Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Talking to Yourself.

Talking to Yourself

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 23, 2020)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021


1

If you are like me, when you write you make notes to yourself so you don't forget parts of the manuscript that may need more work or so you can jog your memory. Hidden text is great for this purpose, because you can hide your notes at any time so that others don't see them on the screen or in a printout. I found that I added enough notes that I wanted to create a macro that would insert a paragraph prior to the one in which I am working, and then format the paragraph as hidden text so I can enter my note. The result is the AddNote macro, which creates a red-text hidden paragraph:

Sub AddNote()
    Selection.MoveDown Unit:=wdParagraph, Count:=1
    Selection.MoveUp Unit:=wdParagraph, Count:=1
    Selection.TypeParagraph
    Selection.MoveLeft Unit:=wdCharacter, Count:=1
    Selection.Style = ActiveDocument.Styles("Normal")
    With Selection.Font
        .Name = "Arial"
        .Size = 11
        .Bold = True
        .Italic = False
        .Underline = wdUnderlineNone
        .StrikeThrough = False
        .DoubleStrikeThrough = False
        .Outline = False
        .Emboss = False
        .Shadow = False
        .Hidden = True
        .SmallCaps = False
        .AllCaps = False
        .ColorIndex = wdRed
        .Engrave = False
        .Superscript = False
        .Subscript = False
        .Spacing = 0
        .Scaling = 100
        .Position = 0
        .Kerning = 0
        .Animation = wdAnimationNone
    End With
    Selection.TypeText Text:="Note: "
End Sub

I assign this macro to a shortcut key, which makes it very easy to use. You could, if you prefer, assign it to the Quick Access Toolbar.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (12888) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Talking to Yourself.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Distributing Table Rows Evenly

If you've adjusted the height of your table and the rows within the table, you might want to later return all those rows ...

Discover More

Sorting Inventory Labels

When you have a lot of data formatted into labels, you may want to periodically add additional information to those ...

Discover More

Setting Data Validation Input Messages

When using data validation, you might want to have Excel display a message when someone starts to enter information into ...

Discover More

Discover the Power of Microsoft Office This beginner-friendly guide reveals the expert tips and strategies you need to skyrocket your productivity and use Office 365 like a pro. Mastering software like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is essential to be more efficient and advance your career. Simple lessons guide you through every step, providing the knowledge you need to get started. Check out Microsoft Office 365 For Beginners today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Jumping to a Relative Page

When you are navigating around your document, you may find it helpful to jump a certain number of pages either toward the ...

Discover More

Shortcut for Em and En Spaces

Typographers know that not all spaces are created equal. When creating a document, most people use spaces created by ...

Discover More

Checking for a List of Phrases in a Document

Once you start amassing quite a few documents, it is not uncommon to want to change phrases commonly used in those ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is two minus 0?

2020-05-23 20:48:14

MW

I think that you should point out that although hidden text won't be immediately visible to a recipient of a Word doc containing hidden text, that recipient can easily edit your document to display the hidden text (just like you can).

According to my reading, protecting your document with hidden text will only prevent a recipient from editing that text, but they can still display it.

So never hide something that you wouldn't want others to see.


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.