Writing Formatting Tips

WRITING FORMATTING TIPS

Format for readability.
Layout your document so that it's easy for your reader to comprehend QUICKLY.

1. Keep sentences and paragraphs short.

2. Write out the month (January) in dates rather than abbreviate.
    Don't separate dates, addresses or phone numbers on the end of a line.

3. Don't use abbreviations unless you're sure your reader is familiar with them. In reports inform your reader of the abbreviation in the beginning, using the name of the company or organization followed by the abbreviation in parentheses--American Automobile Association (AAA).

4. Use one-sentence paragraphs for emphasis.

5. Use charts and tables to present information visually to readers.

6. Type your name as it appears on your driver's license at the bottom of a letter, but sign the name you want to be called.

7. Capitalize the FIRST LINE (the attention line) of an address on an envelope.
Postal scanners read this first, followed by the company name and address. Be sure to put the postal code on foreign mail before the city and country, otherwise it will get sent to the postal code here in the U.S.

8. Use bullets or lists for ease of comprehension with a mass of information.

9. Highlight key points or words using bold type, Italics, or underlining. Put all foreign words in Italics.

10. Use headings to break up a longer document, such as a report of proposal.

11. Be consistent with fonts--use serif fonts with other serif fonts and vice versa.
     DON'T GET FANCY.
     Use TIMES NEW ROMAN, COURIER, or ARIAL for your basic font.

12. KEEP IT SIMPLE.

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