Skip to main content
L
lisak98197174
Participant
June 18, 2017
Answered

Line spacing in InDesign: How to incorporate school guidelines?

  • June 18, 2017
  • 3 replies
  • 32177 views

Hi everyone,

So I decided to make my master thesis in InDesign, since I want to go nuts with my text styles, colors, illustrations and so on. Now, I've worked in InDesign before for school projects, but my Masters Thesis is a whole other deal regarding to the guidelines I have to follow.

Now, I have to incorporate the '1.5 line spacing' or 'double spacing' rule into my InDesign document. I've gathered that InDesign doesn't work with line spacing, since that is a typewriter thing. So, my question is, how to incorporate this rule in my document with the help of other settings?

The font I'm currently using is Times New Roman, 12pt, but I may change it to better fit the final design.

Is it better to double the standard leading (so, 2x14.4= 28.8 pt) or use a certain percentage in the Auto Leading Justification tab, to make sure that all my fonts (if I decide to use other fonts) automatically have the correct 'line spacing' that is required of me? And if so, which percentage would that be?

I personally think changing the auto leading setting in the justification tab would suit my needs best, since I don't have to bother changing the leading when I change the font. Though, it has been a while since I last worked in InDesign for this kind of thing, so I may be wrong. A sidenote: I do want the document aligned to the grid. Do I have to change the grid settings as well, and which settings need to be changed?

Thanks in advance !

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Dov Isaacs

I don't know about what is considered single line spacing in the UK where I believe you are based, but at least in the United States, 12/12 is not single spacing. If you were to line up the results of InDesign output at 12/12 versus single line spacing in Word or similar programs, you would see that the 12/12 setting yields lines of text that are way too close together.

The 1.2x setting of InDesign for default leading is the closest approximation to what most would consider single spacing for most text fonts, at least at text point sizes.

Thus, 12/14.4 (point size/leading) default of Adobe InDesign is what is commonly accepted as single spacing. 1.5x spacing would be 12/21.6 (point size/leading) and 2x spacing would be 12/28.8 (point size/leading).

The issue then becomes that of inter-paragraph spacing. To simulate typewriter inter-paragraph spacing, you would set your paragraph style to have an “after paragraph” spacing of 14.4pt, 21.6pt, or 28.8pt for 1x, 1.5x, or 2x spacing respectively.

All that having been said, since we are dealing with an academic environment and that the OP wants their thesis to be accepted for their degree, it might be prudent to ask the university/college exactly what they require for the spacing, including inter-paragraph spacing, paragraph indents (if any), etc.

          - Dov

PS:     Note that in Microsoft Word, the actual leading for 1x, 1.5x, and 2x spacing is in fact dependent on the metrics of the font you are using. This issue has come up numerous times in the Adobe forums (especially the Typography Forum) and our advice to users is to never, repeat never, repeat once again never use line spacing in Word if you expect consistent results with different fonts, including mixing of regular, italic, bold, and/or bold italic of the same font family in a single line of text! Use spacing as specified above!

3 replies

M
Migintosh
Legend
June 19, 2017

Also, something that isn't readily apparent to everyone is that although leading may seem like a paragraph attribute, it is a character-level setting in InDesign. Notice the gap between lines in this screen shot:

The leading is set the same for all of the selected text, and there is no space-before or space-after involved.

If I select all of the subsequent lines, it shows the same thing:

But, what isn't shown is that I didn't select the paragraph return at the end of the line with the space above:

…which shows where the extra leading is coming from. Probably the most common reason why people post about unexplained line spacing is because of the settings of a paragraph return.

And to your question about baseline grids, yes, you will need to set the grid to the appropriate setting if you want to lock text to it. In the same text I used in the above examples, notice how the gap is no longer visible when I snap the guides to the default 12-pt baseline in this screen shot:

Because the leading is set to auto (14.4 for 12-pt type), it won't fit within the 12 points that separate the baseline grid, so it skips to the next available line. And because the extra leading on the one paragraph return is set to 22, it isn't enough to push it two lines down. That would need 24 or better.

