Is that reasonable for a self-published, commercial book aimed at an audience of managers, or am I committing aesthetic suicide?
To start, your audience is the worst possible one. A manager's arrogant opinion of his own omniscience is exceeded only by his ignorance.
You should be looking at less, not more, for your typography and layout. Less font families, less font sizes, less font angles, less font weights, less fancy layout. In short, less layout fanciness.
If there is something in your readers' industry that is a standard then use that standard. For example, lawyers are familiar with the style and layout of legislation (even though there a number a different layouts for legislation). Is there a standard textbook, or learned journal, in your target industry -- use that layout.
Get hold of a published style manual -- The Chicago Manual of Style, The Austn Govt Pub. Service's Manual of Style, etc. Stick to that.
If you want an idea of how stupid *publishers* can be -- let alone the great unwashed who have been let loose on word processors -- consider this. The requirements as to layout for doctoral theses, dissertations and the like is simple and unvarying the world over. Yet every university has its own "unique" style guide that must be used on pain of failure or non-publication.
Go and buy a (very thin) book on typography and style. The few dollars you spend will be the most valuable investment in your project. The time spent reading that primer will be the most rewarding research you have done.
Good luck.
Robert Thorsby
