Manuskript-Formatierungsleitfaden: Branchenstandards

Manuscript formatting is one of those subjects that inspires disproportionate anxiety in writers. The fear is that a misplaced header or wrong font will get your manuscript rejected before anyone reads a word. The truth is more mundane: standard formatting exists so that editors, agents, and typesetters can read and evaluate manuscripts efficiently. A properly formatted manuscript signals professionalism. A poorly formatted one creates friction. Neither formatting alone will make or break your work -- the writing does that -- but there is no reason to create unnecessary obstacles between your story and the people who might publish it.

This guide covers the standard formatting conventions for novels, short stories, and screenplays. These are industry defaults, not absolute laws. Some publishers and agents have specific requirements that override the standards below, and you should always check submission guidelines before sending anything. But if the guidelines say "standard manuscript format," this is what they mean.

Novel Manuscript Format

Font and Size

Use a 12-point serif font. The traditional standard is Times New Roman. Courier is also acceptable and was once the industry standard, though it has fallen out of favor because it produces significantly longer manuscripts (Courier is a monospaced font, so every character takes the same horizontal space). Some agents and editors accept other readable serif fonts -- Georgia, Garamond, Book Antiqua -- but Times New Roman is the safest choice. When in doubt, use Times New Roman.

Do not use sans-serif fonts (Arial, Helvetica, Calibri) for manuscript submissions. They are harder to read in long-form text. Do not use decorative or display fonts under any circumstances.

Margins

Set one-inch margins on all four sides: top, bottom, left, and right. This is non-negotiable. One-inch margins provide space for editorial notes and ensure consistent page counts across different printers and software.

Spacing

Double-space the entire manuscript. Not 1.5 spacing. Not "at least" double. Exactly double. Double spacing provides room for editorial markup and makes the text easier to read in large quantities. Agents and editors who read hundreds of pages a week depend on that spacing.

Do not add extra space between paragraphs. The double spacing between lines is the only vertical spacing you need. If your word processor defaults to adding space after paragraphs (Microsoft Word's default in some versions), turn that setting off.

Paragraph Indentation

Indent the first line of every paragraph by 0.5 inches (half an inch). Use your word processor's paragraph formatting to set the indent -- do not use the Tab key. Tab-created indents can behave unpredictably when the document is opened in different software or converted to different formats.

Do not indent the first paragraph after a chapter heading or scene break. This is a typographic convention: the first paragraph of a new section begins flush left, signaling a fresh start.

Alignment

Left-align (ragged right) all text. Do not use justified alignment. Justified text creates uneven spacing between words, which looks fine in a typeset book but messy in a manuscript. Manuscripts are not typeset -- they are working documents, and left alignment is the standard.

Title Page

The title page is the first page of your manuscript. It should contain:

• Upper left corner: Your legal name, address, phone number, and email address. If you have an agent, their contact information goes here instead.
• Upper right corner: The approximate word count, rounded to the nearest thousand. "85,000 words" is correct. "84,732 words" is needlessly precise.
• Center of the page: The title of the work, in all caps or standard capitalization (either is fine). Below the title, "by" followed by your pen name (if different from your legal name) or your legal name.
• No header or page number on the title page.

Keep the title page clean. No graphics, no decorative elements, no epigraphs, no genre labels. Just the information listed above.

Headers and Page Numbers

Starting on the second page (the first page of actual text), include a header in the upper right corner of every page. The header should contain your last name, a slash or space, a shortened version of the title (one or two keywords), and the page number. For example:

Feldman / SILVER DAWN / 1

Some writers put the header on the left and the page number on the right. Either convention is acceptable. The point is that every page is identifiable if the manuscript is dropped or shuffled -- the reader can reconstruct the order from any loose page.

Use your word processor's header function. Do not type the header manually on each page.

Chapter Headings

Each chapter begins on a new page. Drop about one-third of the way down the page (roughly 4-6 blank lines at the top) before typing the chapter heading. Center the chapter heading. You can use "Chapter One," "Chapter 1," "1," or a chapter title. Be consistent throughout the manuscript.

After the chapter heading, skip one or two blank lines, then begin the text. The first paragraph of each chapter starts flush left (no indent), as noted above.

Scene Breaks

When you need a scene break within a chapter -- a shift in time, location, or point of view -- use a centered hash mark (#) or three centered asterisks (* * *) on a blank line. Do not use a blank line alone; it can be lost in printing or formatting conversion, and the reader may not realize a scene break occurred.

