---
name: book-editing
description: "Professional book/novel manuscript formatting, editing, and typesetting standards."
version: 1.0.0
author: Hermes Agent
license: MIT
platforms: [linux, macos, windows]
metadata:
  hermes:
    tags: [writing, editing, manuscript, novel, publishing, formatting]
    related: [ocr-and-documents]
---

# Book Editing & Manuscript Formatting

Comprehensive reference for formatting, editing, and typesetting novels and fiction manuscripts. Use this skill when the user wants to format a manuscript, edit prose, prepare a submission, or convert raw writing into a professional document.

## 1. Manuscript Format (Industry Standard)

### Page Setup
- **Font:** Courier 12pt (submission) OR Times New Roman 12pt (acceptable)
- **Spacing:** Double-spaced throughout, NO extra space between paragraphs
- **Margins:** 1 inch all sides (8.5" × 11" US Letter)
- **Paragraph indent:** 0.5 inches (first line), use TAB not spaces
- **Alignment:** Left-justified (not full-justified)
- **No headers/footers** except page numbers

### Title Page
- Title: centered, ~1/3 down page, bold
- Author name: centered below title
- Word count: bottom right or centered at bottom
- Contact info: top left corner (agent/publisher specific)
- No cover art, no graphics, no colored text

### Chapter Formatting
- Chapter heading centered, bold, on its own line
- Each chapter starts on a NEW PAGE (page break before)
- Optional: chapter number + title ("Chapter 1: The Morning After")
- Leave 3-4 blank lines between chapter heading and first paragraph
- Scene breaks within chapters: centered "#" or "* * *" on its own line

### Dialogue Formatting
- Quotation marks for dialogue (double quotes US, single quotes UK)
- New paragraph for each new speaker
- Action beats can share paragraphs with dialogue
- Em dash (—) for interrupted speech: "I just—"
- Ellipsis (...) for trailing off: "I don't know..."
- No quotation marks for internal thoughts (use italics sparingly or plain text)

### Special Elements
- Italics: for emphasis, foreign words, titles of works, internal thoughts
- NO underlines (leftover from typewriter era)
- NO all-caps for emphasis (use italics)
- Block quotes: indented, no quotes, for 4+ lines of quoted text

### File Naming
- `LastName_Title Manuscript.docx`
- Example: `Smith_The Last Summer Manuscript.docx`

### End of Manuscript
- Type "# END" or "THE END" centered after final paragraph
- No additional back matter in submission manuscripts

## 2. Three Levels of Editing

### Developmental Editing (Big Picture)
- **When:** First, before any other editing
- **Focus:** Story structure, character arcs, plot holes, pacing, theme, POV consistency
- **What it catches:**
  - Plot holes and logical inconsistencies
  - Underdeveloped characters or arcs
  - Pacing issues (too fast, too slow, saggy middle)
  - Theme clarity and resonance
  - Point-of-view errors
  - Scene purpose (does every scene advance plot/character?)
- **Output:** Editorial letter + margin comments, 1-6 weeks

### Line Editing (Prose Quality)
- **When:** After developmental editing
- **Focus:** Sentence-level clarity, voice, style, rhythm
- **What it catches:**
  - Awkward phrasing
  - Redundancy and wordiness
  - Weak verbs and passive voice overuse
  - Inconsistent tone/voice
  - Repetitive sentence structures
  - Show vs tell issues
  - Dialogue that sounds unnatural
- **Output:** Tracked changes + comments, 2-4 weeks

### Copy Editing (Grammar & Consistency)
- **When:** After line editing
- **Focus:** Grammar, punctuation, spelling, internal consistency
- **What it catches:**
  - Grammar errors
  - Punctuation mistakes
  - Spelling and typos
  - Fact consistency (eye color, distances, timelines)
  - Style guide adherence
  - Continuity errors
- **Output:** Tracked changes, 1-2 weeks

### Proofreading (Final Pass)
- **When:** After copy editing, before publication
- **Focus:** Remaining typos, formatting errors, minor inconsistencies
- **Output:** Final corrected file

## 3. Fiction-Specific Style Rules

### Dialogue Punctuation
1. Period inside quotes: "Hello."
2. Comma inside quotes (before tag): "Hello," she said.
3. Question/exclamation inside quotes: "Really?" / "Stop!"
4. Tag after quote: "Hello," she said. (comma inside)
5. Action beat instead of tag: She waved. "Hello." (period inside)
6. Interrupted speech with em dash: "I just—"
7. Interrupted with ellipsis: "I don't know..."
8. Multiple paragraphs: Opening quote each paragraph, closing quote only at end

### Em Dash vs En Dash vs Hyphen
- **Em dash (—):** No spaces. Interrupted speech, parenthetical emphasis, abrupt break
- **En dash (–):** No spaces. Number ranges (10–20), connections (North–South)
- **Hyphen (-):** Compound words (well-known, mother-in-law), NOT for dashes
- Typewriter substitute: two hyphens without spaces (--) is acceptable in manuscripts

### Ellipses
- Standard: three dots with space before and after ( ... )
- Chicago style: space + three dots + space ( . . . ) with spaces between
- No period after ellipsis if sentence ends there
- Ellipsis + period (....) for trailing off at sentence end: "I guess..."

