The Ultimate Layout

[Sylvetra_Snake]

Just asking around to make sure i am getting it right what the final copy of my novel should look like when i send it to publishers, along with the covering letter and the synopsis.

Manuscript =
12 fonts like Time New Roman, Courier New or Arial.
Double spaced (a full blank line under each sentence so editors can write down notes).
Have pages numbered with name and book title in a footer.
Have chapter titles slightly different to standard formatting to seperate them.
White A4 paper with no holes, marks, borders or clips of any kind.
Paragraphs with slight indent.

Synopsis =
12 font again
Not double spaced as it has to really fit into one or two pages, unless the publisher asks for more.
Brief explanation of what happens in similar style to book but more direct to events.

Covering Letter =
12 font again
Have it in a letter template of some kind.
Brief intro about word count, possible sequels (part of series etc), and intro about self.

Also, what is the feel about Pseudonyms? I am in two minds whether to have one or not.

Last but not least, when fully packed and ready to be posted, make sure the letter has reply envelope enclosed with sufficient stamps, and that it is addressed to the right person at the company.

This is what i will follow at the moment but i would like to hear other points of view in case i got anything wrong. I really want my novel to have a good chance, it isn't my first novel, it is more like my eighth i think since i was 16.

 

[Erin99]

Well, I can direct you on one or two points:

Manuscript =
12 fonts like Time New Roman, Courier New or Arial. Not Arial. I've never read an agency/editor who's asked for that if they're reading your manuscript pages. Unless, of course, they specify. An agent's preferences should always be followed rather than the standard rules, if they've stated what they require. From what I've read, the standard font is Courier New, because it's a mono-spaced font and each letter takes up the same width, so it's easier on the eyes.
Double spaced (a full blank line under each sentence so editors can write down notes). Yes.
Have pages numbered with name and book title in a footer. No. Page numbers go at the top right, in the header, and your title and name should go at the top left (e.g. Harry Potter/JK Rowling).
Have chapter titles slightly different to standard formatting to separate them. I've no idea if this is necessary, but I do. I set mine to size 14 font.
White A4 paper with no holes, marks, borders or clips of any kind. Yes. Very important.
Paragraphs with slight indent. Yes. The standard is 0.5 inches.

Synopsis =
12 font again Yes.
Not double spaced as it has to really fit into one or two pages, unless the publisher asks for more. Yes.
Brief explanation of what happens in similar style to book but more direct to events. Teresa has a great post on this, if you check her author section. Oh, and some of us have discussed this here recently as well: http://www.sffchronicles.co.uk/forum/45490-submitting-the-covering-letter-and-synopsis.html.

Covering Letter =
12 font again Yes.
Have it in a letter template of some kind. Yes.
Brief intro about word count, possible sequels (part of series etc), and intro about self. In regards to an intro about yourself, make sure the details are relevant when you mention past work; e.g. My book explores the nature of humanity, and I work as a psychologist... blah blah...

Also, you need a brief hook for your novel. What makes it stand out? What difficulties face your character? Etc.

And John Jarrold mentioned pseudonyms in his thread recently, if you check that.

Good luck and keep persevering!

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Speaking as someone who is currently writing her books under a pseudonym, a pen-name is an inconvenience best avoided unless you have a compelling reason to use one.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

Thanks for the advice! I will sort the formatting when i have finished typing up, it will probably help me find all the mistakes, not that there will be many but there always seems to be one or two, i have even found mistakes or typos in books bought at the shop, proves it can be difficult to get every single one.

I just want to ask one final thing. Speech Marks. I use ' ' for speech and " " for quotes. I have read many books and they either use the speech marks this way or the opposite way. Does it matter which way i use them?

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

It's a British/American English question, not a quotation/dialogue thing. The English use single quotes, and the Americans double. Whichever you use, you need to be consistent. The only exception is if you have a quotation inside a bit of dialogue; then you use the other kind of marks to set it off.

So in British it would be ' " " '

And in American it would be " ' ' "

But otherwise you treat quotations and dialogue the same way.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

Thanks, that's great cos i ike the single quotation marks. Don't know why i just do. Just love writing to be honest.

