How do I Copy/Duplicate headings and formats

[mahengrui1]

Hello, I want to use LibreOffice Writer to create a book that contains about 100 chapters, each with fixed sub headings, such as introduction, discussion, conclusion, etc. How can I write this book without having to manually enter these headings and formats every time I start a new chapter?

Chat suggests:

you can utilize the “AutoText” feature along with the “Sections” functionality. This approach enables you to efficiently insert predefined text or apply specific formatting settings wherever needed without creating multiple documents. Here’s how you can leverage these features:

Using AutoText

1. Creating AutoText: First, input and format the content you want to save as AutoText, such as small titles like “Introduction”, “Discussion”, “Conclusion”, etc. Select this content, then navigate to the “Tools” menu and choose “AutoText”. In the dialog that appears, click “New”, assign a name and a shortcut to your AutoText entry, and save it.
2. Utilizing AutoText: Wherever you need to insert the predefined content in your document, simply type the AutoText shortcut followed by pressing the F3 key. LibreOffice Writer will automatically insert the saved content along with its formatting.

Organizing Document with Sections

1. Inserting Sections: To differentiate various chapters or parts within your document, insert “Sections” by going to the “Insert” menu and selecting “Section”. This allows you to name the section and configure specific attributes, such as column layout or unique formatting, making it possible to manage different chapters within the same document efficiently.
2. Combining Sections with AutoText: At the beginning of each new section, use the AutoText shortcut to quickly add predefined titles or content. This method ensures you can repeat the use of preset formats within the same document, maintaining consistency across different chapters while allowing for customization as needed.

[Hrbrgr]

@mahengrui1 …every time I start a new chapter?

By using styles. These can be found in the sidebar (Ctrl+F5).
There is a whole range of headings there that you can use or customize.
Write the heading. Then double-click on the desired style, e.g. Heading 1.

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Getting started with professional text composition in Writer

[Wanderer]

@mahengrui1

How can I write this book without having to manually enter these headings and formats every time I start a new chapter?

The simple stuff: Copy and paste:
Create an empty chapter, style it accordingly and let Writer do the numbering. Then copy this empty chapter. Either you prepare your full document with 100 empty chapters or you keep one empty chapter at the end, wich you can mark for copy with Shift+Ctrl+End from its start.

More advanced: Use a Master-document to insert your chapters. Then create a template for the individual chapters.

PS:

@mahengrui1

Chat suggests:

@mahengrui1

Organizing Document with Sections

Avoid section unless you know exactly why you use them. (Or use TeX.)

Remember: Imho ChatGPT does NOT understand your question. It is an advanced statistical answer.
And ChatGPT will not tidy up your document afterwards…

[ajlittoz]

“Duplicating formats”: in Writer parlance, this translates to use styles, styles and again styles. I insist: exclusively styles and avoid direct formatting. The latter will poison your layout and prevent you from optimising smartly and “comfortably” your formatting. And when I write styles, I mean all style categories; paragraph, character, page, list if you have numbered/bullet lists and frame in case of illustrations (whether textual or graphical).

“Duplicating headings” does not make a lot of sense. In fact, you want to duplicate an outline. Copy & Paste as suggested by @Wanderer is the simplest method but you must not forget to delete the “skeleton chapter” when the book is finalised. Another approach is to record the skeleton chapter, fully styled, in some AutoText entry.

I don’t recommend the master+sub-documents approach unless your book is over 500-1000 pages (exact threshold depends on the power of your computer). It is more difficult to maintain consistency when you have several files unless you follow a very strict and rigorous styling discipline (and it is even more important to prohibit direct formatting here) and base all documents and master on the same template.