Add fonts to Calibre epub

[theducks]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Good idea to drop the embedded fonts. The other thing you would have to do is is check if the fonts you were going to embed were acceptable for use with eInk. A lot of fonts are too light for use with eInk. I've seen too many eBooks using Adobe Garamond to match the print edition and it's way too light for eInk.

Excellent idea.
Always test on a TYPICAL e-Ink device as well as very small LCD (older phone). A 10"+ tablet will probably be close to your desktop display

Foundry fonts will break the bank with their fees for embedding.
I love Google Fonts for when I want a 'display font' for a title page or chapter head. Besides, the price is affordable

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by theducks

Excellent idea.
Always test on a TYPICAL e-Ink device as well as very small LCD (older phone). A 10"+ tablet will probably be close to your desktop display

Foundry fonts will break the bank with their fees for embedding.
I love Google Fonts for when I want a 'display font' for a title page or chapter head. Besides, the price is affordable

These days, a typical eInk device would be one that's 300DPI with a Carta screen.

[hobnail]

Originally Posted by Mohrwyn

I had fonts for both. But if I better not embed a font for the body text, then it's hardly necessary to embed one for the chapter headers. I can simply choose a serif font for the chapter headers to differ them from the (sans serif) body text.

Is this a novel/fiction or non-fiction?

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Mohrwyn

I had fonts for both. But if I better not embed a font for the body text, then it's hardly necessary to embed one for the chapter headers. I can simply choose a serif font for the chapter headers to differ them from the (sans serif) body text.

One of the reasons I will edit an ebook is to remove a forced body font as I find them very annoying. If the user chooses to use a serif or sans-serif font for the body text, that's their choice. Fonts for chapter headers, etc. are generally not as bad. I find the habit of some authors of embedding a cursive font for chapter headers and drop caps mildly annoying when the font does not look good on either an eInk or an LCD screen though it does look good on a large computer LCD screen.

[Mohrwyn]

Thank you for all your responses. There are to many to keep replying to each of you, so I'll try to answer to all your comments at once .

Keep in mind that:

• I wrote three fiction novels

• I use Calibre to convert a Word docx to epub. Both do have their individual limitations (and so do I )

• I'm using a fairly modern laptop with a wide-angle screen

• I have an iPhone SE (size of iPhone 5)

• I don't have a tablet or an e-reader

I need to choose a certain font in Word and Calibre converts it. Even if I don't choose a font family and/or choose to embed a font in Calibre, it always shows the fonts I used in Word.
According to Kobo (were I want to publish my e-books), it doesn't really matter whether or not I embed a font, because the reader can always choose another one (according to you guys, that's incorrect?). But: they state that, assuming one uses InDesign to convert to an EPUB. And I don't have InDesign...

If I choose to convert my docx through their conversion tool, I'm supposed to use Times New Roman, Arial or Courier new, because only those fonts will convert best.

But I hate serif fonts when it comes to digital reading, whether it is on a computer, tablet, e-reader or mobile phone, so I don't want that. (Solely) Arial is incredibly boring and it leaves me no choice about the headings. So that's why I'm trying so hard to find a way to embed fonts to Calibre. Easy to read sans serif fonts, not tóó fancy, but other than those mentioned by Kobo.

Again, the fonts do appear in the CSS of the EPUB Calibre converts it to, but the fonts only appear in the Calibre reader. Maybe because there is no link to the fonts?

I'll give the solution of JSWolf a try, adding a link to the font, though I don't know if I can add a link directly to google fonts, or that I have to store it online somewhere myself... But I'll figure that out, I guess.

[JSWolf]

You don't need to embed any fonts. The user can select his/her choice of font. You can post links to Google Fonts.

Since you are publishing on Kobo, what you really need to do is get a Kobo Reader to doubel check your eBooks, Also, are you using epubcheck to make sure there are no structural errors? Are you using styles in Word instead of highlighting and selecting say center or bold? You should check your ePub code to make sure there is no code left from Word that should be cleaned up.

[PeterT]

Also if you do embed fonts, do you have the license to distribute these fonts?

[stumped]

Originally Posted by PeterT

Also if you do embed fonts, do you have the license to distribute these fonts?

& if its for sale on Amazon - is there even a mechanism to tell amazon that you - the uploader - have the relevant font licences- or does amazon - as the end-seller- have to have them ?

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by stumped

& if its for sale on Amazon - is there even a mechanism to tell amazon that you - the uploader - have the relevant font licences- or does amazon - as the end-seller- have to have them ?

The uploader/publisher has the responsibility for making sure that the relevant license fees have been paid. For some fonts, these can get rather expensive. My preference is for free fonts and making very sure they are free fonts. I've seen several sites with "free" fonts with embedded information suggesting the fonts are not free—I take subtle hints such as "Copyright © 1985-2002 Agfa Monotype Corporation" in the font information as suggesting that it is not free.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Mohrwyn

Thank you for all your responses. There are to many to keep replying to each of you, so I'll try to answer to all your comments at once .

