Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Grammar Girl, Grammar Girl's, QDnow, and Quick and Dirty Tips are all trademarks of Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Today's topics are style guides and how to deal with book titles. IRT Magazine grammar Hey, do you know of an abridged or "Cliff's Notes" version of the CMoS? http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=19296#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=19296#Comments Wed, 16 Sep 2009 20:08:54 GMT Laura grammar what is the "grammar rule" for "I want, she wants, they want, he wants." What is the rules called and what is the explanation for including and excluding the "s" at the end of "want." Thanks! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=18893#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=18893#Comments Thu, 03 Sep 2009 23:59:40 GMT Blaine grammar I love Grammar Girl!!! she teaches me soooooo much!!!!!! & she knows so much about Grammar!!!!!! whoooo hoooo to GrammmarGirl!!!!!! YEAH!!!!! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=16601#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=16601#Comments Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:47:20 GMT Amy grammar Grammar Girl, I'm a bit colon-confounded. In your post on November 26, 2006, You made the following statement: And, here's an interesting side note: underlining text is a way to tell typesetters that you want them to set the words in italics. As I understand them, both Chicago and AP styles suggest you begin a complete clause after a colon with a capital letter, but, as in this case, I frequently see a lower case instead. Does another manual dictate otherwise? Is my info outdated? Is this posting? Please help. Thanks! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=11708#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=11708#Comments Thu, 14 Feb 2008 03:48:45 GMT Christine R grammar I agree with your comments re: Chicago and with Ken's re: the variety of styles, but can't agree that AP is an appropriate first reference choice unless one works at a newspaper or magazine. Its rules were created for speed of typsetting and possibly to reduce the amount of ink used (that little serial comma adds up over time, I guess)--not for clarity of expression. My first choice for business writing is Sabin's Gregg Reference Manual, though I happily to check out other guides, too. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=10660#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=10660#Comments Sun, 09 Dec 2007 22:43:41 GMT rani makherji grammar good information http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=10101#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=10101#Comments Sun, 18 Nov 2007 08:48:34 GMT Tolak grammar Interesting your take on different styles, and how they conflict with other standards. For a book title, you prefer quotes, whereas Chicago prefers italics, and some may have to use underline. The idea of using underline is still good, since the link created (in the web style) can be used to expand the reference, thereby being in keeping with both the medical and web styles. For contributor’s comments, you use italics, in preference to quotes, yet you are literally quoting their comments. Not quite sure how that is preferable. Please excuse this nit-pickiness; I would prefer to get the styles to converge, and hence simplify things, unless a good reason can be found. Oh, and for typewriters, etc, I would tend to use the HTML-esque [Italic] and [/Italic] construct. But since my writing is so bad, I doubt I would bother with a manuscript! :) Thanks, Tom http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=4488#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=4488#Comments Thu, 20 Sep 2007 10:21:08 GMT Glenda Brown Rynn grammar Has anyone called to your attention the misplaced modifier you have in your third paragraph in your posting of 11/1/2006, after the writer's question about Chicago Style? You wrote "Another example of something I could only find in Chicago is how to handle punctuation in bulleted or numbered lists." You should have written "Another example of something I could find only in Chicago...." It's not that you could only FIND it but not use it or understand it, etc. The adverb "only" was not meant to modify the verb "find" but the prepositional phrase "in Chicago." In my observations, people commonly misplace "only." Glenda Brown Rynn http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=1001#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=1001#Comments Tue, 23 Jan 2007 10:17:36 GMT Kenneth W. Davis grammar Great question, Lilyz; lots of my students ask it. The MLA is the Modern Language Association, the main organization for professors of English and other, well, modern languages. MLA style is a set of conventions adopted by the MLA for scholarly writing in its members' disciplines. Because many professors are familiar with MLA style, they tend to require it in their students' academic writing. In my own scholarly writing, I use MLA style, and I ask my literature students to use it as well. In my own business writing, I use Alred and others' Business Writer's Handbook, and I ask my business writing students to use it as well. In English-speaking countries, there's no central authority that dictates rules for writing. I think that's a good thing. --Ken http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=998#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=998#Comments Thu, 09 Nov 2006 07:24:57 GMT Lilyz grammar Dear Grammar Girl, As a current freshman undergrad, I have been introduced to the MLA writing style and rules. For some reason, I feel the MLA rules are opposite of the rules I was taught in elementary school many years ago and goes against the business writing styles I have been using for years. Where did the MLA originate and why is it now being taught in college instead of elementary school? Thank you. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=990#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx?commentid=990#Comments Wed, 08 Nov 2006 08:12:13 GMT Wed, 16 Sep 2009 20:08:54 GMT http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/chicago-style.aspx feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Managing Editor) feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Webmaster) en-us