If a scene break falls at the top or bottom of a page -- where it might be invisible -- the hash mark or asterisks ensure it is noticed.

Emphasis

Use italics for emphasis, internal thoughts, titles of works, and foreign words. Do not use bold for emphasis in prose. Do not use underline for emphasis (underline was used in the typewriter era to indicate italics; in the digital era, just use italics). Do not use ALL CAPS for emphasis except in rare cases where a character is shouting and the context requires it.

Dialogue Formatting

Dialogue follows standard punctuation conventions:

• Enclose spoken dialogue in double quotation marks.
• Each new speaker gets a new paragraph.
• Dialogue tags ("she said," "he asked") are part of the same sentence as the dialogue. Comma before the closing quotation mark: "I do not think so," she said.
• Action beats are separate sentences. Period before the closing quotation mark: "I do not think so." She set down her glass.
• If a character's speech continues across multiple paragraphs, open each paragraph with a quotation mark but only close the final paragraph with one.

The End

After the last line of the manuscript, skip a few lines and center the word "END" or "THE END." This signals to the reader that the manuscript is complete and no pages are missing.

Short Story Manuscript Format

Short story format follows the same general rules as novel format with a few differences:

First Page (No Separate Title Page)

Short stories do not typically have a separate title page. Instead, the first page contains:

• Upper left corner: Your legal name, address, phone number, and email. Single-spaced.
• Upper right corner: The approximate word count.
• Center of the page, about one-third down: The title and byline.
• Skip two lines, then begin the text.

Headers

Same as novel format: last name, title keyword, and page number in the upper right corner, starting on the second page.

Everything Else

Same as novel format: 12-point Times New Roman, one-inch margins, double-spaced, 0.5-inch paragraph indents, left-aligned, centered scene breaks, "END" at the conclusion.

Screenplay Format

Screenplay formatting is more rigid than prose formatting because the format serves a specific technical function: one page of properly formatted screenplay equals approximately one minute of screen time. This ratio depends on the formatting being correct. Deviate from the format and the page count becomes unreliable, which makes the screenplay difficult to produce.

Font

Courier, 12-point. This is the only acceptable font for a screenplay. Courier's monospaced characters are what maintain the one-page-per-minute ratio. Do not use Courier New (the letter spacing is slightly different). Use Courier or Courier Final Draft.

Margins

• Left margin: 1.5 inches
• Right margin: 1 inch
• Top and bottom margins: 1 inch
• Dialogue left margin: 2.5 inches from the left edge
• Dialogue right margin: 2.5 inches from the right edge (approximately 6 inches from the left)
• Character name (above dialogue): 3.7 inches from the left edge
• Parenthetical: 3.1 inches from the left edge

If these measurements seem absurdly specific, they are. This is why almost all screenwriters use dedicated screenwriting software (Final Draft, Highland, Fade In, WriterSolo, or the free alternative Fountain with a renderer). The software handles the formatting automatically. Do not try to format a screenplay manually in a word processor unless you enjoy frustration.

Scene Headings (Slug Lines)

Every scene begins with a scene heading in ALL CAPS. The heading has three parts:

1. INT. or EXT. (interior or exterior)
2. Location
3. Time of day (DAY, NIGHT, DAWN, DUSK, CONTINUOUS, LATER)

Examples:

INT. HOSPITAL CORRIDOR - NIGHT

EXT. CENTRAL PARK - DAY

Scene headings are not descriptions. They are labels. Keep them short and specific.

Action Lines

Action (also called description or scene direction) is written in present tense, single-spaced, in regular (non-bold, non-italic) type. Keep action lines lean. Three to four lines maximum per paragraph. White space on the page is your friend -- it makes the screenplay feel fast and readable. Dense blocks of action text slow the reader down and suggest the writer does not understand the medium.

When introducing a character for the first time, type their name in ALL CAPS within the action line, followed by their age in parentheses and a brief, visual description. After the introduction, use normal capitalization for their name.

Example: SARAH CHEN (30s), sharp-eyed and perpetually underdressed for the weather, pushes through the revolving door.

Dialogue

Character names appear centered above their dialogue, in ALL CAPS. The dialogue is indented (as specified in the margins section above) and single-spaced. Do not use quotation marks around screenplay dialogue.

Parentheticals -- brief acting directions placed between the character name and the dialogue -- should be used sparingly. "Sarcastically," "whispering," "to John" are all acceptable parentheticals. But if you need more than a few words of direction, put it in an action line instead. Overuse of parentheticals is a hallmark of amateur screenwriting; it suggests the writer does not trust the actor to interpret the line.

