Because of the unusual format of the layout, the finished book, when the signatures are printed on my A4 laser printer, is only about 148mm square. I've found it to be an unexpectedly comfortable size for a RPG book — it takes up very little room, and doesn't get in the way on the table, while still being pretty readable. The page count could have been dropped quite a bit with a traditional page dimension I think (and by leaving out the huge black toner-eating full-page illustrations that I think are there mainly for padding) but the 240 pages of this one are a manageable size.
I just used the heavy brown manila paper from supermarket bags for the covering, over 1mm grey board (2mm would have been better). I screwed up the paper first and then ironed it out flat again, to get the crumpled surface texture — I think that if I'd also given it an acrylic glaze over the top it would probably look quite leathery. Maybe I'll try that another time.
The rather light 1mm grey board warped quite a bit under glueing. I'll just live with that I think.
The actual publisher's copy arrived unexpectedly early, so I have that now, but this one will be very handy I think, for slipping into a bag or pocket.
That sounds like a really neat project! The crumpled surface texture and smaller size seem like they'd make for a unique and portable book. Have you had a chance to use it in your space opera campaign yet?
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The campaign hasn't actually started yet — that'll be next week. We had a delay due to real life interruptions (one of the players had to go to America).
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