Think back to your school days and reading assignments – most
of the time your eyes probably felt crossed trying to work your way through those
chapters you were supposed to start reading days ago. Frustrating, wasn’t it?
Editors receive scores of manuscripts, sometimes daily. Not
only is a well-formatted manuscript easier on the eyes, especially when there
are multiple pages to wade through, but it also says a lot about you as a
writer. If you’ve taken the time and care to present a polished manuscript,
down to the formatting, the editor will feel that you will be a cooperative
author and pleasant to work with. Unless you’ve got a name that is so powerful
a busy editor or slush-pile-reader would not be anxious to work with a
difficult unknown.
Many publishers make their submission procedure available
(online, in a trade magazine, or inside their own publication) and if you take
the time to follow those rules I will go a long way towards softening a
reader’s heart. Different publishers may have different preferences; If you
can’t locate the prescribed process, then follow standard rules of formatting.
You want your submission, whether it’s the full manuscript or a sample first chapter,
to be welcomed and easy-to-read. Even the best story, if unread, won’t get
published. Even self-pub authors need to pay attention to formatting
guidelines. If the story is to be published in print, you could be charged to
have formatting mistakes corrected; if the book is published as e-book, there
are specific formatting guidelines for each such as Kindle (mobi), epub and
others. Check out the Smashwords Style
Guide or go to the Amazon site for a Simplified Style Guide that will guide
you through formatting for Kindle using either Word of HTML.
When using WORD it is generally preferred that you set the
format automatically rather than using TAB or double spacing between paragraphs.
In your HOME screen in WORD click on “Paragraph” (bottom near-center of the
banner), go to “Indents and Spacing”. Click on “Special” to set paragraph
indents and click on “Line Spacing” and “Spacing Before/After” to set room
between paragraphs. Also if you hold down the shift key when you hit “Enter”
you will move to the next line without changing paragraphs (good for lists).
The standard novel file format is:
·
Margins — 1.5 inches all the way
around
·
Font — Courier, Courier New, or other
clean monospace serif font from 10-12 pt.
·
Line spacing — Double-space
·
Paragraph indent — first line, 5 pt.
(Do not use TAB)
Most publishers prefer email
submissions, but there are still some who want mailed hard copy. Check
publishers’ web-sites or call to make sure you know which way to submit your work.
It’s very easy to turn a prospective publisher off when you blatantly ignore
their directions.
Writing Exercise: Write about everything you did in the last
24-hours as if you were writing a news report. Use 3rd person POV.
Writing Prompt: Quick, without thinking about it, make a list
of the TEN most comfortable clothing items you have appropriate for the weather
and temps where you are; and a list of the TEN things a visitor to your area should have with them.
Challenge Assignment:
Write a page worth of text about any subject in WORD (or whatever word processing
program you use). Do not use TAB, use only Enter to make new paragraphs.
Practice changing the formatting using Page Layout (for margins), the Paragraph
box (for indents), and font/size. If you use another program, look online for
instructions or use a HELP button and learn how to automatically format your
documents.
