#manuscript format

[lanceschaubert]

How do I use Shunn Manuscript Format?

Bill Shunn not long ago released a piece on manuscript format due to what seems to have been a dearth in standardization at the time. His guide has come to be known as Shunn Manuscript format. Some, for whatever reason, found his guide hard to find — or hard to follow — so I’m writing my own in deference to his. What is Shunn manuscript format? Considering how much editors make, Shunn…

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[alchemist-project]

Before sending your novel out to potential agents and publishers, be sure it's sent in the standard manuscript format by following these guidelines.

A brief guide to proper manuscript formatting from Writer's Digest.

[gaiabamman]

How to be a writer post 9. Manuscript formatting.

Formatting is essential. If your formatting is off you might look like a rookie and be discarded as unprofessional and unprepared. Worse, your writing might not be as clear as you thought. Do your research!

1-Different outputs have different requirements. If you want to self-publish research how to make your kindle book or paper back look professional. Most writers first have their work as a manuscript. A manuscript is a version of your work easy to share with agents, publishers and other writers for peer review.

2-General manuscript format. Times New Roman, type 12, double spaced, 1 inch page margins. A title page including your real name, address, e-mail and phone number, the word counts of your work, the name and number of your agent (if you have one!) The title of your manuscript.  A header on each page of the manuscript that looks like this AUTHORLASTNAME/TITLE/PAGENUMBER for example AMMAN/AN ITALIAN ADVENTURE/1. The title page should not be numbered or included in your page count. Check out the guidelines from the writer’s digest.

 I know you love your funky handwriting type, but your manuscript needs to conform unless a specific agent or publisher asks otherwise (like size 14 in place of 12). Agents, writers and publishers spend their days reading. Show respect! They need easy to read types that won’t make their eyes fall off their sockets. Don’t give them a reason to trash your manuscript before even starting to read it.

3-Paragraphs. Rookies leave white spaces everywhere. You should not. Change paragraph (new line) when:

    -A new character speaks

    -You start a new thought

    -You change scene (see below)

I personally love short paragraphs (two or three lines). These look like a third of a page on a kindle and I like to avoid big blocks of text. If you start a new paragraph you either leave a white space (uncommon) or you start the new paragraph 0.5 inches to the right.

Example: 

4-Scenes. A change of scene is necessary if the narration moves to a different place or if a good amount of time goes by. In this case you need to leave a white line or more commonly a white line with the # symbol centered on it. When the book will be published this will be replaced with prettier symbols.

5-Trailing white spaces and lines. You need a space after every word. There used to be a time when two spaces where required after a period, that time is gone. Get rid of extra spaces. Scrivener will do that for you.

6-Thoughts. If your narration has a first person POW (see post 7) you need to differentiate between narration, the things your main character says in “quotes”, and the things your character thinks. This will be italicized. 

Example:

I entered the room and saw Ugly Face Chuck rummaging through my schoolbag. “Back off!” Scumbag.

         Narration, “said” thought

7-Foreign words will also be italicized.

8-Words that you want to stress because said with emphasis or with an ironic tone will be italicized or more commonly underlined in a manuscript format.

9-Footnotes are to be avoided at all cost in fiction. Integrate the essential information into the text, unless you’re James Joyce, then go right ahead.

10-Covers and illustrations. If you are thinking to self-publish (I will have a different post on self publishing versus traditional publishing) you will have to find an artist to draw your illustrations or provide them yourself, but if you are looking for an agent or publisher do not provide a cover or an illustration! Very likely they will want to choose them for you. If they are interested in your work this will be a conversation for later. Do not send illustrations with your manuscript unless they are an integral part of your work.

11-Title. This is a tough one. The title has to convey the mood and genre of your story, be catchy and unique. Possibly the title will reveal a second meaning midway through the book. A perfect title is “I’ll give you the sun” it sounds like a bit of romance, whimsical, intense and midway through the book…well, I’ll let you find out. Short title are easier to remember. That said the “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” is one of my favorite books, but every time I want to write the title down I have to google it.

