I set out to write a book. What I didn’t expect was to also learn how to format, version, preview, correct, duplicate, export, and sometimes rage against the machine, all in the name of getting that book into the world.

Atticus is an AMAZING tool and I wouldn't be here without having stumbled upon it. I know InDesign like the back of my hand but the thought of using it for the book was a little daunting. I wanted a simpler tool with less (sorry Adobe) bloat, that was tailor made for one task. Atticus was where I landed and it truly is a one-stop shop for indie authors like myself.

It’s a slick, focused platform that helps you write, format, and export in the three major formats, EPUB, Paperback, and Hardcover. But what I didn’t know was just how much grit and trial-by-fire it would take to actually master the process.

This is the story of my Atticus journey. The tool I learned, the mistakes I made, and the truths I uncovered that I wish someone had told me before I began.

The Mission: Write. Format. Publish.

Like many indie authors, I wanted to do it all and produce a professional-quality paperback, hardcover and epub, using one tool. I did my research and found a great answer. Atticus.

The vision? Simplicity. Control. Creative freedom.

The reality? Version navigation, theme entanglement, export confusion, and the kind of micro-adjustments that make you question every sentence break in your book.

The Moment It Hit Me: Themes Are Everything

I laid out every chapter, created my theme, uploaded my scene break art, adjusted breaks, trim size, margins, typesetting, and the list goes on. Meticulous. PDF export tweaks? Done. KDP Paperback Proofs? Several.

It was time to move to the hardcover. I duplicated the paperback book file in Atticus and assumed the theme settings were attached to the duplicate. So I began to just tweak the settings. Wrong. Enormous mistake.

After spending hours adjusting the theme to fit the 6x9 hardcover trim size and all of the settings within, I save, export the pdf, begin again to adjust breaks, flipping between exported pdf and Atticus formatting, so the PDF flows right. Ok all set. Done

Then it happened.

I went back to my paperback version, opened it up and saw its trim size and settings were all changed. I sat in confusion for a while, going back and forth between files. Then it hit me.

Themes in Atticus are not linked to files. They are shared across files. until you duplicate them and apply them to your specific book version.

I had been adjusting what I thought was my hardcover theme, only to realize I had been quietly overwriting my paperback settings. Page flow was broken. Line breaks were jarring. Trim sizes were out of sync.

I had to stop, breathe, and rebuild. This time the right way.

The Rebuild: Structure from the Ashes

I created three separate themes, and committed to using them correctly:

• PB Durajan — for KDP paperbacks 5.5x8.5 trim size
  
• HC Durajan — for IngramSpark 6x9 trim size
  
• EPUB Durajan — KDP EPUB
  

I gave each Atticus book file its own matching theme. I stopped cross-editing. I set clear boundaries.

And slowly, the chaos faded.

What I Learned the Hard Way

1. Themes come first. Always.

Your book is only as good as the theme that formats it.
Duplicate your theme immediately and label it clearly. Don't edit shared ones without knowing what you're touching.

2. Justify, justify, justify.

Print needs to feel polished. For fiction, justification isn't optional, it’s the baseline. Ragged-right margins kill immersion.

3. Hyphenation: Off for Print, On for EPUB (Maybe).

Hyphens might save space, but they butcher character names and ruin the sacred flow of language. Keep your names whole.

4. Scene break images are delicate.

They can get dropped, misplaced, or misaligned if you switch themes. Always preview. Always re-attach.

5. Page breaks don’t matter in EPUBs.

EPUBs are fluid. Don’t try to fight that. Accept it, structure with chapter breaks and scene dividers, and trust the medium.

6. Export early. Export often.

Don’t wait until the end. Start testing print exports midway through your edits.
Look at flow. Check for broken lines. See if “Dothemian” breaks into Dothemi- / an. (Yes, that happened.)

7. You’ll need multiple ISBNs.

I used three, via Bowker. One for each format.

8. Each file is a different beast.

You need:

• 3 book files in Atticus (PB, HC, EPUB)
  
• 3 themes
  
• 3 exports total
  

The Map I Wish I Had On Day One

Here’s what I’d tell any indie author starting out with Atticus:

STEP ONE: Establish Your Themes

• Duplicate early. Name clearly.
  
• Don’t use the same theme across formats.
  

STEP TWO: Export to PDF Often

• Test flow.
  
• Look for broken lines, weird spacing, widow/orphan issues.
  
• Especially look out for name breaks
  

STEP THREE: Build EPUB Last

• Let EPUB be a final pass. It ignores page breaks anyway.
  
• Reuse your paperback theme if clean, but duplicate it first.
  

STEP FOUR: Justify Everything

• Nothing screams “unfinished” like ragged lines in a print book.
  
• Justify. It’s not up for debate.
  

STEP FIVE: Own the Process

• Atticus is a great tool but only if you treat it like a production studio, not a word processor.
  
• Take control. Label your assets. Build your system.
  

Final Thought

I could have given up. I could have gone back to Word or tried Vellum or fallen back on InDesign, which I also know like the back of my hand. But I didn’t.

Atticus seemed like the perfect fit and ultimately it was. Atticus didn’t just help me publish. It forced me to learn how.

And now I’m passing that map on to the next traveler in the self-publishing wilderness.