Adding text to documents is crucial when working with Adobe Indesign. We show you the many variations in text editing and formatting in our Adobe Indesign training courses.
Basically there are three methods of adding text to a document. You can either type the text manually, copy and paste it from a PDF document, or import the copy from a Word document.
For the first method first select the Type tool (or hit T on your keyboard). Next click and drag on the page to create a text box, and simply type in your text. You may then triple-click to select the line of text, and modify it using the various options in the top Control panel. Note also the Character and Paragraph options on the top left of the Control panel – you’ll need to use these if you have a small screen.
In the second method we first open up the PDF document in Adobe Acrobat or Reader. We then select the text and right-click on it to choose Copy. Now return to Indesign and right-click to Paste. We can format the text as above as well as add a colour swatch. We can repeat with the more text and copy the formatting using the Eyedropper tool, or by adding a Paragraph Style.
The third method of adding text is via the File menu, choosing Place and browsing to a Word document. When first importing text it’s a good idea to tick Show Import Options. Then select Remove Styles & Formatting and hit OK. You may then click either off the page, within one of the columns, or click and drag to create a new text frame.
To centre the text within its text frame and to add some inset space within the box simply right-click to select Text Frame Options and add an inset vale of 3mm, for example. To create two columns within a text box select the text with the Type tool and go to the Paragraph options at the top Control panel, and change the Number of columns to 2.
More tips and techniques can be found at Adobe.com. There are many tutorials and forums for designers to discuss topics and the latest Indesign features. See also many examples of our own clients’ work on our Facebook page.
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