How to Modify MS Word Styles for Kindle: Body Text Style

Many people who use MS Word to format for the Kindle, will tell you quite earnestly, "I don't use MS Word Styles and Templates".

All that means is that they don't *know* they are using MS Word Styles and Templates.  They are built in, so anyone who uses MS Word is using Styles and Templates, whether they know it or not.

The best thing to do then, especially when formatting for the Kindle, is to set up MS Word Styles to properly format your Kindle eBooks.

Previous articles told how to set up MS Normal Style to be your default style.

That's okay for most of the people,  most of the time, but for properly formatting a Kindle eBook, it's better to leave Normal Style as the default :"Parent" Style, and set up the Body Text Style to properly format the "body text" for a Kindle format ebook.

To do that, start with a clean, empty file:

From the MS Word Menu, choose File|New:

Now, do the Keyboard Shortcut to pop up the Apply Styles box:

CTRL-SHIFT-S

(If this doesn't seem to work for you, try changing your View to "Draft" or "Normal".  You also may find it on your Menu under Format | Styles and Formatting.)

The Apply Styles box appears:

If you are on a clean new file, the Style Name: shows "Normal" in the entry box.

If it occurs to you to click the tiny down-arrow at the end of the entry box, you will see the various Styles that are available to you at this time.

If it also occurs to you to look for "Body Text", you won't find it, even though it is actually included in the MS Word Normal Template.

The reason is, it is one of those Styles that is "Hidden Until Needed".

Ok, we need it now.

Move your cursor to the Entry Box, and type "Body Text" and press Enter.

Magically, MS Word finds Style Body Text and offers to Reapply or Modify

We aren't sure we want to 'Reapply" Body Text because we don't know what Body Text does to our file.

To find out, click the button Modify.

The Modify Style box appears:

Click the Format button at the lower left corner to display the List of things you can format here:

Choose Paragraph from the list that displays when you click Format (at the lower left of the box).

By default, you should be on the "Indents and Spacing" box.

This box has three sections where you can set things to make your paragraphs display the way you want them.

At the top (in small blue letters) is "General", with two selections under it:  "Alignment" and "Outline level".

Those are the defaults for the general text of your book.

Next, in small blue letters is the title: Indention.

Under it is Left:  and Right:  Both are set at 0, and should be left there for your body text.

Then to the right... still under the title Indention, is the title Special.

We've seen this before... when we modified Normal Style.

At that time, we described it this way: "Look or the selection box titled Special at the middle right of the  Paragraph box".

Just as you did before, click on the tiny down-arrow to display "First Line".

The default for "First Line" is already filled in:  It is "48 px". 

I'd recommend leaving it at 48 px for now, then if you don't like that length of indent, come back later to experiment to get exactly the indent you want.

Next is a group of selection boxes, with the title in small blue letters, is "Spacing"

Here is where you set spacing between paragraphs and "line spacing" (double space or single space, etc.)..

The defaults for "space" (not lines) between paragraphs are 0 px  "Before" and 8 px "After" each paragraph.

Those are pretty good defaults for your general text. 

I'd leave them alone for now...  you can back later to change them if you have a special need.

Line Spacing is where you set the distance between "lines" of text in a Word file, but the Kindle does not recognize this feature, so just leave it as it is.

So... you see... you have several options for putting space between paragraphs... you should never ever do it by adding extra line spaces with the Enter key on your keyboard.

This is a good time to point out that you can format your paragraphs just about any way you want to format them... with Styles.... you don't need to do any formatting with the space bar, the enter key, or the tab key.

Should you make a mistake... or for any reason, want your file formatted in a different way, you don't have to go through line by line to change it... all you have to do is come to this spot... Modify Style... and make your changes one time.

Just that one time will do the job... and your changes will be made throughout your book.