Do you do one space after a period, or two?

1. 82

   Availiasvisionposted 11 years ago

   Do you do one space after a period, or two?
   
   I grew up being told that you use twp spaces after a period, but I've noticed others only using one.  For e-book publishing, which is correct?

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2. 79

   junksellerposted 11 years ago

   The story as I have heard it is that once upon a time typewriters used monospaced fonts, which means that every letter gets the same amount of space, whether it is fat or thin. The result was that you could end up with relatively large white spots within a sentence, therefore it was useful to double space a sentence end to make such a break more pronounced. Is this true or not? Who knows. There is a surprisingly large argument on this matter.
   
   I don't think it really matters. We don't, for the most part, type on typewriters anymore, and most typefaces are designed to look good with only a single space after the sentence. I think that most style guides today recommend the single space.
   
   As for e-books, I think you'd have to check with their specific recommendations. Some might allow either depending on author preference. Some might auto-format regardless of what you do. I'm not familiar enough with them to say, but I'd say single spacing is a safe bet.

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3. 0

   Sarah Andersonposted 11 years ago

   It was two for college papers using MLA format, but I think for your own purposes you can do whatever you want as long as it looks right to you.

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4. 83

   M. T. Dremerposted 11 years ago

   There are surprisingly few stipulations when it comes to self publishing. They're really just concerned with things like margins and headings. I've encountered people who use two spaces, but I've never personally done it. A good way to look at it is; can the reader reasonably see the end of the sentence? If so, then it doesn't mater which one you use.

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5. 72

   DaveOnlineposted 11 years ago

   I've always done 1 space, I didn't know there was the option to do 2. Maybe it's something to do with the country I live in. However for e-book publishing it is probably different.

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6. 61

   Douglas Owenposted 10 years ago

   The fast answer - One space.
   
   The long answer - It started in the 60's. The book publishers started to incorporate a single space after the period. There are many that give different answers, but the one that would stick out in my mind is financial.
   
   Reasoning - Every space you save with a book lowers the cost of producing it. If you save a single page, you save a penny. Added together over hundreds of thousands of prints, you save thousands. Better your pocket than their's.
   
   Research:
   http://www.heracliteanriver.com/?p=324

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