Using a Style Guide

Have you noticed more and more people using social media for a Q&A session? Group Administrators are having to remind members not to come to their groups seeking medical advice, technical advice, and the like. Similarly, writers may find peer or reader groups helpful when seeking feedback and ideas but when it comes to style guidance, let’s should turn to a reputable source. I personally feel the Chicago Manual of Style is the most comprehensive style guide, but depending on your purpose for writing, you may find others better suited to you.

If you are intimidated by the size of the print version of the Chicago, you may prefer the online version (some say the online version is easier to search as well). Regardless of which manual or version you choose, it’s a much safer source than the online community. For example, a friend recently inquired about the correct way to note time. Answers varied greatly from: I like 6AM, I like 6 I’m the morning, I’ve seen 6a.m. and the list goes on. Grabbing your style guide will get you the best answer the first time with no time wasted for debate.

Which guide do you use? Which version? What led you to use this particular guide? Do you have any funny stories about online advice? We love to hear from you! Leave a comment below.

Hugs,
~Crystal

Crystal is a council secretary and musician at her church, birth mother, babywearing cloth diapering
mama (aka crunchy mama), business owner, active journaler, writer and blogger, Blog Tour Manager with WOW! Women on Writing, Publicist with Dream of Things Publishing, Press Corp teammate for the DairyGirl Network, Unicorn Mom Ambassador, as well as a dairy farmer. She lives in Wisconsin with her husband, five young children (Carmen 10, Andre 9, Breccan 4, Delphine 2, and baby Eudora, two dogs, four little piggies, a handful of cats and kittens, and over 230 Holsteins.

You can find Crystal riding unicorns, taking the ordinary and giving it a little extra (making it extraordinary), blogging and reviewing books, baby carriers, cloth diapers, and all sorts of other stuff here, and at her personal blog - Crystal is dedicated to turning life's lemons into lemonade!