Default Formatting for paragraphs: editor and compile. (asking questions)

Scrivener Newcomer Central
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I’d like to review the topic of the paragraph formatting because I’m unsure if I get the idea right.

After practicing and re-reading the manual (15.7 FormattingTools 15.7.1 TheRuler; 17.2.1 Paragraph and Character Styles; ), I still wonder how it is best done:

Context: a novel project, and most of the text is in files with simple formatting. “No Style” for the main text.

I succeeded in tuning the paragraph display for the editor (although I’m not sure how I did it):

The lines have a more-than-default spacing between, and the space between paragraphs is a bit more that the line spacing, which makes it easy to visualize the new paragraphs. I didn’t use the first line indent this time.

To do that I guess I didn’t use the File > Options > Editing > Formatting (because it’s still the old default here), but the Project > Project Settings > Formatting > Main Text Formatting ( with the tick the tick for “Use different formatting for the new documents in this project:” , maybe not a good idea)

Question 1: Now adding the first line indent in that option, it doesn’t seem to update the paragraph formatting of existing document in the project… Why? Is it related to that ticked options?

Then, compiling the draft for a preview and an rework, I get pages with a complete different paragraph setup, which is fine since the editor never was WYSIWYG, and it also makes sense to display on screen in a practical way that is different that the paper formatting. Good.

Question 2: But where do I set the paragraph formatting (globally) for the Compile process? (PDF output, for instance). I mean the spacing between lines and the one between paragraphs, plus the indent. So far I can only set this for each section layout, which isn’t to much work as my main text only has one (not counting the repeating process for every Compile Format, not that many to use).

Optional Question 3: back to the paragraph formatting in the editor: If I want to clean what I did and follow the best practice, what should I pay attention to?

Thanks for your guidance!

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Documents are imprinted with what was the default formatting at the time of their creation. To change/update the default formatting of a document, you need to select it in the binder and Documents / Convert / Text to Default Formatting.

Checking the option in the project settings for that one project (your current project) to have a default formatting of its own has nothing to do with it. And is entirely safe (as per your sub question).

Yup. That’s how Scrivener works. If you don’t compile as is, the compiler overrides the editor formatting.

In the compile format itself. Those are the ones listed on the left side of the main compile panel. Double-click and edit the one you’ve used so far and prefer. Use it as a starting point.
Formatting is set in the Section Layouts tab.

. . . . . . . .

You need to read about Section Types. Understand that it is your patchbay, so then you’ll know why there are a multiple Section Layouts, and which is the one to edit as per what you want to do, whenever you want to change/tweak something.

Section Types connect documents to specific Section Layouts.
Section Layouts reformat (or not) specific section types (and, therefor, specific documents) at compile.

Section Types are exactly what a patchbay (with tiny short wires) is to a recording studio.

Visual

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Document → Section Type → Section Layout (in the compile format) → The formatting you want for this or those document(s).
The connection •Section Type to Section Layout• is established in the center part of the compile panel.

(Understanding the above is the absolute minimum to be functional at compile.)

[Any patronizing tone is unintended.]

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