Q. I’m a book publisher editing a memoir by a physician who served in the military, and most of the individuals described in the memoir are also military physicians. The first time our narrator mentions another military physician, we might say, “The commander of the base was Dr. Sherman Potter, a Navy captain.” Then, in subsequent references, we are using just “Potter.” These doctors called each other only by their last names in conversation, so continuing to say “Dr. Potter” in the text would feel overly formal and would not be parallel with the dialogue. However, it feels overly casual to immediately switch to “Potter” from “Dr. Sherman Potter.” Is it crazy and overly complicated to suggest that first references remain “Dr. Sherman Potter,” the second reference be to “Dr. Potter,” and the third and subsequent references be merely to “Potter”? I am, of course, in a huge hurry to solve this extraordinary important issue in my life and your rescue is greatly appreciated.
A. In a memoir, the writer is usually the best person to be in charge of what people are called. (Consistency in such a matter is something only an editor would come up with.) A person might call a young colleague “Jones” but an esteemed elderly mentor “Dr. Potter.” Likewise, the writer might not want to introduce every character by a full name on first mention. He might not even want to reveal that a person is a doctor on first mention. These are nuances that an editor must respect. Use your judgment to query anything in this regard that strikes you as out of whack. That should be enough. (And while you’re at it, better double-check whether Dr. Potter is actually an army colonel!)
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. On the title page of some workshop proceedings, is it correct to list “Edited by” and “Compiled by” names separately? If so, what is the difference between the editor of the proceedings and the compiler? If it is correct to list editors and compilers separately, do we ignore the compilers in our citation?
A. Editors and compilers can do overlapping but different kinds of work on a project, so you should trust that the title page of the proceedings accurately reflects who did what, even if the reader isn’t told exactly what each role was. It’s not the job of the citer to question this, although you might reasonably decide not to include all the information in your citation. You can see examples of citations that include various types of contributors at CMOS 14.104.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I am writing a book about home health remedies. I want to sort by the first bold word of the paragraph, which would be the name of the ailment. Do I need a special program to do this? My writing has come to a standstill and will stay that way until I can resolve this problem! Help, please.
A. If the bold word is always the first word of the paragraph, and if you are writing in MS Word, you can use the Sort Text function. (Called Table Sort in some versions. In spite of the name, you don’t have to put your text into a table to use it.)
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. What style of text and size (body and headings) does The Chicago Manual of Style suggest for submissions to the Journal of Soil and Water Conservation?
A. Most journals post instructions for writers at their websites online; search for “[journal name] submission guidelines” in a web browser. If type size and font are not specified, use 12-point type in a classic serifed font like Times New Roman for both body and headings. Headings need no special treatment unless you have more than one level, in which case you should indicate their relative importance by (for example) putting A-heads in bold type and B-heads in italics.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I subscribe to a magazine that recently hired a new editor in chief. This editor has changed the byline of authors to “words by.” I disagree with this usage because the authors did not create the words but rather assembled them in a proper order to convey a story. Am I off base?
A. “Words by” does not usually mean that a writer created the words—in fact, it usually means that the writer merely assembled them—but as a way to identify the writer of an article, it’s a bit precious. So while you’re off base in your reasoning, your reaction is understandable.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Can you change back and forth between first- and third-person narration within a story?
A. Yes, but it’s tricky. When you break the rules in writing, it’s usually a good idea to let someone else read it and give you feedback on whether it’s working the way you intended. Of course, sometimes the whole point is to confuse the reader—at least temporarily—in which case it’s weirdly even more important to know what you’re doing.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’m editing a bibliography on children’s books, and I need to distinguish between authors and illustrators. While some books make this easy and identify the illustrator on the covers, other books don’t make this distinction until the title page or the copyright page. My question is whether it’s acceptable to use the information on these subsequent pages to distinguish authors from illustrators or if I should go strictly by the cover page and list both names in the author position if the cover doesn’t distinguish between the two.
A. It’s usual to list authors and editors (translators, illustrators, etc.) according to the title page of a book rather than the cover. Even when author and illustrator are given equal typographic treatment, the author’s name almost always comes first, without qualification, and as a rule the illustrator is explicitly identified as such. Please see CMOS 14.73, 14.76, and 14.104.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. In a book manuscript how much of the citation/location information for an image should I put into the image caption, and how much should go in the bibliography? Do images even need bibliography entries?
A. Image sources do not traditionally appear in the bibliography. The permission letter from the source of the image will specify which information must appear in the credit, but it’s usually an editorial decision whether to put the source credit in the caption or collect all the credits into a single section of the book.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Dear CMOS, I am wondering about how to handle competing rules. For example, numbers are written in numeral form when used as percentages. However, if that number is starting a sentence, it would be spelled out. For example: 27 percent of the students passed. Or: Twenty-seven percent of the students passed. Which would be advised? Thank you for any clarification you can provide.
A. Chicago recommends spelling out a number at the beginning of a sentence. It might help not to think in terms of “competing rules,” which leaves a person feeling helpless; instead try to think in terms of rules that have many exceptions. This is normal, both in CMOS and in life!
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Hello. CMOS 3.34 (“Crediting material obtained free of charge”) says “For material that the author has obtained free and without restrictions on its use, the credit line may use the word courtesy.” What exactly does “without restrictions on its use” mean? Does this mean that, if I’ve gotten permission to use a photo in a specific essay I’m writing, I can’t use “courtesy of” because the permission is only for that specific project?
A. Rights holders can put various restrictions on the use of items they give permission for: they can disallow cropping a photo or resizing or recoloring it or integrating it into a collage. They can prohibit a quotation from being used in an advertisement or from being altered in any way. They can prohibit resale, or repackaging, or use without full credit. If there are restrictions on your photo, they will be listed at the place you got it. Sometimes you have to click on a link to see the specific restrictions. If your photo is without restrictions and therefore does not require a credit, it’s polite to give credit anyway: “Courtesy of Terry Adams.”
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]