The Chicago Manual of Style strives to codify the best practices of an institution and an industry. Many voices contributed to this goal, including the readers (far too numerous to list here) who have challenged us with their questions and critiques and offered suggestions through our Q&A and other channels since the publication of the seventeenth edition in 2017. This edition also benefited from a host of publishing professionals who contributed their wisdom on matters large and small. All these recommendations were compared, vetted, and applied by this edition’s principal reviser, Russell David Harper, who is grateful for the innumerable contributions and many perspectives that have brought this latest edition of the Manual up to date. We, in turn, are grateful for his command of all those matters large and small on this, the third revision he has led.
We began the process by assembling an advisory board whose members represent various communities of readers and areas of expertise and inviting their comments on a broad plan for updates and changes. Their subsequent guidance on our preliminary outline and the entire penultimate draft of the manuscript helped us sharpen the new and revised material as well as sections we hadn’t planned to update. Many thanks to the following advisers:
- Michael Clarke / Managing Partner, Clarke & Esposito
- Benjamin Dreyer / Former Vice President, Executive Managing Editor and Copy Chief, Random House
- Katie Dublinski / Associate Publisher, Graywolf Press
- Patricia Feeney / Head of Metadata, Crossref
- Jane Friedman / Owner, Jane Friedman Media; Publisher and Editor, The Hot Sheet
- Kristen Ghodsee / Professor of Russian and East European Studies and Member of the Graduate Group in Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania
- Peter Ginna / Freelance Editor
- Ebonye Gussine Wilkins / Chief Executive Officer, Inclusive Media Solutions LLC
- Sarah Ogilvie / Senior Research Fellow in Linguistics, University of Oxford
- Peter J. Olson / Freelance Manuscript Editing Coordinator, JAMA Network
- Stephanie Rosen / Director of Accessibility and Librarian for Disability Studies, University of Michigan
- Carol Fisher Saller / Writer and Independent Publisher
- Lourdes Venard / Lead Instructor, University of California San Diego Division of Extended Studies Copyediting Certificate Program; Education Editor, News Literacy Project
- Karen Yin / Founder, Conscious Style Guide; Publisher, The Conscious Language Newsletter
Many other experts from outside the University of Chicago Press read and commented on specific sections during the development of the manuscript. We thank Rachel Chong, Amy Fountain, Lorisia MacLeod, and Bronwen McKie, who advised us on and contributed to our new coverage of Indigenous languages and sources. We are grateful to Geoffrey Pullum, who offered extensive commentary on our coverage of grammar. We are also indebted to Katie Lee, Deirdre Mullervy, Jee-Young Park, Laura Ring, Valencia Simmons, Chengzhi Wang, and Ayako Yoshimura for advice on specific languages; Stephanie Vyce on intellectual property; Angela Anderson on military terminology; Lars Vilhuber on data citation; David C. Hunter on UK public documents; Leslie Keros on legal citations; Do Mi Stauber on indexing; and Susan Karani Virtanen on a wide range of issues. And we once again owe a particular debt to Bryan A. Garner and William S. Strong for their authorship of entire chapters.
Ultimately, however, The Chicago Manual of Style is the collective responsibility of the University of Chicago Press staff. Mary E. Laur oversaw the revision and publication of this edition, including the process of bringing together the many people acknowledged here, and advised on the many incarnations of the manuscript. In parallel to our external advisory board, an internal group including Skye Agnew, Susan Allan, Michael Boudreau, Brendan Carrick, Fabiola Enríquez Flores, Tamara Ghattas, Caterina MacLean, Mollie McFee, David Olsen, Devon Ritter, and Christine Schwab reviewed the revision plan, outline, and draft manuscript and helped refine the recommendations. Krista Coulson, Jenni Fry, Denise Kennedy, Laura Leichum, Jill Shimabukuro, and Ashley Towne also contributed to the contents in their areas of expertise.
One unique aspect of the Manual is that press staff members serve as both authors and book team members, roles that sometimes overlap. Once the manuscript was complete, Jenni Fry supervised the copyediting, which was handled by Erin DeWitt, Elizabeth Ellingboe, Tamara Ghattas, Beth Ina, Caterina MacLean, Renaldo Migaldi, Mark Reschke, Lindsy Rice, Lily Sadowsky, Christine Schwab, Joel Score, Adriana Smith, McKenna Smith, and Stephen Twilley. Isaac Tobin designed both the print and online editions, and Jill Shimabukuro managed the typesetting, manufacturing, and other production tasks. Rossen Angelov and Aiping Zhang oversaw the development of the online edition, with guidance from Giovanna Roman and Wayne Willis and assistance from David Jiambalvo and Scott Mitchell. Jennifer Ringblom managed the marketing efforts along with Levi Stahl and Laura Waldron, while Brian Carroll and Lauren Keene ensured a smooth experience for our online subscribers. Alan Thomas and Garrett Kiely offered guidance throughout the process, while Andrea Blatz and Mollie McFee provided logistical support. And many other staff members contributed their knowledge and skills at various stages of the process, including Emily Dalton, Sarah Gardiner, Ed Martin, Richard Martin, Peter Milne, Richard Schoen, and Langchi Zhu. On behalf of the press, Diane Mankedick proofread the book and Do Mi Stauber prepared the index.
On a final note, we remain indebted to Margaret Mahan (1933–2018), principal reviser of the fifteenth edition and esteemed mentor to several contributors to this latest edition.