Choosing a page size for a picturebook

One detail I didn’t consider for my picturebook was the size of the pages and shape of the pages. I initially hadn’t planned on doing a print version — I assumed that customers would be buy e-books for their iPads.

iPads have a 4:3 aspect ratio, rather square compared to Kindle Fire’s 16:10, and much more square than standard HD 16:9 screens you see on laptops. What looks good on an iPad is going to look dopey on a Kindle Fire, and vice versa. eBookPartnership suggests creating two versions: one for iPads and another for 16:10 and 16:9 devices. Each version would require images designed to fit the resolution of the screen, its own ISBN, and time and effort to make both versions look good on their respective devices.

So, I’m going to be practical I’m going to use the square print version for the e-book. As you can see in the illustration below, the square format will look okay on the iPad, but it will suck on the long/wide screen of the Kindle Fire. Two out of three is good enough for me.

The square page format as it will appear on your iPad or your Kindle Fire