Story Sensei

Jeris asked: I'm in the process of formatting my novel and need to know whether the entire manuscript is saved as one file or separate files within a folder. I started to save it as one file, but realized the header wouldn't be correct--"Chapter One" wouldn't work with the other chapters. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Also, are there any helps when using Word 2007? Camy here: Yes, your entire manuscript should be saved as one file. That will make it easier for an editor or agent if they want the electronic version of your manuscript. Some agents/editors actually prefer the electronic version, although some want the electronic version as just a supplement to the hard copy version, and they ask you to send both. Your header should simply be your name, the title of the manuscript, and the page number. Check out my manuscript formatting article for more info on that. Don't put the chapter number in the header. For Word 2007, I have found a lot...

When do I use italics in first person POV? The beauty of first person is that it’s immediate. It’s like constantly being in the person’s head, constantly hearing their direct thoughts. In third person POV, direct thoughts are indicated by italics. For example: This is from Only Uni . My heroine, Trish, has just showed up for a New Year’s party. Here’s the original with lots of italics. She glanced down at her dress. Well, at least the cut makes me look curvier and slender at the same time. Ha! I love how well-tailored clothes ensure I don’t have to work as hard to look good. She kicked off her sandals— Oh look, my toes have turned blue from the cold —and they promptly disappeared in the sea of shoes filling the foyer. She swatted away a flimsy paper dragon drooping from the doorframe and smoothed down her skirt. She snatched her hand back and wrung her fingers behind her. Here’s the revised version: At least the expert cut of her dress made her rather average figure curvier and more sl...