How to format your MS

How to format your MS – kids books to YA fiction – standards – no matter whether email or print

When submitting your book manuscript to send to an agent or a publisher there are guidelines you need to follow in order for it not to end up in the rejection pile without a chance. Some agents will state their own specific guidelines on their website, so you should always double check there first because if you don’t do your research on the specific agent you’re submitting to they likely won’t even look at it.

What I prefer to do is just format my manuscript the way it should be as I’m writing so that I don’t have to change it later. Also, it makes it much easier to edit because I always print to edit and it leaves room for notations.

But, that being said, you can use any font you want and format any way you want when you’re writing, but be sure that you change it all all before submitting it.

For most agents and publishers your manuscript should follow these simple guidelines to get you started. First, never use any fancy fonts or colors other than black, no matter how unique or creative you think it might look, it’s never a good idea.

Always use simple fonts such as Courier or Times New Roman, but make sure you check because most agents will have a strong preference. Arial is sometimes an acceptable font to use, though some people will say to never use it. Personally, I hate Courier – hate isn’t even a strong enough word, and if I receive a file to edit in Courier the first thing I do is change it, but there are many agents and publishers who still prefer it.

Always use 12 point for your font size and double space the whole text, without an extra space between paragraphs and with the exception of the synopsis.

Something I’m still having quite a bit of difficulty with is the single space between sentences. I have Word set to check that within my Spelling/Grammar tools so that I don’t slip up.

Each paragraph should be indented by .5” which can easily be set in Word in Format —> Paragraph. Don’t ever use the Tab or Space key to indent your paragraphs. Each chapter should also begin indented.

Always set your margins for 1” on all sides and double space your manuscript, with page numbers beginning after the title page. Each page should also have a header on the right that includes your name and the title of your book in all caps or regular text, starting on the second page just as page numbers. Often you can just add your last name if your name is long, and just the main words of your title if it’s also long. A good way to format this is to add a slash between so that it looks like this: Last name / Book Title / page number

For the title page, the first page of your manuscript, you should have your name, not your pen name, and contact information in the upper left and the genre and word count, rounded to the nearest thousand, in the upper right, both single spaced. Then space down the page to about 1/3 or 1/2 of the way, centered, and put your title in all caps, skip two spaces, add the word “by”, skip two spaces and add your name or pen name if you’re using one.

Every chapter should begin a new page one half to one third of the way down the page and the title should be centered in all caps. It also makes it easier to include the chapter number such as: Chapter 4 — The Title, with a hyphen between.

Now add your manuscript with left alignment, never right justification.

Any text that should be in italics, just simply put it in italics. There is no longer a need to underline words that should be italicized as it used to be.

At the ending of the story it’s a good idea to add “The End” in the center of the last page to be sure the whole story is there and nothing is missing.

When submitting your manuscript, likely through email, always include it as an attachment in Word doc. or docx. format. Never paste your manuscript into the query portion of the email, even if it’s a short children’s book.

If you don’t have Word you can download a copy of OpenOffice.org for free.

To Recap:

One inch margins
Left align
Simple font: 12 point, in black, Courier or Times New Roman font – check guidelines for whomever you’re submitting to

Title Page:

• Real Name, Contact Info – upper left – single spaced
• Genre, Word Count – upper right
• One half to One third down the page, centered – Title – in all CAPS
• Double space – “by” – Double space – Name or Pen name, also centered

Book Text:

• Same Font, Margin, and Align rules
• Single space between sentences
• Chapters start one third of the way down – CHAPTER 1 — THE BANK – in all caps, with title separated by a hyphen
• Begin chapter text 4-6 spaces after Chapter Title
• Auto Indent set for One Half Inch
• Indent even first Paragraph of each chapter
• Entire text Double Spaced – no extra between paragraphs
• Every Chapter begins on a New Page
• Header in upper right – Name / Book Title / Page Number – beginning on the first page after the title page
• “The End” to finalize the end of the story

Always use these guidelines, unless your agent or publisher has other specifications, even for a children’s book. Some people often think it’s silly to follow this format especially for a children’s picture book, but even if it’s only 200 words, you need to follow the same guidelines.

With picture books there’s always a question of whether to submit artwork with the manuscript and my suggestion has always been to submit samples in a separate file, though it always depends on your agent or publisher’s guidelines.

For a children’s picture book it’s never a good idea to submit completed illustrations because neither you or the agent, necessarily, know what size will be required by the publisher, so that’s why you should only submit samples in the first place.

Also, for children’s picture books it’s a good idea to plan for a standard 32 page format.

One thing to always keep in mind is don’t worry or fret too much about your manuscript format. The guidelines are simple and as with everything else, one person swears by this and another swears by that. Personally, I don’t swear by anything because things always change and everyone has different preferences. If the agent or publisher doesn’t have specific guidelines on their website, these manuscript guidelines are fairly standard and should be perfectly fine for anyone.