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As someone who writes words for a living, I have to make sure that the tools I use work exactly as I need them to. Sometimes a tool works fine out of the box, while other times it may require a little tweaking to get it right.
For example, LibreOffice allows you to edit the default styles so they are exactly the ones you need. You may need to change the font of a style, font size, alignment, etc.
Also: How to Create a LibreOffice Template
Here’s a very simple example. For my fiction writing, the Heading 2 style needs to be centered, as I use it for chapter headings. Sure, I can use the default Heading 2, but every time I have to go back and not only center it but remove the indent.
It’s a bit more extra work when you’re writing a full-length novel.
So, I edit style to make my workflow a bit easier. Let me show you how it’s done.
how to edit libreoffice style
what you’ll need: You will only need to have LibreOffice installed for this. It doesn’t matter on which operating system you’re using it, as the process is the same.
First open LibreOffice Writer. If you’re using MacOS or Windows, you’ll first need to open the LibreOffice Control Center (labeled simply as LibreOffice in your desktop menu).
Too: For a better document collaboration experience, try these tips
On Linux, you can open LibreOffice Writer directly from the desktop menu.
Next, choose the genre you want to edit. How you do this will depend on the UI you are using. For example, if you use the Sidebar UI, click the Properties icon, and then select the style you want to edit from the Style dropdown.
I prefer the sidebar UI in LibreOffice as it is better suited for my workflow. Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
Once you’ve selected a style, click Styles in the main menu, and then choose Edit Style.
You can also choose the style you want to use from this menu. Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
Let’s stick to my example and edit the Heading 2 style so that it is centered without any indent. To do this, you would configure the following in the Style Editor:
- align – center
- Indent (all) – 0.00
Of course, you can make whatever changes you want to the style. When you’re done, click OK to save the new version of the style. Now, when you select Heading 2, it will be exactly what you need.
Make as many changes to the style as you want. Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
And that’s all for editing a style in LibreOffice. By doing this you can help make your work a little more efficient.
Also: How to Install the Latest Version of LibreOffice for Free
As someone who writes Word for a living, I can vouch that this feature has helped my workflow, saving me time when I want to focus on writing and not so much on formatting. .
