# Lay out a document with Redesign

> Paste or import your text, pick one of five looks from live previews, and let PlexiiDesign lay the whole document out across as many pages as it needs.

Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-redesign-wizard
Section: Office > PlexiiDesign
Plans: All plans
Updated: 2026-10-15

**Redesign** turns a document into a laid-out publication in one step. Bring in your text, from a Word file, one of your PlexiiDocs documents or the clipboard, and PlexiiDesign shows it laid out five ways, each a real preview of your own words at your page size. Pick one and it builds every page: columns, headings, pull quotes and text frames threaded from page to page.

Use it for a report, a brochure, a newsletter or a booklet when you have the words and want them to look designed.

## Before you start

- Redesign is on every plan. It works without AI. **Ask AI to choose** needs AI to be set up: PlexiDesk credits while you are signed in, or your own Anthropic key. See [AI credits and where your AI runs](https://plexiidesk.com/help/ai-credits).
- Open a design at the page size you want, such as **A4 portrait**. Redesign lays the document out at the design's current size. See [Start a design at the right size](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-start-a-design).
- Set up your brand kit first if you want your fonts and colours. See [Brand kit, Brandify and your logo](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-brand-kit).

## Lay out a document

1. Click **Redesign** in the toolbar. The **Pour in your text and lay it out** panel opens.
2. Bring in your text, under **Your text**:
   - **Paste** brings in what is on your clipboard, with its headings and lists if it came from a formatted document or web page.
   - **Import .docx** reads a Word file from your computer.
   - **From a PlexiDoc** lists your PlexiiDocs documents. Click one to pull in its text.
   - Or type or paste straight into the box.
3. Under **Pick a look**, click the look you want. Each one shows its first page, how many pages it will take and how many columns it has. A star marks the one PlexiiDesign recommends.
4. Click **Lay it out**.

The design's pages are replaced with the laid-out document, and a line above the page says how many pages it made and in which style. If you want the previous version back, click Undo.

### Write in the box

The box below the buttons holds your text. A line under it counts the words, paragraphs, headings and lists, or says **Nothing to lay out yet.**

- The first short line becomes the headline.
- Leave a blank line between paragraphs.
- Start a line with `#` for the title, `###` for a heading, `-` for a bullet, `1.` for a numbered item or `>` for a quote.

**Clear** empties the box.

## The five looks

| Look | What it is like |
| --- | --- |
| **Editorial** | Two columns, a drop cap and pull quotes. Reads like a feature article. |
| **Report** | One wide column, generous margins and clear headings. Built to be read at a desk. |
| **Magazine** | Three tight columns under a full-width title band. Dense and energetic. |
| **Booklet** | Facing pages, one narrow measure and classic book proportions. |
| **Newsletter** | Two compact columns with an accent masthead. Fits a lot on a page. |

The description of the look you choose shows under the previews.

### Let PlexiiDesign or AI choose

PlexiiDesign recommends a look from the shape of your text, such as how long it is and how many headings it has, and marks it with a star. A short note says why.

For a second opinion, click **Ask AI to choose**. AI looks at the outline of your document, its headings, kinds of paragraph and their lengths, and picks a look, a number of columns and which of your sentences to lift into pull quotes. It does not rewrite your words. Its reason shows above the previews. Without AI set up, the panel says it is using the built-in planner, which works offline.

## What you get

- **Pages** at the design's size, as many as the text needs.
- **A master page** with the furniture of the look, such as a running header, and page numbers.
- **Text frames threaded together** across the pages, holding your whole document as one story.
- **Headings, lists, quotes and pull quotes** styled for the look, in your brand's fonts and colours.

Everything stays editable afterwards. Type on the page or open the story editor to change the words, and the text flows again through the frames. See [Thread text through frames](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-text-frames-and-stories). To adjust the master page, margins or columns, see [Pages, master pages, guides and layers](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-pages-masters-and-layers).

> **Note:**
> **Lay it out** replaces the design's pages. Use Redesign on a new design, or choose **File** > **Make a copy** first if you want to keep what you had.

## Common questions

**A look says it needs more than 24 pages.** There is too much text for that look. Trim the text, or pick a denser look, such as **Magazine**.

**Can I go back and try another look?** Yes. Click **Redesign** again. Your text is still in the box, so click another look and **Lay it out**.

**The clipboard paste did not work.** If the panel says it could not read the clipboard, click in the box and paste with `⌘` `V` on a Mac or `Ctrl` `V` on Windows.

**Does Redesign change my Word file or my PlexiiDocs document?** No. It copies the text in. The original stays as it was.

**Does it use AI to write?** No. Redesign only arranges your own text. **Ask AI to choose** only picks the arrangement.

## Related tasks

- [Thread text through frames](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-text-frames-and-stories)
- [Pages, master pages, guides and layers](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-pages-masters-and-layers)
- [Start a design at the right size](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-start-a-design)
- [Generate designs and copy with AI](https://plexiidesk.com/help/design-ai-design)
- [PlexiiDocs overview](https://plexiidesk.com/help/docs-overview)