Before you design every spread of a guided journal, decide how many pages each section gets and which pages need to face each other. A page map makes those decisions visible. It also lets your manufacturer estimate the job without waiting for finished artwork.
Start with the reader’s sequence
List what the reader does from opening the cover to finishing the journal: read the introduction, set a goal, work through the prompts, then reflect. Decide which sections repeat and where a divider, blank page or fresh right-hand page is part of the experience. Mark those pages explicitly; an intentional blank still takes space in the interior.
Example: a 160-page guided journal
This is an illustrative layout for an undated journal. The 160 pages are the interior pages; the cover and separate endpapers are specified separately.
| Pages | Content | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 1–8 | Title, instructions and goal setting | 8 |
| 9–144 | 12 modules × 11 pages, plus 4 intentional transition pages | 136 |
| 145–156 | Reflection and review | 12 |
| 157–160 | Notes | 4 |
The ranges above define the space available. Before laying out all 12 modules, mark exactly where the transition pages go and proof any spreads that must start on the correct side. A sample of one representative module is often more useful for an early discussion than a complete but unnumbered export.
Send a file your factory can review
- Page map: page number, section, repeated or unique artwork, and any required left/right relationship.
- Interior artwork: export a single PDF in reading order unless your manufacturer requests another format. Include the blank pages. Confirm trim, bleed and safe margins with the factory before final export.
- Cover artwork: supply separately using the confirmed cover template. The spine depends on the final paper and construction. Keep foil artwork separate and clearly label the intended finish and placement.
- Physical brief: finished size in millimetres, page count, paper weight and shade, print colours, binding, quantity and packaging.
Check the first physical sample
Open it at the first module, a transition and the last reflection. Look for flipped left/right pages, missing prompts, cramped writing space near the spine and any difference between the paper you sampled and the pens the reader will use. Approve a dated file version together with the physical sample. For checks beyond page order, use the notebook sample approval checklist.
Copy this brief for a quote
Project: guided journal. Finished size: __ mm. Interior: __ pages plus separate endpapers, if needed. Layout: __ repeated modules and __ unique pages. Print: __. Quantity: __ per design. Packaging: __. Required arrival date and country: __. Page map or reference link: __.
Request a guided journal quote. A page map, a short brief or a reference is enough to start; you do not need finished artwork for the first conversation.