Formatting a Novel in Microsoft Word

Authors, don’t you hate when you add or delete a chapter from your novel, and you have to re-number every chapter after that point?

Do you ever need to get a manuscript into a certain format, and you’re not sure how to do it? Or you get it just right, but then you have to start all over for the next book?

This video will show you…

• How to implement automatic chapter numbering, so the chapters renumber themselves when you slice and dice (or beef up) your manuscript!
• How to set up styles within Microsoft Word so your current manuscript and future ones look just like you want them to.

Hope it helps!

10-10-20: NOTES TO HELP YOU FURTHER

THOSE ANNOYING TABS:

MS Word will automatically put a Tab after your chapter heading, which can mess up the centering. This link tells you how to fix that on Microsoft Word 365 for Mac, the version I’m using: It’s different in Windows. Google it for your version of Word.

SCENE BREAKS/ORNAMENTAL BREAKS:

If you have ornamental breaks in your book (like *** at scene breaks), you’ll want to select “First Paragraph” style for those so there’s no indentation. Then just click the “Center” button to center your ornamental break. (Alternatively, you can create another Style that’s centered without any indentation, and call it “Scene Break.”)