Words are separated by one or more spaces. Paragraphs are separated by one or more blank lines. The output is not affected by adding extra spaces or extra blank lines to the input file.
Double quotes are typed like this: “quoted text”. Single quotes are typed like this: `single-quoted text'.
Long dashes are typed as three dash characters -- like this.
Emphasized text is typed like this: this is emphasized. Bold text is typed like this: this is bold.
If you get too much space after a mid-sentence period -- abbreviations like etc. are the common culprits) -- then type a backslash followed by a space after the period, as in this sentence.
Remember, don't type the 10 special characters (such as dollar sign and backslash) except as directed! The following seven are printed by typing a backslash in front of them: $ & # % _ { and }. The manual tells how to make other symbols.