### Italics Usage
- **Use for:** Emphasis, foreign words, titles of books/films, internal thoughts (sparingly), words as words
- **Don't use for:** Thoughts that are just written in third person, normal emphasis that could use sentence structure
- **Key rule:** Don't italicize more than one or two words per sentence, max one sentence per paragraph

### Tense Consistency
- Past tense is standard for fiction
- If mixing tenses, each shift must be deliberate and consistent
- Present tense: only if chosen as narrative mode throughout
- Flashbacks: maintain tense consistency within the flashback

### POV Consistency
- **First person:** "I" throughout, no head-hopping
- **Third limited:** One POV per scene/CHAPTER, no entering other characters' minds
- **Third omniscient:** Narrator can enter any mind, but must be consistent
- Head-hopping (switching POV within a scene without breaks) is the #1 POV error

### Show vs Tell
**Tell (avoid):** "She was angry."
**Show (prefer):** "She gripped the edge of the table, knuckles white."

**Markers of telling:**
- Emotion labels: "She felt sad," "He was nervous"
- Summaries: "They spent the afternoon talking"
- Generalizations: "Everyone knew the rules"
- Filter words: "She saw," "He heard," "She noticed"

## 4. Publisher & Agent Submission Guidelines

### Standard Submission Package
1. **Query letter** (1 page): Hook, synopsis, bio, comp titles
2. **Synopsis** (1-3 pages): Full plot including ending
3. **First 3 chapters** or **first 10,000 words** (varies by agent)
4. **Full manuscript** (if requested after initial submission)

### What Agents/Publishers Expect
- .docx or .doc format (NOT PDF, NOT .pages)
- Manuscript format (see Section 1)
- No cover letter in the document itself
- No illustrations or images in fiction manuscripts
- Standard manuscript length: 70,000–100,000 words (debut fiction)
- Genre-specific: Literary fiction 60-90K, Thrillers 70-90K, Fantasy 80-120K, Sci-fi 70-110K

### Common Rejection Reasons (Formatting)
- Wrong font or size
- Single spacing
- No chapter breaks
- Including cover art
- Exceeding requested word count
- Wrong file format

## 5. Professional Typesetting (Final Production)

### Typography
- **Body font:** Serif font (Garamond, Caslon, Minion Pro, Baskerville)
- **Size:** 10-12pt (printed books use smaller than manuscript)
- **Leading:** 115-145% of font size (e.g., 12pt font → 14-17pt leading)
- **Kerning:** Adjusted for optical balance (not metrics-based)
- **Tracking:** Slightly loose for readability

### Page Layout
- **Trim size:** 5.5" × 8.5" (mass market), 6" × 9" (trade paperback)
- **Margins:** Inside (gutter) 0.75-1", Outside 0.5-0.75", Top 0.75", Bottom 1"
- **Justification:** Full-justified with hyphenation
- **Orphans:** Minimum 2 lines at top of page
- **Widows:** Minimum 2 lines at bottom of page

### Special Elements
- **Drop caps:** First letter of chapter, 3-4 lines deep
- **Running heads:** Author name (verso/left), Book title (recto/right)
- **Folio:** Page numbers, usually bottom center or outer corner
- **Chapter openers:** Often start 1/3 down page, may have ornamental rule
- **Scene breaks:** Small ornamental device (fleuron, diamond, blank space)

### Print Production
- **Bleed:** 0.125" on all sides for images extending to edge
- **Safe zone:** Keep text 0.5" from trim edge
- **Spine width:** Based on page count × paper thickness
- **Cover:** Full wrap with 0.125" bleed on all sides

## Quick Reference: Checklist Before Submission

- [ ] .docx format, correct file naming
- [ ] Courier or Times New Roman 12pt
- [ ] Double-spaced, 1-inch margins
- [ ] Title page with title, author, word count
- [ ] Each chapter starts on new page
- [ ] Scene breaks marked consistently
- [ ] Dialogue properly punctuated
- [ ] No head-hopping (POV consistent per scene)
- [ ] No telling emotions (show, don't tell)
- [ ] Tense consistent throughout
- [ ] Word count within genre expectations
- [ ] THE END at manuscript conclusion