10 Tips for Perfect Manuscript Formatting

Editors, publishers, and agents receive countless manuscripts every single day. If your manuscript is somewhere in that pile, you will want it to stand out and attract the attention it deserves—but you certainly don’t want to get noticed for the wrong reasons. The first thing any reader will notice about your manuscript is its overall appearance, and the kind of sloppy appearance that results from inattention to formatting makes a bad first impression. The formatting and appearance of your manuscript may not have much to do with the quality of your writing, but if you are trying to get published, you will want to convey quality and professionalism in every aspect of your work. Follow these tips to create a sharp-looking manuscript.
1. Choose a simple font and stick with it. You can’t go wrong with 12-point Times New Roman. I know, there are a prettier, more exciting fonts out there, but publishers and agents are not going to bother straining their eyes to read your beautiful script font; they will move on to the next candidate.
2. Double-space your document by using the paragraph-formatting features in your word processor. It is worth taking the time to learn how to do this. Do not use two hard returns between lines or paragraphs unless you have a reason for doing so (i.e., a scene break).
3. Do not use two spaces between sentences. Many of us learned to type on typewriters, and we were told to leave two spaces between each sentence, but with word processing programs this is no longer necessary. One space will do.
4. Do not hit the enter key at the end of every line (unless you’re writing poetry). This is another habit held over from typewriter days. With word processing programs, you can continue to type happily along and the text will automatically shift to the next line when necessary.
5. Insert a hard return (hit the enter key) at the end of a paragraph or when you want to start a new line. Do not hit the space bar or tab key repeatedly to force the cursor to the next line. I’ve spent many hours cleaning up manuscripts whose authors were apparently unaware of the function of the enter key (hours that would have been better spent working on the words in the manuscript). Similarly, do not use the tab key or space bar to create centered or right-justified text. Use the paragraph-formatting features on your word processor instead. If you don’t know how to use these features, learn. It is really very simple and will actually save you time in the end.
6. Indent the first line of each paragraph by hitting the tab key or setting your paragraph formatting to “first line indent.”
7. Try to use part numbers, chapter numbers, and subheadings consistently. I’ve read many a book with a Part II but no Part I (or vice versa) or Chapter 1 and CHAPTER II, closely followed by Chapter Five. This kind of inconsistency suggests that perhaps you haven’t put much thought into this project.
8. Do not manually type page numbers or headers onto every page. Instead, learn how to use your word processor to insert the headers and page numbers automatically. Learning to use these features will save you time.
9. Put this information on the first page of your document: The title (and subtitle, if applicable), the word count, the genre, and your name and contact information. Also, name your file with your last name and the title of your manuscript (i.e., Andrews—My Life Story).
10. And most importantly, if you are submitting to a publisher or agent who requires you to follow specific formatting procedures, forget everything I just told you and follow their guidelines to the letter!