Add short descriptions (alt text) to a book in Word.
References/Prerequisites
- Microsoft Word
- Short Description Documentation
A Message to Authors
Alt text is used to describe a figure for a low vision reader. The alt text will be read aloud to a reader who is using accessibility settings on a device.
In order for a book to be considered accessible and fully compliant, it must include alt text for all images; this will be strictly required for any book to be distributed in Europe beginning in 2025, per the European Accessibility Act.
Best practices discourage simply repeating the caption, as the alt text should be in addition to the caption, providing a description of the pertinent visual aspect(s) to assist those who cannot see the image. If the image is mostly just to convey a general impression in support of the text, the description can be kept quite simple.
When writing alt text or reviewing alt text created by Scribe, the short descriptions should follow these guidelines:
- Describe what's going on in the image (i.e., whether it’s a chart or photograph, whether movement is taking place, etc.)
- If there's a figure title or caption, try not to repeat the same information in the alt text. Again, describe the image itself.
- Up to 150 characters
- For further information and examples, Scribe recommends Alternative Text for Images from the University of Michigan, which also includes a link to the WebAIM website that provides some “Bad Alt Text” examples.
- See also Scribe’s Short Description page, with additional details and recommendations for writing alt text.
Alt text format in Word files:
`{~?~IM: insert [figure file name] here. ALT: [alt text].}`
As you write or review the alt text for your publication, use these guidelines to confirm that the salient aspect of each image has been described appropriately.