Creating your first LaTeX document

Learn how to create your first LaTeX document from scratch. Step-by-step guide for beginners using LaTeX Cloud Studio.

Let’s create your very first LaTeX document! This guide will walk you through the essential steps to get started with LaTeX using LaTeX Cloud Studio.

Time needed: 5 minutes
Prerequisites: Access to LaTeX Cloud Studio
What you’ll learn: Basic document structure, compiling, and viewing output

The Simplest LaTeX Document

Every LaTeX journey begins with a simple “Hello World” document. Here’s the absolute minimum you need:

hello-world.tex

\documentclass{article}
\begin{document}
Hello World!
\end{document}

That’s it! These four lines create a complete LaTeX document.

Understanding Each Line

Let’s break down what each line does:

1. Document Class

\documentclass{article}

This tells LaTeX what kind of document you’re creating. The article class is perfect for:

• Short documents
• Academic papers
• Reports
• General documents

Other common classes include:

• report - for longer documents with chapters
• book - for books with parts, chapters, and sections
• letter - for formal letters
• beamer - for presentations

2. Document Environment

\begin{document}
...content...
\end{document}

Everything between these commands is your actual document content. Think of it as the “body” of your HTML page.

Creating a More Complete Document

Let’s expand our document with common elements:

complete-first.tex

\documentclass{article}

% Preamble - setup goes here
\title{My First LaTeX Document}
\author{Your Name}
\date{December 2024}

\begin{document}

% Create title from preamble info
\maketitle

% First section
\section{Introduction}
Welcome to my first LaTeX document! This is an exciting moment in my journey to create professional documents.

\section{Why I'm Learning LaTeX}
I'm learning LaTeX because:
\begin{itemize}
    \item It creates beautiful documents
    \item It handles mathematics perfectly
    \item It's used by professionals worldwide
    \item It gives me complete control over formatting
\end{itemize}

\section{My First Equation}
Einstein's famous equation is $E = mc^2$, which shows the relationship between energy and mass.

\section{Conclusion}
This is just the beginning of my LaTeX journey!

\end{document}

How to Create This in LaTeX Cloud Studio

1. Open LaTeX Cloud Studio in your browser
2. Create a new document using the “New Document” button
3. Copy and paste the code above into the editor
4. Click “Compile” to generate your PDF
5. View the result in the preview pane

LaTeX Cloud Studio automatically saves your work and provides real-time preview, making it perfect for beginners!

The Document Structure

A LaTeX document has two main parts:

1. The Preamble

Everything before \begin{document} is the preamble. This is where you:

• Set the document class
• Load packages (extensions)
• Define document information (title, author, date)
• Set up custom commands
• Configure document settings

2. The Document Body

Everything between \begin{document} and \end{document} is your content. This includes:

• Text
• Sections and chapters
• Equations
• Figures and tables
• References

Your First Compilation

When you compile a LaTeX document, here’s what happens:

1. LaTeX reads your source file (.tex)
2. Processes the commands and markup
3. Generates a PDF (or other output format)
4. Shows any errors if something went wrong

In LaTeX Cloud Studio, this happens automatically when you click “Compile” or enable auto-compilation.

Common Beginner Mistakes

Avoid these common errors:

1. Forgetting \end{document} - Every document must end with this
2. Content before \begin{document} - Only setup goes in the preamble
3. Mismatched braces - Every { needs a matching }
4. Wrong quotes - Use “ ” for quotes, not ” “

Adding More Elements

Comments

Use % to add comments that won’t appear in the output:

% This is a comment
This text appears % but this comment doesn't

Paragraphs

Leave a blank line to start a new paragraph:

This is the first paragraph. It can be as long as you want.

This is the second paragraph. LaTeX automatically handles spacing.

Basic Formatting

\textbf{Bold text}
\textit{Italic text}
\underline{Underlined text}
\texttt{Monospace text}

Practice Exercise

Try creating this document:

exercise.tex

\documentclass{article}
\title{My LaTeX Practice}
\author{[Your Name]}
\date{\today} % Automatically uses today's date

\begin{document}
\maketitle

\section{About Me}
% Write a paragraph about yourself

\section{My Favorite Formula}
% Add a simple math equation using $ $

\section{Things I Want to Learn}
% Create a list using \begin{itemize}

\end{document}

What’s Next?

Now that you’ve created your first document, you can:

1. Experiment with different document classes - Try report or book
2. Add more sections - Use \subsection and \subsubsection
3. Include mathematics - Learn about math mode
4. Format your text - Explore fonts and styling
5. Add images and tables - Make your documents visual

Quick Reference

Command	Purpose	Example
\documentclass{}	Set document type	\documentclass{article}
\begin{document}	Start document content	Required
\end{document}	End document content	Required
\title{}	Set document title	\title{My Report}
\author{}	Set author name	\author{Jane Doe}
\date{}	Set date	\date{\today}
\maketitle	Create title block	Place after \begin{document}
\section{}	Create a section	\section{Introduction}
%	Comment	% This is a note

Tips for Success

1. Start simple - Don’t try to use every feature at once
2. Compile often - Check your work frequently
3. Read error messages - They usually point to the exact problem
4. Use templates - Build on working examples
5. Keep the documentation handy - Reference it as you work

---

Congratulations! You’ve created your first LaTeX document. This is the foundation for creating professional documents of any complexity. Continue with Choosing a LaTeX Compiler to understand how LaTeX processes your documents.