Hi everyone, I was just wondering which type font you all use on submissions. On advice I've come across so far some say agents/publishers prefer Times New Roman while others say Courier or Courier New should only be used.

Hi Mooncat,

I believe times new roman, 12 point type, double spaced is the industry standard. If other agents and publsihers request specific things, I'd do it their way as some of them can be fairly sniffy about it.

Cheers

James x

Hi Mooncat,

I thought Agents wanted submissions in Courier, but many writers use Verdana.

I'd like to know for sure.

Dawn,x

I always use verdana 10 point.

I think agents and publishers just want to see a font that is clear and easy to read. I met an agent at the Winchester conference last year and, when I showed her a sample of my writing, she was more interested in the font (!?)

She asked me what it was and wrote down the details. I’m thinking – I’ve only got fifteen minutes to change my LIFE and she’s talking fonts! But she did say that a simple, easy-to-read font can make a BIG difference at the ‘shall I read it or shall I bin it’ stage.

Dee
x

That’s interesting. Courier does look awful in print.

Thanks Dee,

Dawn,x

Indeed. Websites that use the standard Time New Roman font are highly irritating.

Thanks Dee, Dawn and James.

Courier doesn't print very well - it's too light. I think Courier New is slightly better. I've tried Verdana and think it's my favourite so far and I like Arial too.

I've been using Times New Roman for a while but I'm not too keen on that one. I've heard some agents/editors don't like it either.

Mooncat

All my 'proper'work has to be in corporate Arial 12 and I can't be arsed to change it, so mine all go out in Arial.
Sue n

The best font by far is still the original Typist.

Looks like you typed the whole thing on an old fashioned typewriter and there is nothing quite like it. I use it for all my writing.

Geoff

One of the reasons TNR looks so bad on a website, is that there's been quite a lot of research into how people read on screen. It turns out that it's far easier to read a sans serif font such as Arial, or Verdana on screen, rather than a serif font such as TNR. However, for material that is printed, the reverse is true.

My understanding is that Courier is the preferred font for submissions to agents and publishers because it's a fixed width font so the amount of space the material will take up can be calculated, whereas with variable width fonts such as TNR this is harder.

But it's no big deal to change a font, and while I type material up in Arial, if I'm posting it to my website I change it to Verdana, if I'm printing it off I change it to TNR, and if I'm submitting it I change it to Courier and then print it off.

Cas

This is a really tricky issue. Just what is the standard font for publishers?
I have a font I really like, called Bookman. It's as clear as the courier font, but more graceful than the Times-New Roman font. Does anyone else use this font, what do you think of it?

Steven

Yes, Bookman is good. Not as clear as Verdana but readable.

I find that it often depends on the size. Some fonts are better in larger point than others.

Another factor that may be relevant is the background. I always work with a blue background because I find it easier on the eye and also, when I’m working with several POVs, it gives me more options to change font colour.

Blue background automatically defaults to a white font colour. I’ve noticed that some fonts lend themselves more to blue background/white font than white background/black font. Don’t know why. They just look easier to read on blue than on white.

Dee.