Start with a basic manuscript with little or no formatting, except to define paragraphs. Open the document in a word processing program such as Microsoft Word. If you do not have Word, OpenOffice is a free alternative. Begin formatting your text by choosing a strong, readable sans-serif font. In Microsoft Word, the default style is best. In other programs, use the "Select All" option to change the font and style of the entire text.
Highlight each chapter heading and select the "Heading 1" option found on the "Home" tab in Word, or by hitting "F11" in OpenOffice. This helps the software build a table of contents, and provides proper hierarchy for a nice looking layout. Increase or decrease font size on other pages, such as your title page, biography or insert pages to style the text and add emphasis where needed. Leave paragraphs left-aligned.
Create a table of contents. You may do this manually, or use the automatic feature in Word found under the References tab. In OpenOffice, click on "Insert" and "Index and Reference." Review the final result to ensure all chapters and key pages are correctly linked and indicated. This action allows the final e-book format to include bookmark links that allow the reader to jump from one section to another.
Run a spell check and grammar check by clicking "Review" in Word or "Tools" and "Spelling & Grammar" in OpenOffice. Even if an editor has already reviewed the document, a final check will catch technical mistakes such as extra spaces or missed punctuation.
Decide on an e-book format for saving your book. If you plan to distribute the book yourself through your website, saving your book as a PDF will suffice. This feature is automatically included in OpenOffice, or is available in Word if you have a PDF editor installed. If you need to create an e-book for a specific e-reader device such as the Kindle, or want more control over the final design and layout of your book, you should save your book as HTML before converting it with a conversion program to achieve the best results. Do this by clicking on "File," "Save As" and choose "Web Page, Filtered (HTML)."
Create illustration and cover pages separately, and insert them into the final book using the destination software to retain the best quality and dimension. If your e-book is destined for PDF and you do not need special layout or design, click on the "Insert" tab in Word and build your cover page using Shapes, Word Art and Text boxes, or choose the "Picture" option to insert your picture. Use the resize handles to fill the entire page with the image, including the margins. The disadvantage to inserting cover pages and images directly into a .doc file is that your cover image may end up with a white border around the edge when converted to some e-book formats.