Hi wonderful community, I have a two part question about formal formatting of a novel that's getting ready to be published. 1. What are the formal formatting rules for a novel? - Is there a standard for typeface, font size, line breaks, margins and other formatting rules that are universal requirements for a novel? - Do these differ between various book formats? (PDF, Kindle, Epub etc.) For someone who mostly writes in Microsoft Word how does one keep the formatting valid for these other formats? 2. What content must always be present in a novel for it to be valid for publishing? e.g. Index, introduction, preface, some copyright blurb etc. etc. etc.
Standard Manuscript Format requires 12pt font size, Times New Roman (or Courier), 1 inch margins all the way around. there is more to it, and you will find an example manuscript if you follow the hyperlink. Even though it's a visual example of how to set up a manuscript, I also recommend you read the sample essay, because it walks you through other formatting items (I didn't realize this until later... i thought it was random text they used to show a sample paper ) Kindle and Epub have their own formatting that (I've been told) comes with the software. Word is pretty much set up for SMF (at least the margins are). You would have to manually change your font and text size. Although, I'm pretty sure there is a way to set a default so that it always opens in the format you want. As to other details, like headers, title spacing, double spacing, etc.... those, you will have to do each time. I tend to just write out my first draft in whatever format I open the document in. then once I'm DONE writing, I format it all. It makes it easier to do it all at once, vs pausing every so often to format/reformat/check the format. if you are still talking about formatting... it depends. If you are seeking an agent, SMF would suffice. the agent will have an editor look over your manuscript and then you will go from there. Also, some agents want different formats. I encountered an agent that didn't want Times New Roman font, and, in lieu of scene breaks, wanted "###" to signify a scene change (that was super annoying to have to go through my whole manuscript and either add the "###" or change the "***"). if you are self-publishing, you'd have to meet the parameters of the software you are using... but ultimately, you have the autonomy to do what you want.
Thank you J.T. Woody for all of the information. That was very useful! I'm also leaning in this direction. What genre do you write in? Can you please share a link to your work?
No problem. my manuscript WIPs are SFF but I seem to be having more success with literary and speculative short fiction. You can read some of them on my publication page
This term seems a bit repetetiviely redundant. It's like saying 'real reality,' or 'dim darkness.' But at least you didn't ask what form of formal formatting you should use, and if it needs to be formed in any particular format. Sorry, I couldn't resist. Ok, to say something that might actually be helpful—I believe when you're ready to submit a manuscript somewhere they'll tell you exactly how they want it formatted. I believe you write it up in whatever way seems right to you to begin with, as raw material, and then make formatted versions for each place you submit it to according to their instructions.
Formal formatting implies an existence of a standard, the contrast to which would be casual formatting where requirements are less strict. Perhaps this will work with traditional publishing. But it would be good to know if there is likewise a standard when self publishing to use as a guide when one is not guided by the instructions of others.
