Pageflow lets you preconfigure how new content starts out, so you don't have to repeat the same choices every time. There are two levels of defaults: per-story defaults that you set in the editor for new sections and elements, and global defaults that apply to every newly created story.
Defaults always apply only to content you create afterwards. Changing a default never affects sections, elements, or stories that already exist, and you can override any setting individually at any time.
Defaults for new sections and elements
Inside a story you can set how newly added sections and elements should start out. Open "Title and Options" in the editor, switch to the "Appearance" tab, and click "Defaults for new elements". The defaults page is divided into two tabs.
New sections – Preset how new sections look and how much space they use:
- Content alignment – Where the content is positioned on desktop devices
- Text background – The backdrop shown behind text (e.g. card or transparent)
- Top padding and Bottom padding – The vertical spacing around the content
New elements – Preset how new content elements start out. The "All elements" group holds settings shared across element types, such as Full width in phone layout, the Caption variant, and whether the rights of uploaded files are displayed. Below that, individual element types have their own defaults – for example whether images can be opened in fullscreen, how videos start playing, or hyphenation for headings.
These defaults take effect only for sections and elements you add afterwards. Existing content stays unchanged, and you can still adjust every setting individually for each section or element.
Setting a section transition as the default
Transition effects between sections have a handy shortcut. When you edit the transition of a section, you can choose "Use as default for new sections". From then on, new sections start with that transition – without opening the defaults page.
Global defaults for new stories
In your account's settings you can preconfigure defaults that apply to every newly created story. Open Settings and select "Defaults". These settings are organized into three tabs:
- General – Metadata defaults such as language, author, publisher, and keywords
- Sections – The same section defaults you find in the editor
- Elements – The same element defaults you find in the editor
When a new story is created, these values are already filled in as its own per-story defaults. As with the defaults inside the editor, changes here apply only to new stories – existing stories are not affected. You can still change the defaults later in the editor for each individual story.
For an overview of how the editor is structured, see the article "How does the Pageflow Editor work?"