Basics of document layout

You have to make a number of basic choices affecting the appearance of your document. here we will look at:

• The kind of type you are going to use. Choosing fonts
• The typing space. Margins
• The arrangement of text on the page.
  • Text alignment (Justification, etc)
  • line spacing
• Paragraphs. Their use and style. The value of white space
• Back to contents

Types of type

You need to select a 'font'. Basically, a font consists of a ‘typeface’ (a style of lettering) reproduced at a particular size, called the ‘point size’

NB There are other considerations in defining the appearance of type, notably ‘leading’ (pronounced ‘ledding’), which you will come across in Word Processor option menus. Named after the metal in which type was once cast, ‘leading’ refers to the depth of white space on which the letters are placed, but don’t worry about such details unless you develop a particular interest in document design.

Choosing a ‘font’

Computers allow you to choose from many different types of lettering, so it seems a waste to use ‘typewriter’ fonts such as Courier. Read the sample texts.

Don’t be tempted to use exotic fonts! If you look at books and magazines, while all sorts of typefaces are used for headings, for the main text (‘body text’) most will use fairly plain ‘serifed’ fonts, that is, typefaces with the tiny expansions at the ends of the letter strokes. (Trendy magazines use all sorts of weird fonts and graphic effects to catch your attention, and can look really cool. But can you read them easily?)

Designers reckon that for ‘body text’, the densest part of a page, serifed fonts are generally easier to read. So it is best to stick to ‘classic’-looking fonts for your main text, e.g. Times, New Century, Garamond, Plantin, etc.

However, unserifed fonts can be very good for headings and subheadings. In addition to Arial, several other plain unserifed fonts are widely available, notably ‘Helvetica’ and ‘Univers’.

Warning! Don’t use more than 2 fonts in a document. Avoid the ‘ransom note effect’!

Size is everything!

For your main text, you need to choose the size of the lettering as well as the typeface. This is usually measured in ‘points’, and is called the ‘point size’. For legibility, 10 point is pretty small, especially for those with imperfect eyesight (like many venerable academics). 12.5 is pretty big. For body text, around 11 or 11.5 point is usually best, and the default setting on your Word Processor will probably be about this size. (NB Of course you need to print it out: apparent size on the computer screen can be misleading.)

On to margins, paragraphs, text alignment (to justify, or not to justify? That is the question...)

 Back to contents