Confusion regarding page orientation (left side vs. right side). ), Save the file as a PDF in the desired folder, Enter the settings window and fill in the following information, Set the page size: your book size (size of the custom page) plus 6 mm clipping for the height and 3 mm for the width, ICM color management: ICM is run by the host, TrueType: select the setting download font / download as font, Click on print and save the PDF in the desired folder, Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri and Helvetica are often considered the most readable fonts. The J.K. Rowling / Harry Potter phenomenon aside, its important to adhere to the conventions of your genre. I do know there is a way of putting your books and their information into Word and it keeps track of them for your bibliography, but I havent done it yet. This is the default for a new document in Word, but it never hurts to double-check. Select the File tab, then select Print found in the left-hand pane. RELATED: How to Reduce the Size of a Microsoft Word Document. Check out this, Want to place page numbers on the right side of the right pages and on the left side of the left pages (instead of in the middle)? Getting the basic formatting wrong: e.g., creating a standard-sized paperback from an A4 manuscript. If you want to write a book, you need word processing software that's up to the task. Of course, a printed book will be single spaced and contain roughly one and a half to two times the words per page of your manuscript. Word makes setting up a manuscript easy with templates. Microsoft Word is universally recognized, and you're probably already familiar with it. However, there are superior alternatives to these fonts. A useful option is to provide on your manuscripts cover page your contact information and a word count, like this: Authors name Word Count: 00,000 Address Telephone Email address. Which template should I use if any? Change all your text to Times New Roman (or Times Roman) 12 pt. Whats holding back your writing? Hi Mohan, thanks for getting in touch. Click here. Dont stray far from their suggestions. Download Share. If you need to set up your paragraphs in word itself (sometimes formatting can break or you want to change an old story), selectyour text, go to the paragraph pull out menu (tiny little button in the corner of the panel) and choose the appropriate settings. It allows you to view your notes, research, outline, and writing all in one place, and you can print your whole manuscript with the click of your mouse.. Theres a bit of a learning curve, but Scrivener comes with tutorials, and many other such aids are easily found online.. Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone 76,000 words, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets 85,000 words, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 107,000 words, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire 190,000 words, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix 257,000 words, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince 168,000 words, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows 198,000 words. 3. Manuscript rules are still the same for non-fiction and fiction, but it sounds like you have a lot more to do. This really helped while writing my first book. Under the home menu, you will see different style types up the top. Or to put it another way, it's your book before it Use the templates. Use the Format menu > Font to change all your text to Times 12pt. There are both short story and book manuscript templates available for download and use in Word. Depending on the amount of dialogue vs. narrative and paragraph length, the average double-spaced manuscript page in Microsoft Word (the standard for submitting to publishers) fits about 225 words. Thank you very much indeed. There ARE general guidelines, which Ill list below. Im just saying that some things are more important than word counts. Hope that helps and thanks for reading my blog Kat, Hi Kat, These are also extremely helpful if you will be self-publishing your book, as they are needed to format the document correctly for online export. As a reader, Ive never felt a good book was too long, even more than a thousand pages. Do I really have to have a template? Ive just read your article and Ive found it really interesting. Write up and plug a first sentence and a last sentence into your Chapter Writing GPS, then watch as it guides you throughout each section of your manuscript. Send your manuscript as one Word document (.doc /.docx) You dont have to compose your masterpiece in Word, but because Words Track Changes feature is still the de facto editing tool of choice, your editor will appreciate receiving a Word file. Commonly this is placed on the right margin. With a few customizations, it can make writing your book easy. Good luck with your book. However, you can follow some basic guidelines, like using black 12-point font on white paper with double spacing. Table of Contents In modern usage, the manuscript format commonly refers to early drafts of novels, non-fiction works, or even short stories. Never pad your manuscript just to meet a word-count guideline. Select all your text by left clicking on it and pressing CTRL A (on a PC) and CMD A (on a Mac). Whenever Ive done referencing, its for shorter pieces with footnotes. How do I adjust the margins of my manuscript and what