Transitions

Transitions (CUT TO:, DISSOLVE TO:, SMASH CUT TO:) are right-aligned and typed in ALL CAPS. In contemporary screenwriting, transitions are used sparingly. The default transition between scenes is a cut, and you do not need to write "CUT TO:" between every scene. Use transitions only when the specific type of transition matters -- a SMASH CUT for jarring contrast, a DISSOLVE for the passage of time.

Title Page

The screenplay title page contains:

• Center of the page: The title in ALL CAPS or standard title case, followed by "Written by" and your name.
• Lower right or lower left corner: Your contact information (or your agent's).
• No WGA registration number on spec scripts. It signals insecurity.

Page Count

A standard feature screenplay runs 90-120 pages. Comedies tend toward the shorter end (90-100). Dramas tend toward the longer end (100-120). Going over 120 pages sends a signal that the screenplay is too long, regardless of the actual content. If your screenplay is 135 pages, it almost certainly has structural problems.

Common Formatting Mistakes

Inconsistent Formatting

The single most common mistake is inconsistency. If chapter one uses "Chapter One" and chapter two uses "Chapter 2," it looks careless. If the header on page 14 uses a different title abbreviation than page 15, it looks careless. If scene breaks alternate between # and * * * without reason, it looks careless. Pick a convention and stick with it throughout the entire manuscript.

Ornamental Formatting

Fancy fonts, decorative headers, colored text, unusual spacing, centered prose, embedded images in the manuscript file -- all of these signal "amateur." The manuscript is a working document, not a designed artifact. The publisher's designer will handle the visual presentation of the final book. Your job is to deliver clean, readable text in standard format.

Tab-Based Indentation

As mentioned above, do not use the Tab key for paragraph indents. Set the indent in your word processor's paragraph formatting. Tab-created indents cause problems when the file is converted between formats, opened in different software, or processed by a typesetting system.

Double Spaces After Periods

This is a typewriter convention that has no place in modern manuscripts. Use a single space after periods, colons, question marks, and exclamation points. Most style guides (Chicago, AP) and most publishers require single spacing after terminal punctuation.

Missing Scene Breaks

If the scene changes -- new time, new location, new POV -- and you do not signal it with a scene break marker, the reader will be momentarily disoriented. Always use a visible scene break. A blank line alone is not reliable enough; use # or * * *.

Ignoring Submission Guidelines

This bears repeating: always check the specific submission guidelines of the agent, publisher, or contest you are submitting to. Some want .doc files. Some want .pdf. Some want specific header formats. Some want the word count on the first page of text rather than a separate title page. The guidelines override the standards in this guide. Follow the guidelines exactly. They exist for a reason, and ignoring them suggests you did not read them -- which is not the first impression you want to make.

Formatting Tools and Software

For Prose (Novels and Short Stories)

Microsoft Word is the industry standard for prose manuscript submission. Most agents and editors expect .doc or .docx files. If you write in another program (Scrivener, Google Docs, LibreOffice), export to .docx for submission.

Scrivener is popular among novelists for its organizational features. It handles manuscript compilation well -- you write in whatever format is comfortable and then compile to standard manuscript format for submission. If you use Scrivener, take the time to set up your compile settings correctly. The defaults do not always match standard manuscript format.

For Screenplays

Use screenwriting software. Final Draft is the industry standard. Fade In and Highland are well-regarded alternatives. WriterSolo is a newer option. All of these handle the complex formatting requirements automatically. If you are on a budget, write in Fountain markup (a plain-text format for screenplays) and use a free renderer to convert to properly formatted PDF.

Do not try to format a screenplay in Microsoft Word. It is technically possible but practically miserable, and the result will never look quite right to industry professionals who are accustomed to seeing properly formatted screenplays.

A Final Note on Formatting and Quality

No agent has ever rejected a manuscript solely because the writer used 11-point font instead of 12-point. No editor has ever rejected a story solely because the scene breaks used three asterisks instead of a hash mark. Formatting matters, but it matters the way clean clothes matter at a job interview -- it is a baseline expectation, not the thing that gets you the job.

The thing that gets you the job is the writing. A brilliantly written manuscript in slightly wrong formatting will still get read. A mediocre manuscript in perfect formatting will still get rejected. Get the formatting right because it is easy, because it is professional, and because it removes one more barrier between your words and the person who needs to read them. Then stop worrying about it and focus on the work that actually matters: the story.

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