MakePub — Converting and Publishing Books on BookGroup
What is MakePub and how does it relate to BookGroup?
MakePub is BookGroup's tool for turning a manuscript into a professional-quality EPUB, ready for publication. You upload your original document, adjust the layout with the help of a conversational typesetting agent, check a real preview of the result, and publish it straight to BookGroup at the end — all using the same account access, no separate login needed. MakePub handles creating the book file; setting the sale price, access terms, and promoting the reading group is still done inside BookGroup itself, after publishing (see "After publishing through MakePub, where do I set my book's sale price and promotional link?").
What file formats can I upload to MakePub, and what's the maximum size?
MakePub accepts documents in PDF, Word (.docx), Markdown (.md), Text (.txt), and HTML. The maximum accepted size depends on your credit plan — but converting, laying out, and publishing to BookGroup has no cost; credits are only needed to download the finished EPUB file (see "Do I need to pay to convert my document on MakePub?"). If the uploaded file is empty, has an unrecognized type, or exceeds your plan's limit, MakePub tells you exactly what the problem is before proceeding.
What is the "layout model" I choose when I upload my document?
When you upload your file, MakePub shows a gallery of ready-made layout models — typography styles, margins, drop caps, and scene breaks designed for different genres (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, romance, thriller, fantasy, academic, children's/YA, devotional, and more), plus accessibility options like large print and dyslexia-friendly formatting. Picking a model is just a visual starting point — you can adjust everything afterward, either through the "Style Features" visual editor or by chatting with the typesetter. If you don't pick one, MakePub uses a default model.
How does the chat with the typesetter work on MakePub?
Inside the Studio (the main work screen), there's a chat panel where you describe, in plain language, the layout adjustments you want — for example, increasing a margin or changing a heading's style. The typesetter replies in the same message history and applies the adjustment, which you see reflected in the book preview alongside it. It's a conversation focused on the book's style and formatting, not on editing the content/text itself.
What can I adjust in MakePub's "Style Features" visual editor?
The "Style Features" panel lets you directly adjust, with visual controls: whether each chapter starts on a new page, the size and weight of headings (H1/H2/H3), the body text's font family and size, line spacing, bold weight and italic slant, hyphenation, how the table of contents looks, the margins (top, bottom, inner/spine, and outer), and the font size of image/table captions. If any of these features doesn't exist in your document (for example, there are no captions), MakePub tells you that instead of showing a control with no effect.
How does the book preview work on MakePub — what are "Draft" and "Proof"?
While you adjust the layout, the preview shows a "Draft" — a quick, no-cost rendering of how the EPUB will look. Once processing is complete, you can switch to "Proof" mode, which assembles the actual EPUB file so you can check exactly what you'd be downloading, also at no credit cost. If you change something after generating the proof, MakePub lets you know that proof is now out of date. The preview also lets you simulate different devices (phone, tablet, e-reader) and adjust reading preferences (font size, family, theme) just for viewing — these preferences don't change the model or the final file.
Does MakePub automatically detect my document's structure?
Yes. MakePub automatically detects parts, chapters, sections, subsections, and front/back matter in your document, and shows a summary of that interpretation. You can correct the role of any detected heading (for example, marking something read as a chapter that's actually a section), hide a specific heading from the table of contents, or turn off the drop cap just for it — all without needing to regenerate the EPUB. If your document has no properly formatted headings (no heading styles used in Word, or #/## in Markdown), MakePub warns you that the result may come out less organized than expected, with a link to a guide on structuring your document better.
What are the processing steps for my document on MakePub?
After uploading, the document goes through: received, reading the content, and then a step that waits for your confirmation — the only point where MakePub waits for you to act, so you can review the preview and adjustments before generating the final file. After you confirm, MakePub assembles the EPUB, validates its quality and accessibility, makes automatic fixes if needed, and finishes up. If something can't be completed, MakePub tells you there was a problem and suggests chatting with the typesetter to try again; if you cancel a job at that waiting step, no credits are charged.
Do I need to pay to convert my document on MakePub?
No. Converting your document, adjusting the layout, and publishing the result to BookGroup is free. Credits are only needed when you actually download the finished EPUB file — you can generate and publish the book first, and buy credits later only when you want to download the file itself. If your balance is insufficient at download time, MakePub lets you know and offers the option to buy credits, without needing to redo the conversion.
How do I resume a previous job on MakePub?
The upload screen shows a "Recent work" list with all your conversions, even after closing or reloading the page. Each item shows its current status (received, processing, ready to review, ready to download, not completed, cancelled), and you can pick up where you left off, view the result again, or download a finished EPUB without needing to re-upload the original file.
How do I publish my finished book to BookGroup from MakePub?
Once the EPUB is generated, tap "Publish to BookGroup". The only required field is the book title; the author name is optional (if left blank, MakePub uses the title itself as the author name), and the synopsis is optional too (if you don't write one, MakePub generates one automatically after publishing). Once confirmed, your book enters BookGroup's editorial review queue, and you're notified by email once it's approved — publishing costs no MakePub credits.
After publishing through MakePub, where do I set my book's sale price and promotional link?
That part happens entirely inside BookGroup, not in MakePub. Once your book is approved, it gets a reading group on the platform, and that's where — in creating and managing that group — you set whether access is free or paid, the price charged, whether platform fees are passed on to the buyer, and the referral link you can share to promote the book. MakePub has no pricing, billing, or distribution settings of its own.