should I consider when dividing pages? Book Word Count Ranges by Genre Fiction Micro Fiction: 5 to 350 words. Using a template makes life easier no more pressing tab every time you start a new paragraph. Here you will learn the fundamentals that are required when it comes to preparing a manuscript, as well as the structure and abstract required. I must say, I have the main text all handwritten, but now I need to get it ready for submission for print. Academy provides free access to countless e-learning resources designed to support researchers on every step of their research journey. Images that have shifted afterconverting to a PDF, Excessive or random blank pages as a result of a PDF conversion, Add page and section breaks in the page layout menu so that Word doesnt start counting pages right from the start. I think a template would make it a lot easier to format it and also make it look more professional, but you dont have to have one. Of course, a printed book will be single spaced and contain roughly one and a half to two times the words per page of your manuscript. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comments section below, and Ill do my best to answer them. It is for Print first and hopefully e-book later. More templates like this. Nevertheless, you would be wise to come close to these suggested manuscript lengths. Average novel word counts are generally around 85,000 but they can range from 50,000 to 120,000. .Any tips on promoting my book and publishing ? You dont have to do anything except search in the top box at the opening menu for manuscript, download them, put in your details and type. What is bleed and how much of it do I need? I am writing a 100 page non fiction informational book for promoting my professional services. The advice they gave was to setup Word before writing my first draft! PUBLISHING PLATFORM BY MYBESTSELLER.COM. I usually use the manuscript format template in word, found where you search for online templates, but if youre writing a non-fiction book a report template may be better for what youre doing. However, for an A5 format you obviously want smaller font sizes. That way, if you do ever want to turn it into an e-book, its all set up. Title page Mohan. The Harry Potter books are Young Adult titles, and YA publishers generally look for manuscripts in the 50,000 to 80,000-word range. And remember, keeping to word counts is important, but what makes or breaks your chances with a publisher is the quality of your manuscript. I was told setting up the document, Page Format and layout before I write my first draft is the quickest way, rather than having to go back and alter everything. While there are a lot of great software options out there for writing your novels, I use Microsoft Word. Have a look around and see what you like. Before you go, be sure to grab a FREE copy of my ultimate self-editing checklist that will help you make your writing lean and powerful. I use these all the time, but it is still helpful to know the standard settings for manuscripts or short stories to present to a publisher: The number one tip I can give is to double check requirements for your manuscript with the publisher before submitting they will include these requirements with their submission guidelines. In other words, the page size of your manuscript should match the format (size) of your book. Read our. Editors see through fluff instantly. This is REALLY important. I do recommend using a template in Word as it makes it easier to find information and chapters when youre editing it, especially for non-fiction books. Lewis, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Old Yeller by Fred Gipson all range between 35,000 and 50,000. I am going to print it on 8.5*5.5 paper in portrait orientation and bind it at home. Why? If youre self publishing there are a lot of good groups on Facebook dedicated to book promotion and publishing. Any other suggestions? They have asked me to format the book for print myself. Id also have a look in Words templates to see if theres anything specific for non-fiction. So Im staring at a White blank standard Word Document. Id really appreciate any help you could give. 2020 - Jerry Jenkins | Proven Writing Tips | All rights reserved |. I can find lots about setting up a Fiction book but the only things I can find with ease are Manuscript submission guides. Introduction, Then the manuscript (Im still writing and using the Outline Feature in Word.). Choose to place your page numbers at the top left of the page. Will a template really make it easier to format it and make it look better? We generally recommend a line spacing between 1.1 and 1.5 for optimal legibility. Scrivener is the ultimate book-organization tool.. Examples: The 6-word story attributed to Ernest Hemingway (Google it), Fleeing Complexity by Jon McGregor, Golden Years by Edith Pearlman, Widows First Year by Joyce Carol Oates, Examples: Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss, The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein, Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans, Miss Nelson is Missing by James Marshall, Examples: The Pedestrian by Ray Bradbury, A Haunted House by Virginia Woolf, A Telephonic Conversation by Mark Twain, Examples: Luck by Mark Twain, The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe, The Door by E.B. In the insert menu in Word, you can add a title page in