12-Commas. According to grammar, commas go in a lot of places and you should learn all the proper rules of placement by doing your research. That said, the latest trend is to use as few commas as possible (this will depend on your taste and the taste of the readers of course) and I agree. Commas should ease reading not be in the way. If you don’t know what an Oxford comma is, you need to research punctuation more ;)

That’s it for now! Thank you for reading. You can find my other posts on how to be a writer under #GBA be a writer

Reblog and write happily ^_^

GBA

[nerisverboten-blog]

[redabiz2]

10 steps to do manuscript format

How to Format a Manuscript When the time comes to agree your manuscript to a publisher, whether it is a fiction or non-fiction segment of work, you don't want it to get refused because of its format. Some publishers may even reject a poorly formatted manuscript before reading it because they consider it reflects a poor approach on the writer's part. It is important to follow a standard formatting process to assist your editor in reading quickly and without confusion. -Step 1 : Set your folio up so that you have 1 inch margins (2.54 cm) on the left, right, top, and bottom of each page. -Step 2 : Use a 12 point type, readable font. The most popular are Courier New and Times New Roman. Refrain from using a Sans Serif font, as they are more difficult to read. Do not mix fonts; choose only one to alleviate a chaotic look. -Step 3 : Double space your lines so that your manuscript is easy to read. This is a standard manuscript format that also allows editors to add notes to your work. -Step 4 : Indent your paragraphs by 1/2 inch (1.27 cm), and do not add a space before each new paragraph. You should also indent the first line of all dialogue, unless it is the same character speaking after short descriptive text. -Step 5 : Align your text to the left. The eye reads from left to right, so left-justifying your text makes it easier on the eyes. Editors often refer to this as a "ragged right margin." -Step 6 : Type only one space in between sentences. When typewriters were primarily used instead of computers, writers often typed two spaces, but this is no longer standard. -Step 7 : Begin each chapter on a new page, and start approximately halfway down. A correctly formatted manuscript also includes the chapter title or number. -Step 8 : Incorporate running headers across the top of each page, approximately 1/2 inch (1.27 cm) from the top. Include your last name, the manuscript title, and the page number, and make sure they are all separated by a forward slash. Make the running header distinguishable from the manuscript text, but not so much so that it is overpowering. For example, you could bold or capitalize each letter of the header. -Step 9 : Include a cover page with your fiction or non-fiction manuscript. Include the manuscript title, your name, agent contact information, if applicable, your contact information, and the word count. Center this information with a space in between each line. Always round your word count to the nearest 100 words. -Step 10 : Print your manuscript on a 20 lb (75 g) minimum, 8 1/2 x 11 (or A-4), bright white, stock. Always use black ink, and print on just one side of your paper. Never staple your pages or use paper that is three hole punched. via Write a Book with REDA http://ift.tt/16AmewG 10 steps to do manuscript format, manuscript, manuscript format

[charming-gremlin]

The official site for Hugo and Nebula Award nominated science fiction writer William Shunn. Contains stories, essays, games, and deconstructions of Mormon theology.

Useful info

[alatteandasippycup]

Manuscript format?

So I'm working on something for publication, and I'm not sure how to format it. I want to start it out formatted right so that I don't have to go back and tweak it later. It will be a novel, not a short piece, so I'm lost when it comes to format. Help?

[Bonus question: I live in the Los Angeles area, what's the best way to go about getting my worked published?]

[theotherdomdriver]

Soldiering On

A single rejection soiling my inbox isn't enough to keep me down. Stanley Labasco is winging his way off to publication number two as we speak. It's pretty nerve-wracking to click that 'send' button. Since I vowed to open my stories up to the world, I've found out all about standard manuscript formatting. Yes, folks, work that is submitted is required to be a certain font and size, and margins, headers, footers, indents and all the other foibles of Machiavellian typesetting convention must be precisely reproduced, otherwise said work is immediately shunned and dumped in the nearest shit-pile.

And it is this that sets my nerves a-jangling. I know I've re-read the story about two-hundred times, I know my spell-checker works, I know I can't think of any better metaphors without getting too floral, but have I made sure all the indents are exactly 1-centimetre? Did I set line-spacing to double? Did I spell my own name correctly? This paranoia has probably induced heart attacks on more than one occasion.

However, I can see that it would also provide an excellent salve to a bruised ego when the piece of work comes back with its tail between its legs. "Oh, it probably wasn't accepted because I got the standard header wrong! It couldn't possibly be because my story is a bit crap!" At least, that's what I'll claim after a few more knock-backs.

By the way, editing of 'Displacement' is continuing apace. I think I might hit that Friday deadline after all!