Q. I edit academic papers in Canadian Press style, which uses per cent rather than percent. However, I am always told that while the text must be Canadian Press, the footnotes must be Chicago style. Since it looks odd to have per cent in the text and percent in the footnotes, is it permissible to alter that word to Canadian Press style in footnotes? The same would go for the problem with Canadian Press style: colour, behaviour, etc., in the text as opposed to color and behavior in the footnotes.
A. Anyone who asks an editor to use Canadian Press style in the text and Chicago style in the notes is begging for inconsistencies in all the ways you mention and more. And if you’re able to use two style guides simultaneously without mixing things up, you deserve double pay! However, given the possibility that you are taking the instructions too literally, you should run this by your supervisor. Once made to see the issues, your supervisor might clarify—e.g., that you should use Canadian spelling throughout.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. When tables are double enumerated (3.1, 3.2, etc.) is a full stop placed after the number and before the space separating it from the table title?
A. This is usually a design decision rather than an editorial one. You can see examples of it with and without the period at CMOS 3.54.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. In a graph with two labeled y axes, where the left axis label is turned counterclockwise so that it is read from down to up, what direction should the right label be turned: clockwise or counterclockwise?
A. Both axes should face the same direction so they can be read at the same time without any need to turn the book. Your readers’ necks will thank you.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Greetings, Wise Ones—House style at our university press is to omit the period after contractions such as Dr or Mrs and omit periods in abbreviated names of countries, organizations, etc. Question: When faced with a careless author whose transcriptions of source material cannot be easily verified, do we let these inconsistencies in quoted material stand or impose house style and omit periods throughout? Does this fall under the umbrella of permissible silent changes?
A. Explain the issue and ask the writer to check the original quotations for accuracy. If this is impossible, an editor must be very careful in changing quotations. We would not recommend editing all quotations to conform to house style. If you were to impose an unusual style like removing all periods from quotations, discerning readers would immediately sense that the quotations had been tampered with. Rather, if the style in a given quotation is inconsistent in a minor way and can’t be checked, the prevailing style in that quote (not house style) could be followed in making a silent change or two to correct what are probably typos. If the inconsistencies are extensive or notable in any way, however, the use of sic or a comment on the issues might be more appropriate than silently correcting them.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I’m proofreading a manuscript and would like to know what the rule is for formatting a drop initial cap if the remaining text is in italics because it’s an exhibition title. The title is in italics, but the starting letter is a drop cap and is in roman. Is that OK, or should the cap be in italics as well?
A. Truly, there is no rule. A graphic designer might be the best person to rule on the aesthetics of roman versus italics in this case, since a happy result depends largely on the typeface, size, and position of the drop cap.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. A company I work for advocates two levels of headings in most reports/articles: a stand-alone boldface head (an A head) and a boldface run-in head (a C head). The style guide says that when an extra head is needed, a B head (stand-alone small caps) should be employed between the A and C heads. Some editors believe that when the B head is needed, it can be used in only some sections of a report/article, arguing that the B heads are an intermediary organizational structure that can be useful in a particularly complex section, but this does not mean that they are required—or even appropriate—in sections with simpler construction. By this logic, some sections within a report/article would have an A-B-C heading structure and other sections within that same report/article would have an A-C heading structure. Other editors think that once the B head is used, all secondary-level headings in that report should be B heads. What do you advise?
A. Both ways of thinking have merit, so the actual content of the document should drive the decision. The default arrangement is not to skip a level, but sometimes the content makes a convincing case for skipping. Especially in cases where a report has a certain kind of information that appears repeatedly—let’s say, lists of tips—it’s helpful to the reader if headings for that kind of information look the same throughout. To put tip lists under run-in heads in one section and stand-alone heads in another obscures their sameness and doesn’t help the reader recognize or locate them.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I can’t find the rule that states proper typeface for a table of contents, specifically for a journal. Can you point me to the rule?
A. There is no rule! There are many beautiful typefaces and as many ways to design a book or journal as there are books and journals. A style guide should not restrict the choices, which are usually made by a professional graphic designer. For instance, if you compare the contents in CMOS figure 1.5 with the actual table of contents of the 17th edition, you will see that they have different designs. Look at several books or journals at a bookstore or library, and you will see—all are different.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Can I split the word recommendation other than recom/mendation?
A. Yes. Merriam-Webster shows rec·om·men·da·tion. Any of those splits would be fine.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. I am putting together a PowerPoint presentation and use a specific term multiple times on a single presentation slide. I would like to define what the term means using a footnote. Should I include the footnote reference number in superscript every time I write the term on this slide, or just the first use? Thank you!
A. In a very long book, if a difficult or unfamiliar term appears on page 9 and then again on page 347, readers might appreciate being reminded of its definition. However, in the space of a single PowerPoint slide, readers who have just read the definition of a word and who are then sent to the same definition several more times would be justified in throwing things at the presenter.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]
Q. Dear Chicago: I recently wrote a 7,000-word short story. In it, I included a fictional news article about a man who was injured in a train accident. I have two questions regarding how to punctuate it. (1) How is the text of this make-believe article to be set apart from the rest of the story, and (2) should it be italicized?
A. (1) Texts like this are set apart in novels in various ways; usually a book designer decides how to do it. If you’re typing a manuscript to submit to a publisher, set the newspaper article off as a block quotation. (2) Quotations are rarely italicized. Since real newspaper articles aren’t italicized, there’s no reason to make your fictional one italic.
[This answer relies on the 17th edition of CMOS (2017) unless otherwise noted.]