How to Import an Old EPUB and Clean Up Messy Formatting

Most authors with a few books out have at least one file they’re quietly afraid of. It’s the EPUB from years ago that still sells, but that was converted from Word, patched by hand, run through another tool, and patched again. It opens fine, mostly. But every time you need to update the back matter or fix a typo, it feels fragile, and newer store checks are more and more likely to reject it.

If that sounds familiar, this guide is for you. It explains why old EPUBs get messy, what happens when you import one, and how to turn it into a clean, modern file you can keep updating with confidence.

Why old EPUBs get messy

An EPUB is essentially a small website, and like any website it accumulates clutter. Every conversion adds its own layer of code. Every manual fix adds styling that only applies to one paragraph. Text pasted from emails or web pages brings hidden formatting along with it. Over the years you end up with a file full of rules that contradict each other, many of which newer reading apps interpret differently from the ones that existed when the book was made.

None of this is visible when you read the book, which is why it’s so confusing when a store suddenly rejects a file that has been on sale for years.

What happens when you import it

When you import an old EPUB into Libba, the parts that matter come across: the text, the chapter order, the headings, and everyday formatting such as italics and bold. As part of the import you confirm which sections are front matter, chapters and back matter.

Some things are deliberately left behind. The old styling, with all its contradictory rules, is dropped and replaced with your chosen Libba style. That’s the whole point: it’s the clutter that causes problems, and starting the styling fresh is what makes the result reliable. The cover isn’t imported either, so you add it separately, and any images inside the book are replaced with a placeholder note marking where each one was, ready for you to re-add an optimised version.

So if your imported book looks different from the original, that’s expected. You’re not looking at a broken import; you’re looking at your content without years of accumulated formatting.

Cleaning it up, step by step

1. Check the structure before anything else

Resist the temptation to start with fonts or ornaments. First make sure every chapter starts where it should, the headings follow a consistent pattern, the front and back matter are in the right order, and the table of contents lists every chapter. Structure is the foundation everything else sits on, and it’s the most common cause of store rejections.

2. Apply one style to the whole book

Choose a style and apply it to the entire book. Because the old styling is gone, every chapter takes on the same look automatically, which removes most of the visual inconsistency that builds up in older files.

3. Put the images back

Using the placeholder notes as a guide, re-add the cover and any images inside the book. This is also a good moment to replace oversized or low-quality images with better versions. For a novel this takes minutes; for an illustrated book, allow more time.

4. Settle spacing and scene breaks

Older books often have a mix of scene-break styles, such as asterisks in one chapter and a blank line in another. Choose one and use it throughout, and check that the spacing between paragraphs and around chapter headings is even.

5. Export a fresh file and check it

Export a new EPUB and check it before publishing: open it in Amazon’s free Kindle Previewer, and run it through EPUBCheck if you want extra certainty. If a store has rejected the old file before, Why Your EPUB Gets Rejected by KDP explains the most common reasons.

Working through a whole backlist

If you have several old books to clean up, start with the ones that are actually causing problems, such as a title a store has rejected or one you need to update soon. Settle on a style before you begin, so every book in a series ends up looking consistent. Then work through the books one at a time, from import to export, keeping a short note of anything that needed attention so the same issues are quicker to spot next time. It’s much faster than trying to patch dozens of old files individually.

Things to watch for in older files

Some issues come up again and again. Headings are often inconsistent, with some chapters using a different level from the others, so standardise them before styling. Older books sometimes relied on embedded fonts, which won’t carry over, so choose your typography again. Footnotes and endnotes deserve a careful check, especially in non-fiction, to make sure every reference still links to the right note. And heavily illustrated books need a dedicated pass for images.

Is a page-by-page review really necessary?

Yes, at least once. An import is a clean starting point, not a finished book. A quick read through the preview will catch awkward scene breaks, inconsistent chapter titles and missing images that are easy to fix now and embarrassing to discover after publication. For most books it takes less time than you’d expect.

If your old EPUB looks messy after importing, that’s normal and fixable. Clean structure, one consistent style and a final review will give you a file you can maintain for years. If you’re moving several books from Vellum or Atticus, Import an EPUB from Vellum or Atticus and Keep Editing covers the migration side.