Proofreader & KDP Formatting Specialist

Job Posting: Proofreader & KDP Formatting Specialist

Project: Beauty Reimagined Spiritual Productivity Planner
Type: Freelance / Contract (Project-Based)
Format: Remote

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About the Project

Beauty Reimagined (BR) is a faith-lifestyle brand publishing a 12-month, faith-based spiritual productivity planner for women of faith. The manuscript is a large, image-rich Word document (600+ pages) built with a consistent monthly structure — devotionals, declarations, scripture reflections, goal-setting pages, weekly schedules, daily intention grids, and reflection sections — wrapped in a custom deep-plum-and-gold design.

We're looking for a detail-oriented freelancer to take the manuscript through its final two steps before it goes live on Amazon: a full proofread, and conversion into a fully KDP-compliant, print-ready file.

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Scope of Work

1. Proofreading

• Read through the full manuscript for spelling, grammar, punctuation, and typographical errors
• Check consistency of scripture references, quotation formatting, and recurring phrases across all 12 months
• Flag any repeated or missing content (e.g., duplicated pages, inconsistent section structure between months)
• Verify dates, headers, and labels are accurate and consistent throughout
• Deliver a marked-up list of corrections (tracked changes or a separate issues log — your preference)

2. KDP Formatting & Conversion

• Convert the corrected manuscript into a print-ready file that meets Amazon KDP's current paperback specifications, including:
• Correct trim size, margins, and gutter for an 8.5" x 11" trim at the book's final page count
• Proper bleed setup if any full-bleed images are present (uniform page size across the entire interior file — no mixed bleed/non-bleed pages)
• Embedded fonts, flattened transparency, no crop marks/metadata/placeholder text
• Correct, sequential pagination
• Export to a KDP-compliant PDF
• Run the file through KDP's online previewer (or equivalent QA) and resolve any flagged issues before final delivery
• Confirm final page count is even and within KDP's allowed range for the trim size

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Deliverables

• Proofread manuscript with all corrections applied (Word .docx)
• Final print-ready, KDP-compliant interior PDF
• A short summary of any formatting decisions made or issues encountered

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Requirements

Core Skills

• Proven experience proofreading long-form manuscripts (books, planners, workbooks, or similar)
• Hands-on experience formatting interiors for Amazon KDP specifically (not just general PDF/Word design)
• Comfortable working with Microsoft Word at scale (300+ page documents, styles, section breaks, mirrored margins)
• Strong attention to detail and consistency across repetitive, templated content

Technical / Software

• Adobe Acrobat (or equivalent) for final PDF quality checks — embedded fonts, flattened transparency, no stray metadata before upload
• Working knowledge of font embedding — this manuscript uses custom fonts (Playfair Display, Cormorant Garamond), and KDP will reject a file if fonts aren't properly embedded
• Comfortable working with large, image-heavy Word files (600+ pages, dozens of embedded images) — this is a different scale than a typical manuscript
• Basic image/DPI literacy — able to identify a low-resolution image before it becomes a print problem

Process & Reliability

• Version control discipline — this manuscript has gone through 25+ revisions, so tracking changes without silently overwriting prior fixes is essential
• Ability to follow an established style guide and preserve locked-in phrasing choices, rather than "correcting" them to personal preference
• Willingness to sign a simple confidentiality agreement, as this is unpublished original content

Content-Specific

• Care and precision verifying quoted scripture references match the cited translation exactly
• Sensitivity to devotional/spiritual tone — this is not a project for aggressive line-editing or rewriting of voice

Practical

• A realistic turnaround estimate provided upfront, given the file size and scope
• Willingness to complete one month as a paid test/sample before taking on the full 12-month project

Nice to Have

• Experience with tools like Vellum, Atticus, InDesign, or Affinity Publisher for print layout
• Portfolio or samples of previously formatted KDP paperbacks
• Familiarity with faith-based or lifestyle publishing content

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How to Apply

Please include:
1. A brief note on your relevant proofreading and KDP formatting experience
2. Links or samples of at least one KDP paperback you've formatted (interior file or published listing)
3. Your estimated turnaround time and rate for a project of this scope

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*Beauty Reimagined / Beauty Powerhouse Chicago — faith-lifestyle brand and boutique salon based on Chicago's South Side.*