How to Create a Columnar Newsletter with Word 2016

In this tutorial, you’ll use Word’s Columns feature to create a newsletter for a travel company advertising dance cruises.  You’ll learn how to utilize WordArt and Clip Art to add visual appeal to your newsletter.  You’ll also add pizzazz to the three column newsletter by inserting a you-tube video, a picture and a drop cap.  In order to make the formatting work properly we’ll be using section breaks to separate the top of the document that is typed between the margins which word considers one column from the body of the newsletter which is formatted into three columns.

Requirements:  Word 2010, 2013 or 2016.  To work along with this tutorial, you may use the newsletter-start.docx

 

Using WordArt

WordArt allows you to create interesting looking text objects that make great titles in a newsletter or flyer.

1. Select the title in the document
2. Click the Insert tab > Text Group > WordArt button
3. Choose Fill – White,  Outline – Accent 5 Shadow
   
   
4. When you insert a piece of WordArt into a document, it appears in your document already selected with a solid border.  A smart tag also appears to the right of the object.  If you click the smart tag, six text-wrapping options appear that determine how the text surrounding the object appears in your document.  You will also see an anchor icon that indicates the object is attached to text.  With the WordArt object still selected, click the Layout Options smart tag.
5. Choose IN Line with Text
   
6. Deselect the smart tag by clicking anywhere in the document and then click the WordArt object border again to re-select it.  The border should now be a solid line.
7. Click the Drawing Tools contextual tab > Format > Shape Styles Group
8. Click the Shape Fill down arrow menu button
9. Choose Light Blue from the standard colors palette
   

Change the Text Effects of the WordArt Object

1. With the object still selected, choose Drawing Tools contextual tab > Format > WordArt Styles Group
2. Choose Text Effects to display the gallery
3. Click Transform
4. Choose Double Wave 1

Format the Headings

1. Position the mouse pointer in the left margin area next to the WordArt object and then click and drag the left mouse to select the WordArt object and the two other headings.
2. Click the Home tab > Paragraph Group and choose Center
3. Click the Home tab > Text Group and format the headings with the Cambria, Bold, 18 pt font

Adding a Video to your Newsletter

There may be an occasion where you may wish to add a video to your documents.  You can find videos on websites, blogs and YouTube. Your readers can view the video from within your document or if you save your document as a PDF, it will create a link to the video.  In the following example, we will insert a YouTube video into the Word document.

1.  Click the Insert tab > Media Group > Online Video button
2. In the Insert Video screen, click on YouTube and in the search box,  type in the video you are looking for.  In this example we searched for dance cruise.
3. Click on a video of your choice and then click the Insert button.  The video will  be inserted into your document.

Inserting Section Breaks

Section breaks define a portion of the document that will have separate formatting from the rest. Section breaks help you to control the overall look of the document. Section breaks can be inserted or deleted. Word automatically adds section breaks when you add columns into your document

1. First click the Home tab > Paragraph Group > Show/Hide button to display formatting marks.  Then Click the Layout tab > Page Setup Group > Breaks and under Section Breaks, Choose Continuous from the menu.  A section break will appear.
   

Adding Columns

Columns are often used for formatting newsletters, magazines, brochures and flyers. Also known as newspaper style, formatting in columns will give your documents a more polished and professional look.

You can create one, two or three columns of equal size. Word fills one column full of text before spilling into the next column unless you insert a column break. You can change the width of your columns to suit your needs and apply any character and paragraph formatting in the same way as you would in a normal page style.

1. Select all of the body text on the next 3 pages of the document located below the section break.
2. Click the Layout tab > Page Setup group > Columns
3. Choose Three from the menu.

Your newsletter should now look like the following with the text flowing into three columns.

Add a Drop Cap

You can add a drop cap to the first letter of a paragraph.  A drop cap is nothing more than a large, uppercase first letter of a paragraph that is usually applied to the first letter of the first paragraph in a newsletter or other document.

1. Select the M in the word Main in the first column.
2. Click the Insert tab > Text Group
3. Choose Add a Drop Cap > Dropped
4. Click anywhere in the document to deselect the drop cap.

Add a Picture

1. Click where you want to add the picture in the newsletter
2. Click the Insert tab > Illustrations Group > Pictures
3. Navigate to the folder where your picture resides and choose the picture you want to insert then click the insert button.  The picture will be inserted in your newsletter.

Formatting Columns

The first draft of your newsletter should now be displayed with your main body text flowing into three columns with a drop cap and a small picture. You can now format your columns in the same way as you would in a normal page style.  To learn more about how to format text in columns, view the tutorial on Working with Columns and Section Breaks.