the top left corner. Those titles also obliterated sales records. I am also going to put it on my website. Study the competition. But sometimes its hard to figure out how you should format and manage your manuscript in Word, especially if youre new to writing books and novels. To format a manuscript, keep in mind that there's no universal manuscript format that you should use, and it's a good idea to look on a publisher's website to see what their formatting guidelines are. Create a cover page for your book manuscript with this accessible simple black and white template; includes headers for chapter pages as well as a cover page. Helpful, eh? 10. Tolkien, Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery , All The Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Gullivers Travels by Jonathan Swift, My Sisters Keeper by Jodi Picoult, Examples: My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers, Jesus Calling by Sarah Young, New Morning Mercies by Paul David Tripp, Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon, Examples: How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey, Examples: A Moveable Feast by Ernest Hemingway, Out of Africa by Karen Blixen, All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot , The Story of My Life by Helen Keller, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmeal Beah, Examples: The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics by Daniel James Brown, Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster by Jon Krakauer, Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand, Examples: The Diary of Anne Frank by Anne Frank, I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai, The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, Just As I Am by Billy Graham. White , Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott ODell, Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech, Examples: The Giver by Lois Lowry, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, The Maze Runner by James Dashner, Examples: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Im going to go through my process of setting up my documents, and how I use Word to manage big novels with large chapter structures. White, The Elephants Child by Rudyard Kipling, A Little Cloud by James Joyce, The Great Carbuncle by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Examples: The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway, A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, Breakfast at Tiffanys by Truman Capote, Animal Farm by George Orwell, Examples: The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate, Charlottes Web by E.B. Publishing house guidelines vary, so check their website or contact them directly to find out what they expect lengthwise. As such, the format should correspond to your target group. Sometimes theyre shorter The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. That doesnt mean you can submit a manuscript twice the length a publisher recommends. If yours is too short, restructure it and add more tightly written stuff. We will never ask the writer for an investment or to pay any part of the cost of being published. Im going to go through my process of setting up my documents, and how I use Word to manage big novels with large chapter structures. Obviously, my point is not that you should submit a first book of anywhere near 200,000 words. Here's how to write a book using Microsoft Word. 4. Highlightyour chapter headings, then style them as Headings from themenu, and theyll appear in the headings navigation menu on the left hand side. There will be no charts, pictures or tables in it. Every page of text should have a header with your last name, the manuscript title (or just key words from it), and the page number. Book formatting may seem like a boring or superficial aspect of manuscript submission, but proper manuscript formatting is a crucial indicator of whether or not your editor, reader, or literary agents will take your work seriously. That way you get through it. Another useful touch is to add a header with your surname, the books title, and page numbers. Send your manuscript as one Word document (.doc /.docx) The reason for Times New Roman or Courier is their legibility. Next, select the second option in the Settings group. But I wonder if you could help or point me in the direction of how to setup Word 2016 for my Nonfiction book? Double-space your text. Stick with a simple font, like Times New Roman or Courier. Having a page reference is helpful when editors and authors correspond. One final tip: I save all my files in this style of structure so I dont send the wrong draft to publishers: Now that you know how to format your manuscript correctly in Microsoft Word, you know your work will appear professional to editors, agents and publishers. J.K. Rowlings record-breaking series began with two titles on the high end of that spectrum and finished with five that left the guidelines in the dust. After all, in the past, all literary works were drafted freehand. Preface Manuscript pages without bleed or margins. But its important to know that these are not hard and fast rules. Theyre both really easy fonts on the eye, rather than having an editor squinting over your manuscript in Papyrus. Too easy. Some recommend using hyphens or spaces, but slashes are typical as such: Smith / My Manuscript / 23. Id recommend checking them