The Secret Shortcuts of Book Authors: How to Write, Edit, and Format Faster

I used to believe that writing a book was all about creativity. But after finishing my first manuscript, I realized the real struggle wasn’t just putting words on paper—it was the endless editing, formatting, and structuring. It felt like I was spending more time fixing things than actually writing. That’s when I went on a mission to eliminate every unnecessary click and mouse movement from my workflow. What I found changed the way I write forever.

One of my biggest headaches was rearranging paragraphs. I would cut and paste entire sections, constantly worrying about losing text. Then I discovered Shift + Alt + Up/Down Arrow. This lets me move entire paragraphs up or down without cutting or pasting. Need to reorder a list of points or move a dialogue exchange up? Just press Shift + Alt + Up Arrow—it’s like magic.

Another trick that saved me hours was Ctrl + Shift + 8 (Show Hidden Characters). It reveals spaces, paragraph breaks, and weird formatting errors that can ruin a manuscript’s layout. Ever had a page break appear randomly? This shortcut shows you exactly where the issue is hiding.

One of my favorite hidden gems is Ctrl + Shift + C (Copy Formatting) and Ctrl + Shift + V (Paste Formatting). This works like a formatting paintbrush—instead of manually setting fonts, indents, and styles for every section, I just copy the formatting from one place and apply it to another in seconds. Perfect for maintaining consistency across different chapters.

As a writer, I love experimenting with different phrasings, but undoing multiple times felt clunky. That’s when I found Ctrl + Shift + Z (Redo a Change After Undoing). If I undo a sentence and realize the previous version was better, this shortcut brings it back instantly—no retyping required.

Editing dialogue is one of the most tedious parts of writing. I used to struggle with quotation marks, adding and fixing them manually. Then I found out about Ctrl + ’ (Smart Quotes Toggle). It instantly switches between curly quotes and straight quotes, which is a lifesaver for professional formatting.

Another life-changing discovery was Shift + F3 (Change Case Instantly). Sometimes, I’d accidentally type a title in lowercase or forget to capitalize something. Instead of retyping, this shortcut cycles through UPPERCASE, lowercase, and Title Case—perfect for fixing mistakes without breaking my flow.

When I’m deep into writing mode, I don’t want any distractions. That’s why I started using Alt + Shift + D (Insert Date Automatically). If I’m journaling or writing daily notes for my book, this shortcut stamps the current date instantly, keeping everything organized.

And here’s a secret that no one talks about: Ctrl + Enter (Insert a Page Break). Instead of pressing Enter multiple times to start a new page, this shortcut ensures that the next chapter always begins on a clean page—a must-have for professional formatting.

By the time I finished my last book, these shortcuts had completely transformed my workflow. I was writing faster, editing smarter, and formatting with zero frustration. Writing a book is already a long journey—so why waste time on unnecessary clicks? Once you unlock these hidden shortcuts, you'll never write the same way again.