Every manuscript should include

Here is an example of what a manuscript body text page looks like:. What is the difference between a manuscript and a book? A manuscript is a preliminary draft of your novel or short story , formatted for sending to editors and agents. A book is a finished product, the final draft — formatted, proofread, and ready to be published.

If readers crack open your book only to find weird margins, uneven rags on the ends of lines, widows and orphans, inconsistent spacing, distracting fonts, etc. Now you know how to format your manuscript for editors, agents, beta readers, publishers, etc.

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Skip to content. By Dave Chesson. Last updated on July 20th, Do I need to buy a formatting program to format my manuscript? In this article, you will learn: 13 formatting guidelines required to properly format your manuscript Technical help on how to format your manuscript in Microsoft Word The differences in manuscript vs. Pin 1.

When I am not fighting dragons or chasing the bogey man out of my kids closet, I like using my previous Online Optimization skills to help other authors with the 'technical' stuff and get the right authors to the top of Amazon and any other eBook service out there.

Related Posts. View More Posts. Sell more books on Amazon I want to sell more books. Interested in book marketing? Join the community Join , other authors who receive weekly emails from us to help them make more money selling books. MacGregor, I am formatting my novel.

After the title page, I have my dedication. Is the dedication page numbered as page one with the first page of the story as page 2? It is very helpful for first time author like me. I am getting ready to start what I hope will be my final draft of my book, and I want to change any formatting anomalies at the same time. My book is in four parts.

For the title page of each part, I have formatted it using the chapter format style, but it reads Part I centered followed by a double space and the title of that part centered and then two double spaced lines and a quote that relates the that part of the book. On the next page, the first chapter of that section begins and follows the formatting you suggest.

I do have the page number on the part pages as well. Does that sound like proper formatting? It is really helpful for a fresher like me. I will apply all your points to make my first manuscript. Such a pearl in an ocean. Your email address will not be published.

Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. You can also subscribe without commenting. Submit Comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. When to Format You may decide to format your manuscript when you start — or you may choose to do it once you finish. I often share my work-in-progress with other writers for critique and they expect to receive it in manuscript format.

Manuscript Format Basics These guidelines apply to the entire manuscript. Note: I find Times New Roman easier to read.

Font Color: Black Margins: 1 inch to 1. Title Page A novel manuscript requires a title page formatted in this manner [ click to see example ]: Contact information: In the top left corner, insert your name, address, phone number and email address.

Title: Centered one-third to one-half the way down the page Author: Centered one double-spaced line below the title. Example: by Dax MacGregor. Note: If you write using a pen name, show that here; but be sure to show your real name in the contact information above. Word Count: On finished manuscripts, you will need to place the word count centered one double-spaced line below your name. Round to the nearest thousand. Example: , words.

Chapter Title Pages A Chapter Title Page is formatted just like all other content pages, with the following exceptions [ click to see example ]: Page Break: Start each chapter on a new page. Chapter Title: Center the title about one-third to one-half the way down from the top Content Pages Format the main content of your manuscript per these guidelines.

Page Numbers: Pages are numbered continuously, with page one being the first page after the title page. Line Spacing: Double-spaced. Optionally, you may use three asterisks in place of the hash mark. Dialogue: Start a new paragraph every time you change speakers. Note: I have a separate page with details on how to format dialogue. Separation between sentences : One space.

I learned to type when two-spaces after each period was the rule. I still catch myself inserting extra spaces. Periodically, I do a global search-and-replace to eliminate them. Italics: Italicize The old school rule was to underline all italicized words. Use the format paragraph feature of your word processor. See image on the right. Your right margin should be ragged. Justifying creates uneven spacing between the words that makes it harder to read. Printing These days, agents and publishers will request manuscripts to be submitted electronically.

However, if you need to submit a paper version, be sure to: Use high-quality paper, 20 or 24 pound, with a brightness score in the high 90s. You want to make the right impression.

Single sided. Print your manuscript on a good quality printer, preferably a laser printer. Sample Title Page. Sample Chapter Title. Sample Content Page. How To Indent First Line. Jack on March 16, at pm. Jack Redlum Reply. Anon on March 27, at pm.

Casey on June 5, at pm. Lenna Wyatt on August 19, at pm. Pattie schardin on July 19, at am. Mandy Wallace on September 29, at am. Mkyonmibck on February 8, at pm. Nitish Raj on February 12, at pm. Dax MacGregor on February 12, at pm. Nitish, Requirements of each agent and publisher vary. Here is what Harlequin specifies: Your query letter should start on page 1 of your file. Also, your query letter should be no longer than one page and must include your complete name, your pen name if you write under one, email address, postal address and phone number, and your story pitch i.

Please include a synopsis between words. Your synopsis should provide an overview of your story—including the ending! Please note that your synopsis should start on page 2, and your manuscript should directly follow. Good luck! Dianna on March 31, at pm. Do you add a table of contents page?

