Manuscript Format

Freelancer's Guide to
Manuscript Preparation and Submission
Courtesy of ByLine magazine

Most editors are basically kind, hard-working people who strive to treat writers fairly. They read hundreds of manuscripts each month, so anything you can do to make their jobs easier will be greatly appreciated--and help land you a sale. Proper manuscript preparation is one of those things.

1. Use a simple, serif type style (like Times Roman or Courier), no smaller than 10 point (12 point is better) on a letter-quality printer. Do not use fancy type faces or script styles. The goal is to make the manuscript look professional and pleasant to read.
   
   
2. Double space all prose manuscripts. Poetry may be single-spaced. Do not justify right-hand margins. Allow 1 to 1 ½-inch margins all around.
   
   
3. Use white bond paper, 20-pound or better, 8 ½ x 11 inches. No onionskin, lined paper or colored stock.
   
   
4. Type your name, complete address, phone number and e-mail address in the upper left corner, single-spaced. In upper right corner, type approximate word count of the manuscript and what rights are available (ex: first North American rights, or reprint rights).
   
   
5. Drop down about half-way on the first page, then center your title, with your byline beneath it. These are double-spaced. Start your text below the byline, indenting each paragraph 5 spaces. Do not add extra space between paragraphs. The first page of a manuscript will have about 12 lines of text on it.
   
   
6. On page two and subsequent pages, type the title (or a key word from the title) in the upper left corner as a header, followed by a dash and your last name. Place the page number in upper right. The text should begin 3 or 4 spaces below this header. Again, keep it simple. No rules, script or graphics in the header or in the text.
   
   
7. Type on one side of paper only. Paperclip the finished pages together. Don't staple, and don't put the manuscript in a folder.
   
   
8. Avoid hand-written corrections, misspelled words, and grammar and punctuation errors. Proof your copy carefully, even if you have used a spell-check program.
   
   
9. Fewer than five pages may be mailed flat or folded in a #10 business envelope. Five pages or more should be mailed flat.
   
   
10. Paper-clip your SASE to the manuscript. Do not send a tiny return envelope; either use a #10 and specify to the editor that the whole ms. need not be returned, or attach a manilla SASE with as much postage as it takes you to submit the manuscript. Include SASE with every submission, query letter, request for guidelines, or any other request for information, unless you've been specifically instructed not to. Type your return address in both places on your SASE.
    
    
11. Mail manuscripts first class. Do not certify or register unless the editor asks you to. Usually these are just extra trouble for the editor to receive. Use stamps on your SASE, not a metered postage strip that is dated (this is a PO regulation).
    
    
12. Do not decorate your manuscript or envelopes with happy faces, lip prints, perfume, cookies or other gimmicks.
    
    
13. If you submit the full manuscript, there's no need for clips of your previous work. Let the manuscript stand on its own. If you wish to send a cover letter, make it a brief. Mention which department this manuscript is aimed for, the fact that you're submitting it after a go-ahead on spec, or any other item of essential information. Do not summarize your piece in the cover letter, and never try to sell the editor on how good you and your friends think it is. This makes you sound either arrogant or ridiculous.
    
    
14. Make every effort to find the name of the specific editor to whom your manuscript should be submitted, and spell the name correctly. Do not submit to contributing editors, who merely write for the magazine. Look for articles editor, fiction editor, poetry editor, or managing editor.
    
    
15. Keep a copy of everything you ever mail out, and keep records on where it went and the date.
    
    
16. Allow two to three months, minimum, to hear from a submission. After that time, it's okay to write a polite letter or e-mail inquiring about the status of the manuscript. If you send by snail mail, be sure to enclose #10 SASE or SAS postcard for the editor's quick reply. It is best not to phone the editor yet.
    
    
17. If you haven't heard anything in six to eight months and your tracer letter is ignored, phone the editor to whom you submitted. Likely you'll get a secretary or assistant, instead, and these folks are usually quite helpful. Give him your name, phone number, and the name and date of the manuscript you're tracing. Politely ask the assistant to check on it for you.
    
    
18. If you are rejected with something less than tact, or if you feel you've otherwise been treated unfairly, suffer in silence and submit the manuscript somewhere else. Resist the temptation to fire off a critical letter; there may be unavoidable reasons for the perceived "snub." Regardless, your best interests are never served by cutting off your chances--forever--with that publication and/or editor. Word does get around.