosed without permission, except where reasonably necessary to perform the work or required by law.
We may retain project records and working files for reasonable administrative, legal, and business purposes.
Bell & Brier may request permission to display completed designs in its portfolio, on its website, or in promotional materials after the book has been publicly released.
Portfolio use will be discussed with the client and will not be assumed where permission has been expressly withheld.
11. Featured Edition Publication
Featured Edition commissions include one original Bell & Brier workshop article of no more than 1,000 words.
The article is intended to discuss the book, the author’s creative vision, and the artistic and technical decisions involved in its production.
Clients will have an opportunity to review factual details about their work before publication. Bell & Brier retains final editorial control over the article’s wording, structure, and presentation.
The article will be labeled as commissioned promotional content. Payment does not purchase a positive review, a particular critical opinion, or an independent editorial endorsement.
The client authorizes use of the approved cover and selected book-related materials for the agreed feature.
Publication timing will be agreed in writing. A permanent URL may be provided, but permanent hosting, any particular readership or distribution level, and future platform availability cannot be guaranteed.
If the agreed feature cannot be delivered, the undelivered article component will be refunded or otherwise resolved in accordance with the signed project agreement.
12. Printing, Distribution, and Commercial Results
Bell & Brier will prepare files according to the printer specifications agreed upon for the project.
Clients are responsible for confirming the appropriate trim size, paper selection, binding format, ISBN information, and printer or platform requirements.
Because printing equipment, production methods, and platform standards vary, we cannot guarantee identical color reproduction or physical results across different printers and production runs.
Clients are strongly encouraged to order and review a physical proof copy before authorizing wide distribution.
We do not guarantee acceptance by any particular printing platform or distributor, nor do we guarantee sales, reviews, rankings, publicity, or other commercial results.
If production files contain a verifiable technical error introduced by Bell & Brier within the agreed scope, we will correct that error at no additional charge.
13. Questions, Corrections, and Disputes
Clients are encouraged to notify Bell & Brier promptly in writing if a problem arises with a project or delivered file.
We will make a good-faith effort to review and resolve reported issues, including correcting any errors for which we are responsible.
Neither party is responsible for circumstances beyond its reasonable control that prevent timely performance, subject to applicable law and the terms of the signed agreement.
Any limitations of liability, indemnification provisions, or formal dispute-resolution procedures will be established in the signed project agreement, to the extent permitted by applicable law.
Nothing in these policies is intended to waive rights or remedies that cannot lawfully be waived.
Bell & Brier Press is an independent publisher and book design studio. Contracting for cover design or typesetting services does not constitute an offer of publication by Bell & Brier Press, acceptance into our publishing catalog, literary representation, or a transfer of an author’s publishing rights.
We are grateful for the opportunity to help independent authors make beautiful books!
Bell & Brier Press expects courteous and professional communication throughout the design process. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate a project in response to threats, harassment, abusive communications, or repeated demands substantially outside the agreed scope of work. Where appropriate, we will provide written notice and an opportunity to resolve the issue. Any termination will be handled in accordance with our cancellation and refund provisions and applicable law.