Bemoaning Font Issues

fivetoesten · Sep 20, 2013

Hey guys,

This is what I assume regarding fonts: Write with whatever you want, submit according to guidelines. Most of the time you will submit in either Courier New or Times New Roman. Am I right?

I think that word processors will use default fonts if the writer's font is not present on the reader's computer. Does anyone know what happens if the font metrics of different fonts are similiar? If I save with Courier10 BT and you don't have it, what will you see?

I guess there's no particular point to this post, but I think that both Courier New and Times New Roman look like crap, and it pains me that my stuff has to look like crap before anyone will read it.

One does what one must, I suppose.

Deleted member 42 · Sep 20, 2013

Do what they say. You don't have to read it, they do.

One reason for standardizing on fonts is that it makes casting-off, the process whereby the ms. length is used to estimate the pages in the printed book, much easier.

One reason for standardizing on Courier is that the monospacing makes it relatively easy to use proofer's/editor's marks on hardcopy, which is still often done internally for the use of the typesetter if for no other reason.

WeaselFire · Sep 20, 2013

fivetoesten said:
I guess there's no particular point to this post, but I think that both Courier New and Times New Roman look like crap, and it pains me that my stuff has to look like crap before anyone will read it.

Royal bummer dude, harshes your mellow, don't it?

Use whatever font you want. If an agent or publisher wants a submission in something different, screw 'em. It's your work. If they don't want it, it's their loss.

And anyone who follows the request guidelines' gain...

Jeff

fivetoesten · Sep 20, 2013

WeaselFire said:
Royal bummer dude, harshes your mellow, don't it?

Use whatever font you want. If an agent or publisher wants a submission in something different, screw 'em. It's your work. If they don't want it, it's their loss.

And anyone who follows the request guidelines' gain...

Jeff

ok, so it doesn't pain me that much. Harshes your mellow? Ha! that's funny. Yes, yes it does.

fivetoesten · Sep 20, 2013

Do what they say. You don't have to read it, they do

Sounds reasonable to me. I will do just that, even if I get the hypothetical go-ahead for some alternative plan. Best to be safe. But if we're talking hardcopy, I imagine something like courier10 bt would be ok since, other than being darker, the font seems to be identical to courier new.

I recently tried to submit something in TNR, but discovered after I hit "send" that I didn't have TNR installed. I wonder what they got?

robjvargas · Sep 20, 2013

fivetoesten said:
I recently tried to submit something in TNR, but discovered after I hit "send" that I didn't have TNR installed. I wonder what they got?

Wow, not installed? It comes with Windows. You can probably find the TTF file for it and install it.

They got whatever you have as the default font in your Word Processor (WP) program, if your WP embeds the font. MS Word does this by default now. I think. If it was text, like in Notepad or even submitted via a Web form, they see whatever *they* have as a default font.

fivetoesten · Sep 20, 2013

Wow, not installed?

I installed it easily enough afterward. I had just forgotten to install it beforehand (on linux).

kaitie · Sep 20, 2013

The nice thing is you only have to do it for submissions. You can type while you're working in whatever you feel like. I actually have a submissions file and one that I have in the font/spacing I like. They're the same file, but that way if I need to go back and check something with the file, I can do it on the version I like.

Jamesaritchie · Sep 24, 2013

fivetoesten said:
I guess there's no particular point to this post, but I think that both Courier New and Times New Roman look like crap, and it pains me that my stuff has to look like crap before anyone will read it.

One does what one must, I suppose.

Try being an editor. There are good reasons for wanting Courier or Times on this side of the desk.

But for that matter, you'll be much better off if you stop worrying about what your writing looks like, and concentrate of what it has to say.

Bemoaning Font Issues

fivetoesten

Deleted member 42

WeaselFire

Benefactor Member

fivetoesten

fivetoesten

robjvargas

fivetoesten

kaitie

With great power comes

Jamesaritchie