Manuscript format checker

1. Paste a chapter or your whole manuscript into the box.
2. Press Check my text to see the counts.
3. Press Clean my text to get a tidied version in the second box.
4. Copy the cleaned text back into your document and read it once more.

The checker counts each problem with a simple pattern. Two or more spaces in a row become one space. Tabs become a space. Three or more line breaks in a row become two. Three dots in a row become a single ellipsis character, and a space before a comma, period, colon, semicolon, question mark or exclamation mark is removed.

Straight quotation marks and apostrophes are replaced with curly ones, chosen by what comes before them. Two hyphens in a row become a dash.

The cleaned version is a starting point. Read it before you rely on it, because a pattern cannot tell a deliberate choice from a slip.

• It does not check spelling, grammar or house style. For style rules, see the Chicago Manual of Style.
• Poetry and scripts use spacing on purpose, so do not run them through the cleaner without checking the result.
• Your layout designer will still set margins, fonts and chapter openings. This tool only tidies the text.

These free utilities from SEO Site Checker, a separate site, pair well with this tool: Online Text Editor, Case Converter. Check their terms before uploading anything private.

Use the tools together, starting with word count and ending with keywords. See every tool on our free author tools page.

• Royalty Calculator
• Word and Page Count
• Publishing Timeline
• Cover Size Calculator
• Line Edit Report
• Keyword Planner
• Book Description Generator
• Reading Level Checker
• ISBN Checker
• Print Cost Estimator
• Chapter Word Count Planner
• Book Title Generator
• Author Bio Builder
• Book Launch Checklist
• Cover Template

A calculator gives you a number, and our team does the work behind it. Get a free consultation and we will quote the editing, design, formatting and publishing in writing before any work starts.