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Formatting Example-1

This document provides formatting guidelines for fiction manuscripts, including: - The first paragraph of a story or new section should not be indented, while subsequent paragraphs should be indented with a tab. - Use a 12-point font like Times New Roman and double spacing. Do not use decorative fonts or emphasis like italics or bold. - Include page numbers and default margins. - Be wary of overusing ellipses, italics, and exclamation points which can indicate an inexperienced writer. Have another proofread for spelling and grammar errors.

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34 views

Formatting Example-1

This document provides formatting guidelines for fiction manuscripts, including: - The first paragraph of a story or new section should not be indented, while subsequent paragraphs should be indented with a tab. - Use a 12-point font like Times New Roman and double spacing. Do not use decorative fonts or emphasis like italics or bold. - Include page numbers and default margins. - Be wary of overusing ellipses, italics, and exclamation points which can indicate an inexperienced writer. Have another proofread for spelling and grammar errors.

Uploaded by

kim chan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Jenny Smith 350 words

8675309

Fabulous Story Title Here

This handout illustrates formatting for a fiction manuscript submitted in hard copy or

electronically. In our course we’ll be following a professional formatting standard that you can

continue to rely on as you submit your work to magazines, agents or publishers. You’ll notice

this first paragraph is not indented – this lack of indentation indicates the beginning of a story, or

a section break, new scene or new chapter.

All subsequent paragraphs in this section are indented by hitting the tab key once.

Indented paragraphs let the reader know they are still in the same section, scene or chapter. Use a

12-point font like the Times New Roman used in this example or use the default font in your

word processing program. Do not use fancy or decorative fonts. Do not use italics, ALL CAPS,

underlining, bold-face, a larger type face, or a smaller type face . These will invariably annoy a

reader and draw attention away from the story you’re telling. Do not fully justify your text.

Always double-space (not 1.5 spacing – a reader can tell.) Use the default margins in your word

processing program. Include page numbers in the bottom right-hand corner.

The added space above this line and the lack of indentation tell a reader they’re in a new section

or scene. A reader will assume there’s been a jump in time, location or character.

Now, there are a few formatting choices that are common to inexperienced writers. The

first is...ellipses. Those ubiquitous three dots (...) can be a giveaway that you're new to fiction

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writing. There are very few circumstances in which ellipses are appropriate. A rare example

would be if a character is listening to something like a news report or speech, and the ellipses

signal that the news report or speech is continuing on in the background. If you find yourself

relying on ellipses in your writing, consider whether a period, comma or em dash might do the

job instead.

Another common issue is over-reliance on italics. Italics are a tool for emphasis that

should be used very sparingly. Only use them when the emphasis could not be discerned from

the context of the scene. For example, Of course I loved my children. That sentence has a very

specific meaning with the italicized word. Never use italics to show character thought. We’ll talk

about this more in class. Finally, watch how you use punctuation. Use exclamation points

sparingly – if at all! Never, never use multiple exclamation points!!!

Be sure to poofread yous finished manuscript careflully. It your job to make sure the

sepelling and grammar has correct. If you’re needing some help with the basics of grammar and

composition, The Purdue Online Writing Lab is a great resource and The Elements of Style by

Strunk and White remains a classic style manual.

There’s no need to write The End at the end of your story.

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