If so, how to format. Also, can you add a foreword page? Dax MacGregor on April 2, at pm. Dianna, For novels, a table of contents in your manuscript is generally discouraged. Dax MacGregor on December 3, at pm. Is there any other? Becky on April 9, at pm. Dax MacGregor on April 16, at am.

Becky, The passage of time between paragraphs is a scene change and should be handled as noted above, by a single hash mark or three asterisks centered in the line that separates the paragraphs. Wade Gonsoulin on October 8, at am. You need to use their website form where you paste in your cover letter and synopsis and then attach your complete manuscript. Kensington Publishing Co. If they are interested, they will request more.

They want paper print on one side only, thank you. They ask for cover letter and complete manuscript no synopsis or sample chapters. Harlequin wants your query letter, synopsis and manuscript to be in one file with pages numbered consecutively, starting with the query letter. As you can see, there is no standard. Good luck. Sabrina Collins on June 2, at pm.

So do we underline or italicize all italicized words? Alex on July 5, at am. Notes about pronunciation of characters names can be included into the manuscript? Papers that are strong in all three of these categories are most likely to be accepted by JYI for publication.

Current Issue. Archived Issues. Special Issues. About the Conference. Featured Panels. Conference Schedule. Conference Archive. Get Involved. Submit Your Research. Join Our Team. Faculty Advisors. Sponsor Us. Recent Publications. Archived Research. Submit Research. Career Center. Our Team. What We Do. Our Mission. Our History. Blog Home. All Posts. Voices of JYI. Voices of the BoD. JYI Webinars. Contact Us. Title page The title page should: present a title that includes, if appropriate, the study design e.

The abstract must include the following separate sections: Background: the context and purpose of the study Methods: how the study was performed and statistical tests used Results: the main findings Conclusions: brief summary and potential implications Trial registration: If your article reports the results of a health care intervention on human participants, it must be registered in an appropriate registry and the registration number and date of registration should be in stated in this section.

If it was not registered prospectively before enrollment of the first participant , you should include the words 'retrospectively registered'. See our editorial policies for more information on trial registration Keywords Three to ten keywords representing the main content of the article. Background The Background section should explain the background to the study, its aims, a summary of the existing literature and why this study was necessary or its contribution to the field.

Methods The methods section should include: the aim, design and setting of the study the characteristics of participants or description of materials a clear description of all processes, interventions and comparisons. Generic drug names should generally be used. When proprietary brands are used in research, include the brand names in parentheses the type of statistical analysis used, including a power calculation if appropriate Results This should include the findings of the study including, if appropriate, results of statistical analysis which must be included either in the text or as tables and figures.

Discussion This section should discuss the implications of the findings in context of existing research and highlight limitations of the study. Conclusions This should state clearly the main conclusions and provide an explanation of the importance and relevance of the study reported.

List of abbreviations If abbreviations are used in the text they should be defined in the text at first use, and a list of abbreviations should be provided. Declarations All manuscripts must contain the following sections under the heading 'Declarations': Ethics approval and consent to participate Consent for publication Availability of data and materials Competing interests Funding Authors' contributions Acknowledgements Authors' information optional Please see below for details on the information to be included in these sections.

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article [and its supplementary information files]. Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.

The data that support the findings of this study are available from [third party name] but restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were used under license for the current study, and so are not publicly available. Data are however available from the authors upon reasonable request and with permission of [third party name]. Not applicable. If your manuscript does not contain any data, please state 'Not applicable' in this section. Competing interests All financial and non-financial competing interests must be declared in this section.

Please use the authors initials to refer to each authors' competing interests in this section. Funding All sources of funding for the research reported should be declared.

Authors' contributions The individual contributions of authors to the manuscript should be specified in this section. If you do not have anyone to acknowledge, please write "Not applicable" in this section. Authors' information This section is optional.

Footnotes Footnotes can be used to give additional information, which may include the citation of a reference included in the reference list. Always use footnotes instead of endnotes. References Examples of the Vancouver reference style are shown below. See our editorial policies for author guidance on good citation practice Web links and URLs: All web links and URLs, including links to the authors' own websites, should be given a reference number and included in the reference list rather than within the text of the manuscript.

Example reference style: Article within a journal Smith JJ. The world of science. Am J Sci. Complete book, authored Blenkinsopp A, Paxton P. Online document Doe J. Online database Healthwise Knowledgebase. University site Doe, J: Title of preprint.

Accessed 20 Feb Figures, tables and additional files See General formatting guidelines for information on how to format figures, tables and additional files. Editorial Board Instructions for Editors Instructions for authors Journal news Sign up for article alerts and news from this journal.

Follow Follow us on Twitter. Annual Journal Metrics Speed 71 days to first decision for reviewed manuscripts only 20 days to first decision for all manuscripts days from submission to acceptance 29 days from acceptance to publication Citation Impact 7.