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Questions tagged [formatting]

Questions about text appearance: styling, placement, fonts, indents, bullets.

17 questions from the last 365 days
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Automating the checking of formatting issues

I'm taking a large number of documents that are in one format and using some tools to convert them into a different format. My concern is that some of the formatting could have been compromised during ...
Sander Smith's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
524 views

How to write a synopsis/query when the story has more than one POV

I’ve recently been trying to work on my query letter / synopsis for my historical fiction novel. There are 4 POVs. I was told once if your story has more than one pov, in your query letter/synopsis, ...
user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
54 views

Should I italicize brand names and song titles?

I'm doing the final edits to my book. I often refer to music and brand names of clothing worn to set the tone. My question is when mentioning a brand name or song and artist can I italicize the brand ...
aylisa alford's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
69 views

How to format a dialogue with quotes of poetry?

I'm working on a typeset of Dorothy L. Sayers' novel Clouds of Witness. Sometimes the characters will quote poetry when they're speaking: 'Hurray!' said Peter. 'Then downwards from the steep hill's ...
Nightsky's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
28 views

Formatting cover letter

This website gives several examples of cover letters. They typically begin: December 1, 2010 Miriam A. Nunberg Staff Attorney U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights 32 Old Slip, 26th ...
user389532's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
156 views

Screenplay formatting: How to get ~55 lines with 12 point Courier

All of the sources I've found suggest that screenplays use 1-inch margins on the top and bottom, 12-point Courier, 8.5" by 11" paper, and have approximately 55 lines per page. (From nfi.edu):...
Luke's user avatar
  • 25
-1 votes
1 answer
206 views

Multiple-paragraph block quotation

I'm currently working on editing an academic paper in APA-7 format for a friend. This paper has a multiple-paragraph block-quote in it (specifically, the entire text of the short manifesto "The ...
In Hoc Signo's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
131 views

How would you format dialogue that is in the middle of a sentence?

Below I will provide an example sentence in various forms to demonstrate what I mean. I want to see which punctuation is correct or most widely accepted. My assumption is an example will be correct ...
LED Fish Walker's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
467 views

How should I format a surprise scene change such that it reads coherently but is still a surprise?

In the current WIP chapter of my most popular web serial, there is a scene at the beginning that is presented as happening "now" (that is, having regular story focus) only to be suddenly ...
Ayula OneOne's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
41 views

When writting someone’s credentials in a text, is it capitalized?

I wrote "French egyptologist Jean Yoyotte suggested that, as Memphis already had a presence of Greek speakers, Herodotus could have used them to speak to the priesthood." Should I instead ...
Vincent Desrosiers's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
35 views

In a bibliography hanging indentation, what is the appropriate indentation amount?

According to the Chicago Manual of Style, a bibliography entry should be set in a hanging indentation (where the first line is set flush left, and subsequent lines are "indented"). My ...
ltcomdata's user avatar
  • 101
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1 answer
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Formatting poetry collection and formatting standards

What does the industry use? I thought about just copy pasting the lyrics into a file format and then appending them in one file, but I am wondering if most publisher use some kind of software to put ...
user avatar
3 votes
5 answers
576 views

Is there another, more formal, word for 'ride' in this circumstance?

Imagine a man standing by the highway, asking for a ride. Not a free ride like in hitchhiking, but a paid one. Is there another term for 'ride' that would better suit the situation here? Setting is a ...
EMS's user avatar
  • 233
0 votes
2 answers
156 views

I am using Utopia but I don't like the italic. Which free fonts have an italic version that goes well with utopia?

I am using Utopia (11 pt) for a non fiction book and I like it. But I don't like the italic, the quotes are not very readable. I tried many fonts in LibreOffice, but I didn't find a good match yet. I ...
FluidCode's user avatar
  • 113
1 vote
1 answer
36 views

How to format a section heading in a manuscript

I am preparing a short story for submission. As it is not a novel, there aren't chapters per se. But there are definitely distinct sections. Some of them might have titles, and/or associated quotes....
trubliphone's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
54 views

Should hyphens be used at the beginning of a line in compound nouns?

Is there a rule about using two hyphens at the end of the line and at the beginning of the next? How to hyphen compound word like Bat-Signal? Is it: Bat- / -Signal or Bat- / Signal
cri's user avatar
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0 votes
2 answers
70 views

Italicization of foreign common names of organisms in English texts?

I wonder when I write a formal text whether I should italicize the use of common names (not scientific names) in foreign languages. Example: The leaves of the supinosasumomo (スピノサスモモ) are on leaf ...
Tyrus Rechs's user avatar