Q. In a paper, I often use phrases like “the word good.” Should I italicize “good”
throughout or only initially? If I use “good” as a word but don’t
say “the word” before I use it this way, should I still italicize it?
A. Always italicize or use quotation marks the first time you use a word as a word. Then, if the word is a term that you use
naturally after that, you can drop the italics. If at some point you again use the word as a word—whether
or not you use the word word—you need the special treatment: I use the word bike to mean a bicycle. My friends with bikes also use bike when they talk about bicycles.
Q. One of our editors tells us that it is poor form to break a word to which a footnote is attached such that three letters
or fewer fall at the beginning of the next line. According to this rule, “organ-ism.[1]”
would be unacceptable, while “or-ganism.[1]” would be acceptable (with “[1]”
being the footnote superscript). I have never seen this rule in print and would like to know whether this is, in fact, something
that we should be on the lookout for.
A. Typographic rules vary; Chicago’s type specifications call for a minimum of two characters in runovers
(thus we would allow “organ-ism” with or without the note number). You can see
our rule in section 4 of figure A.3 (p. 871, first bullet point). In gray areas, typographers make decisions according to
the client’s specifications and their own visual sense. Sometimes when we proofread we fail to see what
led to a typesetting decision, and we demand a “correction” that results in an
uglier problem. So take care when marking runovers that there is a visually pleasing solution.
Q. I’m not sure if this is covered by CMOS, but I don’t know who else can help me here. I’m creating a PowerPoint presentation
on a publishing company, and in their brochure they classify novels, phrase books, and coffee table books under “trade
publications.” Is this correct? I understand a trade publication to be material directed at a certain
industry. Thank you for your help.
A. Novels, phrase books, and coffee table books are indeed all trade books, which means you will find them in bookstores for
the general public. Materials directed at a certain industry are not usually considered trade books, unless they have broader
application. The definitions are a little confusing, because you might think that “trade”
has to do with “the trades,” meaning industries, but here it doesn’t.
Q. Hi there! I am working in the production department of a well-known publisher, and my manager and I are trying to subdue
a sudden rash of blank recto pages. Are they or are they not permissible? Thank you!
A. A blank recto (the right-hand page of a two-page spread) is generally avoided unless it is part of a planned design. For
instance, in a book where chapter openers take up an entire spread, if one chapter ends on a verso (left-hand) page, the recto
before the opener of the next will be blank. Expert typesetters know how to avoid blank rectos, so if you’re
suffering from a rash of them, you might examine the source.
Q. CMOS 7.53: “If a word from another language becomes familiar through repeated use throughout a work, it need be italicized only on its first occurrence. If it appears only rarely, however, italics may be retained.” What’s your reasoning?
A. I can’t divine the reasoning of the original framers of this advice, but the convention makes sense to me as a reader. When a term from another language is introduced, the italics signal that it isn’t a typo—it’s a word from a language that may be unfamiliar. Once we get the idea—once we learn the word—repeated italics become distracting. If the word occurs only occasionally, however, we might not learn it (especially if there are many such terms in the document). In that case, the italics are appropriate for what remains an unfamiliar term.
Q. I’ve been unable to find any competent freelance editors. Do you offer any editing services?
A. No, I’m sorry—we pretty much have our hands full here with Chicago’s books. You might try the website of the Editorial Freelancers Association: http://www.the-efa.org/.
Q. In a business salutation to Mr. and Mrs. Mike Stern, do we address the letter to Dear Mike and Irene or Dear Irene and Mike?
Please advise.
A. Although CMOS is not primarily aimed at business writers, the manuscript editing department at Chicago is well versed in etiquette, as
we are in most things. Proper forms for a business salutation to a married couple are “Dear Mr. and
Mrs. Stern,” “Dear Irene and Mike Stern,” and “Dear
Mike and Irene Stern.”
Q. What should be the average number of words in an instruction manual? This one explains the hidden meanings in seventy-eight
drawings. Thanks.
A. That would be 38,000 words, on average.
Q. At the annual meeting of our local PBK chapter, dispute on the pronunciation of “archival”
arose: whether the stress falls on the first or the second syllable. Give us your wisdom. I will pass it on in the column
I write weekly in a local paper about any subject that pops into my head.
A. As a style guide for writers, CMOS must resist the temptation to weigh in on an issue of pronunciation. We are editors, absorbed in our manuscripts. We can
go for days without even speaking. I suggest you consult the linguists who write dictionaries for this purpose. (I’m
sorry this won’t give you anything to put in your column, but thanks for your help with mine.)
Q. I am editing an article in which two organizations are named. Each has the word “roundtable”
in its name, but one is Round Table and the other is Roundtable. Should I leave the spellings as they are (and risk looking
like I have made a mistake) or “nudge” the one into a single word?
A. Alas, copy editors don’t have the authority to change the names of organizations. In this case, as
is often true in life, it’s better to look wrong than to be wrong.