Ahhhh — Formatting
There is just something so wonderful about formatting a manuscript. I wouldn’t have thought it possible before going through the process. Since then, I’ve found I love it.
Formatting all those hundreds of pages means I’ve finally hit the final stages. Formatting is making my manuscript presentable for others to judge. I’m making the package pretty.
To be sure, I understand that formatting is not the most important step; that honor would go toward actually creating a great story. We all know that proper formatting won’t sell an inferior manuscript.
Still, it’s invigorating to see all that hard work put into a truly professional package that can be shown with pride. Pride. In the end, it’s what the whole “pretty package” thing is all about.
lol Ahh, it’s the simple things in life we often underestimate. I like to write my earlier drafts in manuscript layout with my margins and typeface set to standards. I seems to make it feel real. It takes away that sense of scrawling onto pages no one will ever see and gives me a sense of purpose. It also helps me judge total page counts better. 🙂
Still, I can imagine you tweaking your layout in the word processor and investing in some thicker, ‘good’ printer paper ready to print off the first official copy of your manuscript. I hope you enjoyed the process, and the steps that follow.
Rebecca, I’d feel too much pressure to make it publishable if were already in publishing format! Ha! I can definitely see, though, how putting it format would give a sense a purpose. It would seem less like a first or second or millionth draft, and more of an early version of a book. 🙂