How do I change the default font for Text Box in Writer? I can change on a case-by-case basis using Properties, but I want to have my default template always apply my preferred font to new text boxes.
You can’t.
It is a common mistake to use text boxes for what should be text frames.
Text boxes are graphic objects beyond the reach of the Writer formatting machinery. They are external to text because they are just part of a drawing. Note that if these graphics are created with Draw, you have styles in Draw which allow to control from a central location all properties of such objects. Writer offers as a courtesy a reduced version of Draw features on the ground that direct object inclusion is “exceptional” for very simple blocks.
Text frames are made for side remarks, comments, notes, explanations, … relative to a paragraph. They can be used for margin notes instead of foot notes.
You create a frame with Insert>Frame. A frame has a frame style, allowing you you give all your frames the same appearance.
Text inside a frame is standard Writer text. By default, it is styled Frame Contents but you can use any style. To change the “default” font in frames, modify Frame Contents to choose another font face.
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@kiwi_writer wrote: I want to have my default template always apply my preferred font to new text boxes
For text boxes with special formatting use the gallery. This is only a workaround.
Better use text frames as @ajlittoz states, there you can easily work with paragraph styles or insert listst…