out as there are a lot of authors in those groups willing to share their experiences. Like any fun trip, the coordinates may change a bit, but by having them you'll be able to get Just be careful not to get too far afield, and remember that a great idea and good writing trumps all. Thanks Vanessa! First, Id ask the publisher for a sample or template of what they want, that way you know exactly how they want it formatted. And Ive never found a bad book short enough. Start the header (or footer) on page two. On the high end are novels like Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (119,394), Schindlers List by Thomas Keneally (134,710), and War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy (587,287). Then you just have to distinguish between even and odd pages. Write the beginning sentence and last sentence to each chapter. Optimal font sizes for legibility are 12pt for Times New Roman, 10pt for Arial and 12pt for Helvetica. To place page numbers in Word, double-click within the header area of the page on which your story begins and click Insert > Page Numbers, then select your preferred options. Victorianoir is longlisted for the Debut Dagger (and some stuff about my new book), What to do when you dont feel like writing, Times New Roman or Courier font (I personally prefer Times), First line of each paragraph hanging (indented), Your name/story title/page number in the top right hand corner. Apparently a good opportunity to learn. More information can be found, Click the Home tab in the upper left corner, Click Save As and select the folder you want your manuscript in, Click on Options, in the same window (dont save yet! And whatever you do, never send your editor individual chapters as separate files. And if youre feeling overwhelmed, take it one chunk at a time if Im editing, Ill do three chapters at a time and then take a break. The first alone has sold more than 120 million copies, and the rest have sold at least 65 million each. It needs to be readable on all platforms like computer, mobile phone, ipad etc One of the most common questions writers ask me: How long should my manuscript be?, Well, different publishers look for different lengths for different genres. Word. DoI create a paperback from an A4 manuscript? Also research publishing houses submission guidelines. Take this free assessment now and learn to unlock your true potential. Saving your Word manuscriptas an ISO-standardized PDF: Book Cover Design for Self-Published Work: A Beginners Guide, How to Self-Publish Your Book: An Overview by Mybestseller, Standard book size: 5.38.5 (135mm x 215mm), Standard book size 2: 6.19.3 (155mm x 235mm), Square size small: 6.16.1 (155mm x 155mm), Square size large: 7.97.9 (200mm x 200mm), article on how to choose a font for your book, Promoting Your Book: Social Media Marketing for Authors, Self-Publishing on Mybestseller: A Step-by-Step Guide. Make every word count and never let your total result from needless words. The word manuscript comes from the Latin for "handwritten." It might be helpful to look up some of the formatting for more academic papers to get an idea of how to format an index and bibliography, as Im not an expert. This is particularly useful if you are writing non-fiction with multiple sub-sections, as you can use sub-headings to manage it in the navigation menu. But sometimes its hard to figure out how you should format and manage your manuscript in Word, especially if youre new to writing books and novels. You can also use section breaks to add a preface, introduction etc. A drop-down menu will appear, presenting a few different printing-style options. Double-spacing makes your manuscript easier to read. But most importantly it shows you are a professional who knows that double-spacing is the standard. Editors see through fluff in seconds. Print Your Book or Booklet. If you need more words, they should come from more well-written scenes. Most important, especially if youre worried about your manuscript being too short, is to still keep your scenes tight, direct, well edited, and well honed. Once youve finished composing your book, its time for printing. Similarly, teaching materials are rarely published in your standard A (UK) or pocket book (US) format. My publisher has given me instructions regards Fonts, line spacing and the basic requirements. But rules are made to be broken, and the most successful publishing phenomenon in history did just that. . Because its simple theres no distracting features, just you and the page. Normally if I was formatting a book for print Id do it in InDesign, which has a lot more tools for indexing (although its a steep learning curve so youre probably better off in Word). Want to download this infographic to share and reference whenever you like? Download General Submission Guidelines-V4 Word .doc with guidelines inserted, but needed to be deleted, and includes styles built-in Left Hand Publishers is NOT a vanity press. Book manuscript. Using headings means that you can navigate quickly between chapters. (visit here for how to format your manuscript.). Word makes setting up a manuscript easy with templates. Feeling a bit excited yet overwhelmed at the prospect! You therefore need to adapt your manuscript to the format of the desired book. Much like a road trip, your goal of each chapter is to get from point A to point B.
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