If you’ve done any writing on a computer, you’re familiar with fonts and font sizes. Most writing apps have a control to choose a font and font size. Many Mac apps have an inspector bar to choose the font size, which you can see in the following screenshot:

In the screenshot the font size is 13. What does the 13 represent?

13 is the size of the font in points. 72 points equal 1 inch. If you made the font size 72, each line of text would be 1 inch high. 13 point text is slightly larger than one sixth of an inch.

What’s the right font size for the body text of your book? It depends on the font you’re using and whether you’re publishing a print or electronic book. One font may be as big at 10 points as another font is at 11 points.

Print books can use smaller font sizes because you hold print books closer when reading. 10-12 point text works well for print books. Electronic books need larger text: 12-18 point text. You may need to experiment to find the best font size for your book.