To create a template in Word 2010,
- Open a blank Word document and adjust your styles (see page 5), margins (see page 8), and any automatic numbering features you want in your document.
- In the File Ribbon, select Save as…, then select Word Template. Save it somewhere that you can find easily.
- To modify your template later, open Word first, then open the template file – if you double-click on it, it will create a new document based on the template as described below.
To create a template in Word 2013 or later,
- Adjust your styles, margins, etc. in a BLANK document.
- In the File Ribbon, select Save As, then click on the Browse button. A dialogue box will come up. The Save as Type dropdown defaults to .docx. In order to save the file as a template, you can use either the .dotx or .dotm format. Unless you are using macros in your document, choose the .dotx option.
To create a document from your template or apply it to an existing document,
- Double-click on the template file you created in the steps above. This will open a new document based on that template.
- If you already have a chapter written, you can insert that chapter into this new document to apply any style settings to it. To do this…
- On the Insert Ribbon, in the Text Group, click on the arrow next to the Object icon and select Text from File….
- Navigate to the document you wish to insert and click Insert.