Keep in mind that:

• I wrote three fiction novels

• I use Calibre to convert a Word docx to epub. Both do have their individual limitations (and so do I )

• I'm using a fairly modern laptop with a wide-angle screen

• I have an iPhone SE (size of iPhone 5)

• I don't have a tablet or an e-reader

I need to choose a certain font in Word and Calibre converts it. Even if I don't choose a font family and/or choose to embed a font in Calibre, it always shows the fonts I used in Word.
According to Kobo (were I want to publish my e-books), it doesn't really matter whether or not I embed a font, because the reader can always choose another one (according to you guys, that's incorrect?). But: they state that, assuming one uses InDesign to convert to an EPUB. And I don't have InDesign...

If I choose to convert my docx through their conversion tool, I'm supposed to use Times New Roman, Arial or Courier new, because only those fonts will convert best.

But I hate serif fonts when it comes to digital reading, whether it is on a computer, tablet, e-reader or mobile phone, so I don't want that. (Solely) Arial is incredibly boring and it leaves me no choice about the headings. So that's why I'm trying so hard to find a way to embed fonts to Calibre. Easy to read sans serif fonts, not tóó fancy, but other than those mentioned by Kobo.

Again, the fonts do appear in the CSS of the EPUB Calibre converts it to, but the fonts only appear in the Calibre reader. Maybe because there is no link to the fonts?

I'll give the solution of JSWolf a try, adding a link to the font, though I don't know if I can add a link directly to google fonts, or that I have to store it online somewhere myself... But I'll figure that out, I guess.

Before publishing an ebook with embedded fonts, you need to check if you are allowed to use those fonts in that way. The majority of the fonts supplied by Microsoft or Apple with their systems are limited to use on your computer, redistribution is not an option.

[hobnail]

Originally Posted by Mohrwyn

But I hate serif fonts when it comes to digital reading, whether it is on a computer, tablet, e-reader or mobile phone, so I don't want that.

Serif vs sans serif is definitely a preference, no arguing with that.

But there are conventions that probably should be followed (don't ask me why). After a previous thread on the topic of sans versus serif I looked through my piles of books and I have never found a novel or short stories collection that's set in sans.

I apologize for being harsh but whenever I start reading an ebook novel and it's set in sans, it feels cheesy, amateurish, and unprofessional to me.

[JSWolf]

The book The Martian embedded three different fonts in the book. The fonts used were Free Serif, Free Sans, and Free Mono. Yes, these fonts are free ad can be used for embedding. But they are some of the worst fonts ever. On eInk they are very light and not easy to ready with. Free Mono was the worst one and it was just so so light. Even on LCD they aren't good.

So if you do not have an eInk Reader, you need to get one. You have to make sure the fonts work on eInk and the only way to do that is to see how they look. And they can look a little different on Kobo, Kindle, and nook. Forget the older models and go for a 300DPI model from each line. I suggest getting the 7" Kobo and Kindle and the nook GL3.

And if you are not embedding fonts but planning on selling via Kobo, I suggest getting a Kobo to test the ePub in both ePub and KePub to make sure it works the way you want. And since you are going with Kobo, don't have any overall left/right margins or any line hights. There are settings for that so the user can choose.

[hobnail]

Originally Posted by Mohrwyn

But I hate serif fonts when it comes to digital reading, whether it is on a computer, tablet, e-reader or mobile phone, so I don't want that.

I'm guessing that the reason you don't like serif fonts is because the thin parts wash out and become too thin and make it look bad. There are fonts that have been tweaked to look good on ereaders; ChareInk that JSWolf used in his example is one, Caecilia is on both the Kindle and the Kobo and is what I use. The Kindle's Bookerly is also a good one.

So using serif fonts on an ereader is not a lost cause.

[stumped]

It should be all about what your readers want, not what you want.
Trying to dictate the reading experience only works if you publish in print.

[Mohrwyn]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You don't need to embed any fonts. The user can select his/her choice of font. You can post links to Google Fonts.

Since you are publishing on Kobo, what you really need to do is get a Kobo Reader to doubel check your eBooks, Also, are you using epubcheck to make sure there are no structural errors? Are you using styles in Word instead of highlighting and selecting say center or bold? You should check your ePub code to make sure there is no code left from Word that should be cleaned up.

I know I don't NEED to embed fonts. But since it's my book, it's also my identity. And again, I'm reconsidering whether or not to embed my own fonts...
Anyway... I figured out how to manage that and it works now, in case I decide I really want to embed my own fonts.

Yes, I've used de epubcheck (I "passed" without any faults!) and yes I used styles in Word instead of simply usng center or bold. I'm using the Smashwords style guide .

And since I'm also going to publish through Smashwords and Amazon/Kindle, I don't really see the need for buying a Kobo Reader. If I do that, I should probably also buy a Kindle, but even buying both is no guarantee my e-book will turn out perfect on every device... And even just one of them is more money than I can miss .

I've checked my e-book in Adobe Digital Editions and it looks perfect. I've also checked my e-book in the EPUB reader on my iPhone and it looks perfect. I'm going to let my sister check on her e-reader, but I'm pretty sure my EPUB looks good.