Making Sense of Style
Not all style conventions make sense at first glance. Or second. Or ever.
(The Subversive Copy Editor)
(The Subversive Copy Editor)
Not all style conventions make sense at first glance. Or second. Or ever.
Never let it be said that we can’t take some ribbing . . .
"Manual of Style: Being a Compilation of Rules in Force at the University of Chicago Press, To Which Are Appended Specimens of Types in Use." Such was titled the first published edition of the Chicago Manual of Style, printed in 1906.
It’s clear from the chatter online that many of you already have the sixteenth edition of The Chicago Manual of Style, and that you love it. But, you know, at some point you’re going to have to open it. Cracking…
Russell Harper is the only person on the planet with all of the following qualifications: He has worked as a manuscript editor for the University of Chicago Press for more than a dozen years, and he contributed to the fifteenth edition of The Chicago Manual of Style.
If you’re new to copyediting, consider these snippets of advice.
Recently John McIntyre blogged at the Baltimore Sun about “pedagogical malpractice,” inviting readers to submit stories of English teachers run amuck. I read them with mixed feelings of horror and glee. After all, English teachers, not unlike copyeditors, are an easy target.