So if you want to snap your lines to the grid, set the grid to what ever you choose (1x, 1.5x or 2x). If you use space-before or space-after amounts that are less than the leading, you won't get double spaces between paragraphs.

Dov Isaacs
Dov Isaacs
Legend
June 19, 2017

Actually leading is a paragraph attribute, but it can be overridden by a character attribute!

          - Dov

- Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
Derek Cross
Community Expert
Derek CrossCommunity Expert
Community Expert
June 19, 2017

Thanks for your useful comments Dov, but to clarify, I stated 12pt typesize plus 12pt leading (12/24).

Derek Cross
Community Expert
Derek CrossCommunity Expert
Community Expert
June 18, 2017

12pt Times plus 12pt leading is equivalent to one line space, so 18pt leading is equivalent to one and a half line spacing. Use Paragraph styles so you can easily change the formatting if you want to.

It it might be easier to write the thesis in MSWord and when it's finalised place it in InDesign and add the images etc in that. 

    Dov Isaacs
    Dov IsaacsCorrect answer
    Legend
    June 19, 2017

    I don't know about what is considered single line spacing in the UK where I believe you are based, but at least in the United States, 12/12 is not single spacing. If you were to line up the results of InDesign output at 12/12 versus single line spacing in Word or similar programs, you would see that the 12/12 setting yields lines of text that are way too close together.

    The 1.2x setting of InDesign for default leading is the closest approximation to what most would consider single spacing for most text fonts, at least at text point sizes.

    Thus, 12/14.4 (point size/leading) default of Adobe InDesign is what is commonly accepted as single spacing. 1.5x spacing would be 12/21.6 (point size/leading) and 2x spacing would be 12/28.8 (point size/leading).

    The issue then becomes that of inter-paragraph spacing. To simulate typewriter inter-paragraph spacing, you would set your paragraph style to have an “after paragraph” spacing of 14.4pt, 21.6pt, or 28.8pt for 1x, 1.5x, or 2x spacing respectively.

    All that having been said, since we are dealing with an academic environment and that the OP wants their thesis to be accepted for their degree, it might be prudent to ask the university/college exactly what they require for the spacing, including inter-paragraph spacing, paragraph indents (if any), etc.

              - Dov

    PS:     Note that in Microsoft Word, the actual leading for 1x, 1.5x, and 2x spacing is in fact dependent on the metrics of the font you are using. This issue has come up numerous times in the Adobe forums (especially the Typography Forum) and our advice to users is to never, repeat never, repeat once again never use line spacing in Word if you expect consistent results with different fonts, including mixing of regular, italic, bold, and/or bold italic of the same font family in a single line of text! Use spacing as specified above!

    - Dov Isaacs, former Adobe Principal Scientist (April 30, 1990 - May 30, 2021)
    L
    lisak98197174Author
    Participant
    June 19, 2017

    Wow, thanks for all the helpful tips!

    School usually expects that students hand in word documents (I am one of the only ones that can work with InDesign), so there isn't a precedent for non-word documents. But I think the 12pt - 21.6 will work!

    To summarize, I'd have to change the leading of the font itself dependent on the specific font, not change the auto leading in the justification tab from 120 to 180%??

    Bill Silbert
    Community Expert
    Bill SilbertCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    June 18, 2017

    The best way to do spacing in InDesign is to use a specific leading value for within each paragraph and a space after amount (or in some cases space before) using the Character and Paragraph Panels. For 12 point type a leading of two extra points—represented as a setting as 14 point leading—in the character panel and whatever amount feels comfortable between paragraphs (I would suggest trying 1/8 inch to start). Using this method gives you specific control as to how your spacing is applied. I would set it up as in the screen shot below:

      Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
      Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices