The Lunara Series

Friday, November 11, 2011

A simple trick to save your eyes editing your novel or short story

After hours of editing my novels, hundreds of revisions, rereading and rereading again, my eyes were shot after six, seven hours of staring at the white background of a word document. Saving your eyes couldn't be easier though, simply switch the background color on your word document. Here is how... 

1a) In Word 2007, go to Page Layout tab > Page Color menu button> More Colors... menu choice
1b) In Word 2003, go to Format > Background


2) Set the RGB (Red, Green, Blue) to 251, 248, and 217.  This is a cream colored page...like reading a physical novel.  Click OK when finished.
Light Cream: RGB (Red, Green, Blue) to 251, 248, and 217 (recommended)
Medium Cream: RGB (Red, Green, Blue) to 247, 241, and 179
Darker Cream: RGB (Red, Green, Blue) to 240, 179, and 116


3) Voila! You can see in the screenshot of Lunara: Gwen and Eamonn, the cream is subtle but after hours of editing and rereading, your eyes will be less tired and you will be able to concentrate on writing...not fighting your eyes. Just try it for one day and I guarantee you will be hooked.