Laying out a manual for the first time...

I’m laying out a manual for the first time, and while I understand the concept of using a grid for design, I can’t quite nail down how to accomplish it. Looking at the D&D 3.5 manual, the grid is really just the background. I can see how things are supposed to be laid out, but I can’t get the text to do my bidding.

<o =""></o>I’ve tried adjusting the leading and spacing before & after, but I just can’t get the lines of text to do what I need it to do. I know the spacing in my grid is okay because part of the text block is fine, but it hits a point where it just won’t cooperate the way the previous 36 lines have.<o =""></o>

<o =""></o>Is there a manual design book anyone can recommend, or can anyone tell me what I’m doing wrong? I do a lot of graphic design at work, but mostly just advertising (posters, two-page brochures, pamphlets, etc.). So I understand the fundamentals of design, and I’m proficient with InDesign and PageMaker7, but I just don’t have experience with this animal. There’s no rush as the grid version of the manual is for my own learning experience, but I’d really like to figure this out for future projects. <o =""></o>

<o =""></o>Can anyone help me out?<o =""></o>

<o =""></o>Thanks!<o =""></o>

A screenshot would help...

Do you mean something like the screenshot below?

If so, what's going wrong (a bit more precise then it's not doing what i want it to do)?

That is precisely what I'm trying to accomplish. Is there a template or standard for that? Or can you share measurements/guidelines for text leading and line guides?

The problem I seem to be having is making my text fit the grid. After a few lines, it doesn't seem to fit, no matter what I do to the leading or spacing. For example, 5 lines will fit the grid perfectly, but the 6th line will be off by about 1/32 of an inch, and every subsequent line will be off by that and more, making the rest of the page not line up to the gridlines.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

I vaguely remember a similar problem i had, i think it had something to do with the paragraph styles, i'll take a look at InDesign in the morning (as it's 23:00 around here).

I made a standard document that has the styles and layout i use, i haven't looked at templates yet.