Manuscript formatting using MS Word

Yes, I know, most people hate Microsoft Word, but I am in the minority – I quite like it and find it very useful!

At IndieMosh, we use two programs to lay out our books: Word and InDesign. Generally speaking, Word will do a damned good job 75% of the time, and we resort to InDesign only if there are lots of graphics, if the book requires a graphic ‘feel’ or there are specialised fonts involved.

I am currently writing a book titled How to format your manuscript for print using MS Word, but until that’s available (due out late 2016/early 2017), I am happy to still do the work for you. Then you’re on your own. (Joking! 🙂 )

Current rates at July 2016 are $55 per hour, including GST, Australian authors only. An edited novel under 100,000 words and with 20 chapters or less should take around 3-6 hours, depending on the complexity of formatting desired.  This includes headers, footers and a table of contents, but no indexing. Once I’ve formatted it, I’ll send you a PDF to look at for feedback. Once you’re happy with the format, I’ll send you a print-quality PDF to take to your printer, and also the final Word doc for your own records.

If you’d like some help to get your print manuscript licked into shape and looking pretty, please get in touch. Tell me a little bit about what you have planned or how you’d like it to look (e.g. if you have any preferred fonts, line spacing, alignment choices) and I’ll shoot you an email address to send it to so that I can quote you.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *