Basic Paragraph Formatting Question

[Homer Potvin]

A question for everybody, but particularly for those who submit regularly: how are you formatting your manuscripts these days? Do you use the newspaper style we do here, where the paragraphs aren't indented and there is the double or 1.5 space between paragraphs, or do you use the traditional indented paragraph thing, like what you find in almost every printed book? Doing my November thing today, I figure I should get it right the first time. Whatever "right" means.

 

[X Equestris]

All my manuscripts follow the standard Shunn Manuscript Format, so .5 inch first line indents (made with paragraph settings, not tabs), double-spaced, left-aligned, no extra spaces between paragraphs.

Only time I deviate from this is when a publisher specifically asks for it, and even then, I usually just write in the standard manuscript format, make the alterations afterward, and save them as a separate file.

 

[Set2Stun]

Yep, I can second the above. Shunn is pretty universal across agent submissions, indie pubs, and magazines/anthologies. There are a handful of places that want some weird specifics that deviate from this, but it's rare.

The really annoying thing is if you end up self-publishing and have to reformat the whole damn thing. Though to be fair, it only takes a few (annoying and sometimes frustrating) hours of work.

 

[CatrionaGrace]

Me third, at least when I'm submitting fiction. For nonfiction periodical pieces, I eliminate the indent unless otherwise instructed.

 

[Naomasa298]

Another one for Shunn SMF. 1.5 spacing, paragraphs properly indented, not with tabs. I'll use fixed width fonts if they absolutely demand it (and some do), but mostly variable width, and left-justified. It's pretty ubiquitous across the publishing industry now.

For reference:

Modern Manuscript Format | William Shunn

Manuscript format for fiction writers, the way the professionals do it. It's the online formatting guide more editors point to than any other. Created by Hugo and Nebula Award nominated author William Shunn.

www.shunn.net