GUIDELINES FOR USING LAYOUT AND TYPOGRAPHY TO CREATE EFFECTIVE EMPHASIS

Layout

Margins

• Use justified left but ragged right all through letter
• Leave 1 ½ inches left and 1 ½ inches right

Leading (space between lines)

• Set 2 points larger than type size (e.g., 12 over 14)

Headings

• Use upper and lower case (not all caps)
• Set in boldface
• Justify to the left margin
• Triple-space before headings and double-space after (19.2 points before, 8.4 points after)

Typography

Fonts

• Select a serif font for the text of the letter (like Times Roman)
• Don't mix fonts within the text of the letter
• Select a sans serif font for the headings (like Arial)

Shading/Boxing

• Use shading and boxing only to accent graphs, charts, etc.

Bullets

• Use standard bullets (if you choose others, like diamonds or arrows, be consistent)
• Generally, don't use more than two types of bullets in a letter
• Use numbers only if there is a sequence to identify

Bold/Italics/Underlining

• Use bold for emphasis (not underlining)
• Use italics for parenthetical information, like citations of laws

Before You Finish

• Take a long look at the appearance of the letter for eye-appeal
• Be sure the letter does not look visually confusing
• Don't overuse layout and typographical devices
• Check for odd shapes (the "hourglass effect") that may have unintentionally been created as you composed the letter