 

[chopper]

probably personal preference, but i've always used " for dialogue - i've never seen it as american, as such

 

[Ian Whates]

probably personal preference, but i've always used " for dialogue - i've never seen it as american, as such

It did however start as Teresa has indicated with a very distinct differential between the British and American conventions. These days it's less clear cut, with many British publishers adopting the US convention of double quotation marks for speech and singles for reported speech.

Must confess that, like you, Chopper, I've always felt more comfortable with the double quotations (perhaps because I read more US books than British when I was growing up? Who knows?) Therefore, when I started editing and publishing anthologies myself, that's the system I adopted.

As Teresa states, consistency in whichever system you settle on is the important thing.

 

[chopper]

as a thought, " " looks more immediate onscreen.

 

[Donna Scott]

I always used double quotation marks for speech because that's what I was taught in school... as an editor/proofreader I have to look at the style guide of the publisher I am working with, but more often than not, this is not something the publishing house will be checking on with unsolicited manuscripts. They will expect whatever convention you use to be used consistently throughout your ms.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

For my novel, i have drawn a map but i do not know if i should send it with the submission, and whether it should be in black and white or colour.

Just over 94,000 words sadly, still need some more words to make it a complete and publishable novel.

 

[John Jarrold]

94,000 isn't bad - as I've often said, I offer guidelines, not hard and fast rules, on length. 70,000 would be far too short! Personally, I would not include any illustrations, including maps. If the publisher really, really likes your book, that can come later.

Quote marks can be single or double, as long as they are consistent.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

Thanks! I now have 97,000 lol. Managed to throw another chapter in explaining a loose end. So close yet so far. I may be tempted to go and send it as it is. The first ten pages are great, all flows nicely and i have some very likeable characters and relationships. Father and son-in-law situation springs to mind. Always good to throw in a few family issues into a fantasy adventure, gives the characters personality so to speak, well i think so. I am now going to have to do the nasty thing called the synopsis and covering letter.

 

[John Jarrold]

Always good to welcome someone else from Lincolnshire!!! Best of luck.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

Just wondering what font to put the synopsis in. Courier New, or Times New Roman like the covering letter. Should i put my name etc on it with my address and book title etc and where? Actually might be ready to send it off soon. I might have to start being awake again at my day job lol.

I finally braved the ordeal and did the thing! I have done them in the past and they have always been something i have stumbled badly on. I have followed some points i have found on this forum and elsewhere and i think i finally understand what it is all about.

It is like a summary crossed with the back-cover blurb, to make it informative, engaging and above all short! My current synopsis is just under 500 words long and keeps with the main plot, pretty much dismissing the sub-plots and the other bits and characters.

 

[John Jarrold]

Just wondering what font to put the synopsis in. Courier New, or Times New Roman like the covering letter. Should i put my name etc on it with my address and book title etc and where? Actually might be ready to send it off soon. I might have to start being awake again at my day job lol.

You're micro-managing unnecessarily. It's the writing that matters. Put everything in one font!!! Just stick the name and title at the top of the page, centred if you like, then leave a gap before the synopsis begins. none of this will make any difference to whether or not you are taken on, only the writing.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

Thanks. Now i am looking for agents to try. I may try for publishers directly but agents can help certainly.

 

[Sylvetra_Snake]

Impatience is a virtue isn't it...?

I have started the second book already. There will be a bit of poetry in the second as well, which will have the same feel and it will fit into the story. I reckon this will be a trilogy, it certainly is heading that way. Might be more books, but for the moment, that is how far i see this story going. Yay! More sleepless nights!

 

[Barney]

Here's another formatting question -

I was taught at school that you should use 2 spaces after a full stop before the next word, and the standard 1 space after any other punctuation mark. So like a good boy I always do exactly that.

Is this rule true, and is this what publishers do when typesetting books?

I don't know how these conventions emerge, we need a parliament of punctuationists to debate the matter and hand down accredited guidelines!

 

[Erin99]

I was taught at school that you should use 2 spaces after a full stop before the next word, and the standard 1 space after any other punctuation mark. So like a good boy I always do exactly that.

I'd be interested in the answer to that, too. I did have double spaces in my manuscript, then yesterday I did a "Find and Replace" and removed them to one space each. I figure because John said agents and editors now don't require underlining to show italics, the same thing would be true in this case (that they're not required).