I’ve been using Scrivener for a while now so I guess you could say I have an average understanding of the program and its features. I have a finished novel I want to compile into paperback format and publish through CreateSpace.
CreateSpace’s standard recommended trim size is 6x9 and I would like to publish in that size, but when I open the Compile window, I can’t see an option anywhere to customize the trim size. When I select Paperback Novel, it just tells me the trim size is “Custom” and I can’t see or change any other information about it. After reading the manual, it seems that the Paperback Novel setting in Scrivener has a 5x7 trim size which is no good. I need 6x9. I’ve looked at dozens and dozens of tutorials but all of them use the Mac version of Scrivener and they use this Page Setup feature in the Compile window that does not exist in the Windows version (if it does exist, it’s not in the same place and I can’t find it).
I’ve looked just about everywhere I can think of to find out how to change the trim size of a novel using Scrivener for Windows. There must be a way. Any help with this would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for the reply. I appreciate the help. Unfortunately, the page settings in Windows are extremely limited. The paper size box only has three options: A4, Letter, and Custom. When I select Custom, I’m not given the option to actually customize anything. I’m guessing the Custom option is only there to accommodate the Format As box. If you were to select Paperback Novel in the Format As box, the paper size would change to Custom since the Paperback Novel format is 5x7, but I’m not given an option to change that preset size.
It’s not listed as an option (see attachment), but maybe there’s a way to create a new preset page size? I’m not very knowledgeable about customizing the preset settings.
On a Mac, users see ‘manage custom sizes’ at the bottom of that paper-selection control.
You can’t be the only Windows user to need a custom size (let alone a common 6x9), the manual implies that users can customise page sizes, and the user linked earlier in the thread is using a custom size in Scrivener for Windows, so it must be an option somewhere.
If I had a Windows machine, I’d dig around and find the solution for you. As it is, we need a kindly Windows user to read this thread and explain what to do. Here’s hoping.
Unfortunately, no, the threads you listed didn’t help. I thought the second one would at first because I was able to add a 6x9 print size to my printer settings but when I go into Scrivener, it still doesn’t show up as an option in Page Setup or in the Compile dialogue. I’m starting to think there’s just no way to do it in Windows which is more than a little outrageous. Being able to choose your trim size seems like a “well, d’uh!” feature to carry over from Mac to Windows.
CreateSpace has a word document template in a 6x9 size I could use instead but I can’t afford the ridiculous subscription fee they’re charging for Microsoft Word now so I don’t have it and all the free programs that can open .doc and .docx files don’t read them properly. The formatting ends up being all skewed. It would take me weeks to format things correctly.
I do everything (for CreateSpace, at least) via Microsoft Word, but if you want, I can figure it out in Open Office and post a walk through to setting up your own template if that would work for you? Open Office is free for download and use, and is comparable to Microsoft Word.
And to open it in OpenOffice or clones, compile as RTF, not .doc/.docx. Any problems with the .doc(x) when you open it in OpenOffice will have been introduced by the converter that is translating the native RTF output of the compiler into .doc(x). It’s an extra step you don’t need!
I weep in empathy and hope someone can come up with a step-by-step guide for you within Scrivener. EdDitto, who wrote the linked post, is also a forum user. Perhaps you could send him a PM via the forum, or use the contact methods on his blog, to ask for advice, or get in contact with the Scrivener tech support team. It seems like a fundamental must-have to me, so hopefully you can work things out as you need in Scrivener. Perhaps a mod will help.
Unfortunately, that is correct, there is no way to do it in WinScriv. You could try to manually adjust your page margins to get your needed output size, but in the end WinScriv doesn’t support alternating gutter margins required by POD outlets like CreateSpace. So you’ll have to export to Word or some other program capable of handling your formatting needs.
