The Broad Strokes of Formatting

     Since I've been blogging about structural components of noveling thus far this week, I figure I might as well complete the trifecta with a lesson on formatting, the penultimate structural component (the ultimate one is probably like, plot or something).
      Knowing how to format your novel is extremely important--agents and publishing companies won't look twice at a manuscript, no matter how dazzlingly fantastic, if you haven't taken the time to bring it up to industry standards.  Chances are good, if you're self-publishing, that your audience won't stick around too long, either.
     A certain degree of experimentation can work to your advantage, depending on your genre and intended effect, but for the large majority of works, adherence to the rules is likely best.
     Your mileage may vary depending on the agent or publisher you're submitting to, but here are the basic industry standards for

General Text:

• One inch margins
• Half-inch indentations for each new paragraph
• Twelve-point Times New Roman font (black)
• Double spaced
• Alignment on the left hand side, jagged line on the right
• Include page number, title, and last name in the header for every page except for the title page

New Chapters:

When starting a new chapter, use the "page break" feature (so that if you go back to edit previous chapters, your formatting won't get fucked up)

Center your chapter titles about a third of the way down the page

Title Page:

• Place your contact info (name, address, phone number, email) and the  genre and word count in the upper left hand corner of your title page
• About half way down the page, state your title in either all caps or mixed caps ("The Fantastic Journey of Clodbourne Hammerstein and the Magic Oak Tree")
• Jump down a line and type "a novel by" 
• Jump down another line and type your name/pen name

     And that's about it, for now--at least, that's the simple version.
     Happy Tech Week from TheSpiderWriter, happy Finals Week to me, and may you all have a wonderful weekend and a happy next week, too.