People have strong reactions to what seem like small details to others. Recently, a book project I was working on was nearly undone by a misunderstanding about commas.
Commas.
That little, tadpole-like punctuation mark that indicates a pause, rather than a full stop in a sentence, has wreaked more havoc and created more consternation than anything else I can think of in editing-land. Otherwise rational people lose all logic and self-control when they observe others using (or not using) commas in certain ways. Beware!*
The comma has wreaked more havoc than anything else in editing. Otherwise rational people lose all self-control when they observe others using (or not using) commas in certain ways. #writing Click To TweetPeople have strong opinions about other punctuation marks as well, not to mention spelling, fonts (my sympathy for the creators of submission guidelines grows every year I edit other people’s work), numbers, dialogue, abbreviations…the list goes on. And that, my friends, is why we have style guides: to create some kind of order to this chaos, and to give us all a set of organizing principles.
Style Guides is Plural
…Though you wouldn’t necessarily know this if you observed aficionados of different styles duking it out (intellectually and pedantically) with each other.
Style guides are collections of conventions, as our friends at Merriam-Webster so helpfully point out. The most recognized and broadly-used guides are:
- Associated Press (AP): used by journalists and for news writing
- Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS): standard for book publishing
- Modern Language Association (MLA): common in academia; literature and the humanities
- American Psychological Association (APA): used by the social sciences—psychology, sociology, education, and politics
And this one for good measure, since the scientific community is sizable and worldwide:
- American Medical Association (AMA): bible for health, medicine, and biology writing
Specific publications and organizations sometimes have their own styles, known as “house style,” which are choices specific to their publications.
As you can see, we use different style guides in different contexts. They’re not necessarily better or worse than each other, just different.
Different style guides are used in different contexts. They’re not better or worse than each other, just different. #editing Click To TweetThey’re Not Style Commandments
At the risk of branding myself with the scarlet letter “E” and having a band of editors come after me with flaming No. 2 pencils, I do feel this is an important point: they’re called style guides. Moses did not come down from the mountain with these choices inscribed on stone tablets.
Writers and editors make exceptions to them all the time (this does make some other editors’ and writers’ heads explode). A style guide is an organizing principle—basically a cheat sheet (often a really long one; in the case of Chicago, more than a thousand pages in hard copy) to make sure we’re consistent.
A style guide is an organizing principle—basically a cheat sheet to make sure we’re consistent. Writers and editors make exceptions to them all the time. #writerslife Click To TweetThink about what a dictionary does—it tells us how words are commonly spelled, so that we can more easily understand each other. (Sometimes they showcase “variant” spellings—check out “miniscule/minuscule” if you want to feel your brain whirling.) A style guide does this, too: makes things clear. As long as what you are doing is consistent, we’re taking care of the most important consideration.
When the Writer and Editor Disagree
This is where indie publishing is really its own animal. In traditional publishing, when the writer and editor disagree, typically, the editor/publisher wins. The author can fight for certain cases, but implementing these will be the exception, not the rule.
In indie publishing, the author is the publisher, and has the last say. My feeling is that the editor should be your trusted and expert guide. You’re working with one for a reason: you believe they can help you make your work better. If you disagree with a point of style, I think it’s important that both sides hear each others’ reasoning.
Style: knowing why you are making certain choices is the most important thing. #writing #writingtip Click To TweetKnowing why you are making certain choices is the most important thing. I’m not going to chase you down with Chicago if you hate the Oxford comma. It’s about consistency…and making writing as clear as we can get it.
Bottom Line
Writing is full of choices, some of which are codified in manuals you can bet your editor uses. Next up, we’re going to look at some specific instances in the Chicago manual (because I work in indie publishing), so hopefully you’ll have pity on your proof or copyeditor next time you see each other.
If you don’t know what a style is and don’t care, count yourself among the lucky few. If you’re used to a completely different style than the one your editor wants to use, talk to your editor! Be aware that there are choices…don’t let the comma sink your ship.
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*Wonderfully discussed in the hilarious Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynn Truss. Trust me, you’ll enjoy it, whether or not you consider yourself a grammar nerd.
Before we have style, we need to have substance. Want to know what shape your manuscript is in? You might be interested in a manuscript evaluation.
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