|
|
|
print friendly version
|
|
URGENT ADVICE NEEDED - PLEEEASE |
|
|
By snax0
|
|
13 February 2007 |
URGENT ADVICE NEEDED - PLEEEASE... Hi Everyone, I am new(ish) to writing. I'm 33 and life has made me finally realise that I really really want to make a go of writing. Therefore I thought a good place to start would be by entering a competition. I found one here one the competitions page for miniwords and having written my entry already I am struggling to know which is the best format in which to enter it. Can anyone please give me advice? Is there a specific font I should use? Size of fon t? Any particular line-spacing? Many thanks, Snax0 |
Written by Bottleblondesurfer (3174 comments posted) 21st February 2007 | I don't know what is best for on-line submissions but courier 12 is generally accepted for hard copy, as it looks typewritten. and double spacing has been asked for in all the competitions I have entered
cheers
J | Quick tips
Written by amboline (183 comments posted) 28th February 2007 | Generally my advice is to treat any submission (unless it specifically tells you otherwise) as if it's going to be printed out and read off a hard copy at the end of the day. Stick to 12-point Times New Roman, black ink on a white background.
If you're writing stories, use double spacing. Don't leave an extra blank space of text between paragraphs, instead indent the first word of each paragraph (a single tab space, if you're in MS Word, should be adequate). If you're writing poetry, use single spacing, as most poetry competitions ask for poems of up to 32 or 40 lines long and ideally each one needs to fit on a single page.
Make sure you leave quite a wide margin around your work (at least 2.5-3 cm on all sides). Competition judges often scribble furiously in the margins of the entries they read, and you need to leave them room to do so.
My other tip is to be as careful as you possibly can about spelling and punctuation. A shoddily presented manuscript will get binned in an instant; a script littered with spelling mistakes, or without punctuation, will make the judge lose patience rapidly. If you're at all worried about punctuation or grammar, it's worth investing in a simple guide (Lynne Truss's "Eats, Shoots and Leaves" is probably as good as anything, and probably more entertaining than most!) that you can refer to as you work.
Good luck!
Andy |
Written by Janie (265 comments posted) 3rd August 2007 | | probably too late now re format for comps...no need to double space, double spacing is for editorial use so they can make corrections and changes to your work prior to printing the published article...just set your story out in paras and use any easy to read font you like...no need to indent either but you can if you want, it makes no difference really. |
Only registered users can rate and write comments.
Please login or register. Powered by AkoComment 2.0! |
Previous item
