Audit directions that depend on a fixed page arrangement before adapting a print manuscript to a reflowable ebook. Identify the intended destination, replace unstable spatial wording with clear content references or appropriate links, and test the exported reading sequence. Preserve separate wording where the print and ebook experiences genuinely differ.
Find language that assumes a fixed page
Search the source for phrases such as on the next page, in the left column, opposite, above, and below. Read the matches in context. Some uses are ordinary prose rather than navigation, while others direct the reader to material whose position depends on the print layout. Keep a record of the latter with their intended destinations.
Review instructions and captions manually as well. A phrase such as compare these two panels may depend on adjacency without containing a familiar page-direction word. Look at passages built around facing pages, boxed material, and continued tables. A text search helps locate candidates, but it cannot establish every relationship the layout communicates.
Identify the information each direction is meant to reach
For each candidate, name the actual destination: a figure, section, table, note, or exercise. Use a stable identifier in the editorial record so the connection survives chapter renumbering. If the destination is unclear in the print version, resolve that problem before adapting the wording. Conversion should not preserve an ambiguous instruction merely because it was already typeset.
Determine why the reader needs the destination at that moment. A brief reminder of a definition may be handled differently from a task requiring a detailed table. The purpose helps decide whether to name the content, provide a link, repeat a small necessary explanation, or restructure the passage. Avoid adding navigation when the information would be clearer directly in the sentence.
Replace unstable positions with meaningful references
Use wording that identifies the content rather than its accidental location. Name the relevant table or section with enough context for the reader to recognize it. Keep the reference concise, but do not reduce every instruction to see elsewhere. A useful direction tells the reader what to find and why it matters to the current step.
Where an internal link supports the task, create it through the actual authoring workflow and verify the destination after export. Use descriptive link wording. KDP's accessibility guidance recommends links that identify their purpose; a generic repeated label can leave the reader unsure which destination it represents. Keep link creation separate from proof that the target contains the promised information.
Reconsider tasks that depend on simultaneous views
Some print instructions ask readers to compare two facing images or follow a table while reading the adjoining explanation. Replacing opposite with a link may not preserve that experience. Decide whether the ebook needs the information combined, a short repeated context, or a different sequence that can be followed one region at a time.
Keep the comparison itself intact. If a reader must remember several measurements while moving between locations, a small summary beside the question may help more than repeated jumps. Test the revised task with its actual inputs. Do not describe two items as visible together when the intended reading mode does not reliably present them that way.
Test the exported ebook rather than only the source links
Open the actual export through the supported preview workflow and follow the adapted directions. Check that each link reaches the right content and that the reader can continue the original task afterward. KDP's QA guidance calls for checking navigation and complex content in the converted reading experience, so retain the source review and the export review as separate steps.
For reflowable content, inspect relevant changes in display settings and the resulting sequence. Confirm that captions remain understandable and that phrases still identify their targets after the visible arrangement changes. Record the settings and file version tested. A successful click in the authoring application does not establish the behavior of the final ebook.
Maintain format-specific wording deliberately
Preserve the print wording where it remains useful in the fixed-page edition, while keeping the ebook adaptation connected to the same intended destination. Use the project's supported source organization to avoid accidentally sending ebook directions back into the print file or restoring print-only phrases in the next digital export.
Before release, rerun the candidate search and review new matches introduced during revision. Check moved targets and renamed headings against the adaptation record. Save the approved source and checked ebook together. The completed task is a set of directions that works in its intended reading experience, not merely a manuscript from which every occurrence of the word page has been removed.
Frequently asked questions
Clear answers for this publishing decision.
Should every use of above or below be deleted?
No. Read the context and identify whether it depends on unstable page placement. Correct actual navigation problems rather than applying a blind word replacement.
Can I replace every page reference with a link?
A link can help, but some tasks need content restructuring or local context. Preserve the reader’s ability to complete the intended comparison or instruction.
Do source-document links prove the ebook navigation works?
No. Follow the directions in the actual exported reading experience and check their destinations, surrounding context, and continuation of the task.
Should the print edition use the ebook wording too?
Use the wording that serves each format. Keep the versions connected to the same intended targets while preserving deliberate differences in navigation.
What must I check, disclose, and verify myself when AI helped produce the book?
Review facts, rights, and source material yourself, record which parts were AI-assisted or AI-generated so you can answer Amazon’s disclosure question accurately, and treat every automated check as a starting point rather than a verdict.
See what the compliance checks cover