I have two recurring problems with compiled output.
Whenever I compile my novel, regardless of the output format chosen (Word, eBook, PDF etc.), italicized words come out as underlined without the italics.
In my Scrivener document, I have changed font and size for quoted email texts (my body type is Courier 12; for quoted emails, I am using Times New Roman 11). The compiled versions entirely ignore the font change and everything shows up as Courier 12.
I have looked at the Compile settings but I’m afraid I have not been able to figure out how to correct this problem.
In your compile settings, under Text Options, there’s a check-box, “Convert italics to underlines”. Un-check that, and you’ll get italics again.
I can’t think of the right menu option, but there is a way to highlight a passage and the tell scrivener to preserve the formatting, in spite of the compile settings for overriding the font. Or there’s the compile setting check-box that lets you avoid overriding font settings through the whole project when it compiles. Sorry, I’m not at my Mac, or I’d be more specific on these two.
Many tks for the quick reply (I have to deliver my ms to an editor in just a few days). I’m glad the ital business is an easy fix. Will dig deepr for the font override setting. If you spot it before I do, let me know.
Ah, I was looking in the manual for Windows, which doesn’t have this feature.
Looking at the Manual for Mac, Section 14.4.5 called Preserve Formatting gives the answer. You should read at least the first paragraph to get an idea of it’s usefulness, but the quick answer is to highlight those passages where you want the formatting to remain unchanged, and select Format->Formatting->Preserve Formatting. That’ll create an outline around the text so you know the preservation will occur.
Now you’ll be able to allow scrivener’s compile settings to change the font (or ensure it’s consistent) across your whole document except for those passages that you’ve marked.
The other way to do this, which might require more work, is to split the document so that the passages are in their own text file in the binder. Then tick the Compile As-Is box in the inspector. This of course means that it will be treated like it’s own section, and while there are ways around that… I doubt you have the time to learn and implement them.
I’d start with the tutorial (Under Help->Interactive Tutorial). It’s just a project that you save to your computer and then read and make changes to, guiding you through the basics of Scrivener. Since you always come back to where you left off, you don’t have to do the whole thing at once, but it gives you a nice survey of most of what Scrivener has to offer. It’s well worth your time.
I’d also recommend taking a gander at the video tutorials in Compile. Selecting “Original” under “Format As” in Compile is a good option if you just want the compiled document to look how it does in the editor, though.