https://publishing.co.uk/tags/biography/Recent content in Biography on publishing.co.uk — Professional KDP Book FormattingHugoen-gbSun, 17 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://publishing.co.uk/guides/biography-kdp-formatting/Sun, 17 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000https://publishing.co.uk/guides/biography-kdp-formatting/<h1 id="biography-kdp-formatting-uk-authors-guide">Biography KDP Formatting: UK Author's Guide</h1> <p>Self-publishing a biography on Amazon KDP requires layout decisions specific to the genre — decisions that affect spine math, royalty per copy, reader experience, and (most importantly) whether your file clears KDP's automated review on the first attempt. This guide gives the formatting recipe most biography authors should follow, plus the specific pitfall the genre is most likely to trip over.</p> <h2 id="tldr--the-biography-formatting-recipe">TL;DR — the Biography formatting recipe</h2> <ul> <li><strong>Trim:</strong> 6&quot; x 9&quot; (biography trade standard)</li> <li><strong>Paper:</strong> Cream for narrative biographies, white if image-heavy</li> <li><strong>Body font:</strong> Sabon, Garamond or Minion Pro at 10.5-11pt</li> <li><strong>Chapter heading font:</strong> Display serif at 22-28pt with subtitle line at 12pt</li> <li><strong>Spacing:</strong> 1.3 spacing, justified, with 0.3&quot; indent</li> <li><strong>Typical page count:</strong> 350-500 pages (most biographies), 600+ for definitive works</li> </ul> <h2 id="why-these-defaults-are-the-right-starting-point">Why these defaults are the right starting point</h2> <p>The 6&quot; x 9&quot; trim is the biography industry standard for a reason — it's what trad-published biography books use, so it's what readers expect to feel in their hands. Deviating from the genre standard isn't always wrong, but it's a deliberate decision that needs a reason: maybe you're producing a limited-run hardcover with a different feel, or your book has unusual layout requirements. For 95% of authors in biography, the standard trim wins.</p>