Your Question Answered

FROM: Malcom G, Essex

Question: I keep the chapters of my novel in separate Word documents but I want the page numbers to follow on from chapter to chapter. How do I do this?

Answer:

Dear Malcom,

Like many things in Word it's straightforward when you know how. Here's the drill:

In Word 2002 and 2003 do this:

Click on View on the menu bar, then Header and Footer. This action creates a Header and Footer in your document and places the curser in the header. The Header and Footer toolbar also appears.

Assuming you want your page numbers in the footer, press the down arrow key on the keyboard OR click on the Switch between Header and Footer icon on the Toolbar. (In case you don't know, if you hover the curser over the icons a prompt will appear to tell what the icon is.)

Now click on the Insert Page Number icon in the Header and Footer Toolbar and the number '1' will appear on the right hand side in the footer. We now need to tell Word which number to start this chapter with (if it's not the first chapter!) and where to put it. To do this click on the Format Page Number icon in the Header and Footer Toolbar. The Page Number Format window will appear.

Towards the bottom of this window is a radio button called 'Start at:'. Click on this and then enter the number to start the chapter in the adjacent box and click OK.

Now, if you want your number in the middle of the footer, or even to the left of the page, go to the top of the screen where the icons for bold, italics, underline, etc. are and find the icons for setting text to the left, right or centre. Click on the icon for 'Center' and click on it. Your page number will jump across to the centre of the page.

Go back to the Header and Footer Toolbar and click 'Close'

Your pages will now update consecutively from the number you entered.

But do remember that if you edit one of your chapters which alters the page number it finishes on, you will need to work through succeeding chapters and correct their starting numbers. It's probably best to leave this job until you are ready to send it off to a publisher and do them all at once.

In Word 2007 do this:

Click on the 'Insert' tab, then click the 'Page number' icon in the Header and Footer section at the top.

A drop down menu will appear which includes the choice 'Bottom of page'. Hover the curser over this and you will be presented with graphical representations of where you can place the number: left, right or centre. Click on your choice and a footer will be created with the number '1' in the position you chose.

Now we want to tell Word which number this chapter should start with.

Click on the 'Page Number' icon at the top again and from the dropdown menu choose 'Page Number Format'. A small window will appear. Towards the bottom of this window is a radio button called 'Start at:'. Click on this and then enter the number to start the chapter in the adjacent box and click OK.

Your number will replace the '1' that was there previously.

Now click on the 'Close Header and Footer' icon at the top of the page to the right. It has a red square with a cross in the middle.

But do remember that if you edit one of your chapters which alters the page number it finishes on, you will need to work through succeeding chapters and correct their starting numbers. It's probably best to leave this job until you are ready to send it off to a publisher and do them all at once.

And that's all there is to it.

Ask Your Question here

 © WritersReign.co.uk - Numbering chapters when in separate Word documents