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CloudCrowd General Writing Style Guide

The purpose of this guide is to outline CloudCrowd's core writing style. The CloudCrowd Writing Style Guide is distributed to workers to help reduce conflicts and illustrate the standardization of style, spelling, punctuation and formatting within CloudCrowd documents.

 

Index

• General Task Instructions
• Style and Tone
• CloudCrowd Dos and Don'ts
• Formatting
• Spelling
• Punctuation
• Common Issues
• Final Notes

 

General Task Instructions

Assignments will vary from writing a few sentences to multiple pages of content. Final copy should be highly polished.

• Become familiar with the topic; utilize provided resources and additional credible sources.
• Review provided client instructions and sample content to familiarize yourself with expectations.
• Finished product should not contain spelling errors, poor grammar, incorrect syntax, inappropriate punctuation or poor/unusual word choice.
• Never plagiarize content; written documents are processed through Copyscape to detect plagiarism. All copy outside of accepted tolerances is automatically rejected.
  • Note: Copying and pasting content and rearranging a few words is equivalent to plagiarism.
    • To avoid plagiarism, it is best to read and interpret source material and then write your copy "from scratch," instead of pasting and rewriting.
    • Whenever quoting content verbatim, that content must be clearly cited as being quoted directly from the source. Otherwise, it is plagiarized.
• Always upload documents in Microsoft Word 97 or newer. Any document uploaded in Microsoft Word 95, or older, will be automatically rejected.

 

Style and Tone

• Write in an informative and professional tone.
• Write precisely and concisely, stating positions factually and in an understated manner.
• Write in either second or third person.
• Use a complexity in word choice and sentence construction that is roughly equivalent to what you see in mainstream American publications such as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, Time or Newsweek.

 

CloudCrowd Dos and Don't

Points to keep in mind when writing for CloudCrowd:

• DO
  • Write in an informative and professional tone.
  • Write in a precise, concise, and understated manner.
  • Write in active voice.
  • Write in the second or third person.
  • Use complete sentences.
  • Write using American (vs. British/Canadian) spelling and punctuation.
  • Use only one space between sentences and following colons.
  • Use Microsoft Word 97 or newer.

 

• DON'T
  • Do not copy and paste content from other sources.
  • Do not use clichés or colloquialisms.
  • Do not make unsupported claims.
  • Do not use “I,” “our” or “we.”
  • Do not start a sentence with “And” or “But.”
  • Do not use “whilst” or “learnt.”
  • Do not use “therefore,” “thus,” “consequently,” or similar terms/phrases.
  • Do not use Microsoft Word 95 or older.
  • Do not use a plural pronoun (they/their/etc.) to refer to a single person of unspecified gender.

 

Formatting

• Font:
  • Times New Roman (Microsoft Word) or Nimbus Roman (OpenOffice)
    • Times New Roman: Download Link
  • Size 12
• Line Spacing:
  • Use single spacing for all written copy.
• Sentence Spacing:
  • Use only one space between sentences. Two spaces between sentences is inappropriate for professional American copy.
• Paragraphs:
  • Distinguish paragraphs with a full line break between them. Do not indent. Indentation is unnecessary when there is a full break.
  • Unnecessarily lengthy paragraphs that crowd together a variety of themes should be separated at natural thematic points. When writing dialogue, ensure that a new paragraph is used each time the speaker changes.
• Bolding:
  • Bold type is virtually never appropriate outside of titles or section headings. If a term requires emphasis, use italics, never bold or ALLCAPS. (See Italics below.)
• Italics:
  • Use italics for citing books and journals.
  • Use italics for emphasis, but do sparingly. Professional writing is extremely conservative with the use of emphasis.
  • Proper uses of Italics:
    • Titles of books, novels, plays, films, magazines, newspapers, pamphlets, paintings, sculptures, statues, and drawings
    • Species names
    • Technical or linguistic terms
    • TV and cartoon series
    • Ship names
    • Adding emphasis to a quote, followed by [emphasis added]
    • Do not italicize the following:
      • Religious works such as The Bible or The Koran
      • Buildings and monuments
• Words vs. Numerals:
  • Spell out numbers zero through nine in general copy.
  • Use numerals for numbers above 10, except when beginning a sentence. Never start a sentence with a number. Instead, spell it out.
    • e.g.: Twenty-five days ago, we received 17 new deliveries.
  • Use a comma for all numbers four digits or larger.
    • e.g.: “We have 1,500 soldiers” or “The car costs $24,500.”
  • Do not use both a dollar sign and the term dollars; it is redundant and should be omitted.
  • When referring to mathematical equations, figures, ratios, etc., use numbers instead of numerals, even for numbers below 10.
    • e.g.: “a 1-to-3 ratio” or “a 1-in-8 chance”
• Times and Dates:
  • Write times as a.m. and p.m. (lowercase, with periods). If a time is on the hour, omit the “:00.”
  • Do not use th or rd after a date.
  • Do not use a comma if a date is only a month and year.
  • Use a comma for a month with a date.
  • Abbreviate a month followed by a specific date.
  • Completely spell out a month with no date.
    • Correct: 7:25 a.m. / 9 p.m. / Jan. 8, 2007 / November 2010
    • Incorrect: 2:30 PM / 6:00 am / Oct. 21 1993 / July, 1977

 

Spelling

• When uncertain about the spelling of a word (including hyphenation or capitalization) look it up at Dictionary.com. Default to whatever spelling appears there (exceptions listed below); if there are multiple correct spellings for the same definition, default to the first listed.
  • Please Note: Compound adjectives are only hyphenated before the noun they modify. Hyphenating a compound adjective after the noun is considered a grammar error. Please see the hyphenation section for more details and examples.
• For proper terms that do not appear on dictionary.com, Wikipedia can be considered a useful second source.
• EXCEPTIONS: Use the following CloudCrowd-preferred spellings for these terms, which are exceptions to the main Dictionary.com spellings:
  • website (one word, lowercase W)
  • Web (capital W)
  • email (no hyphen)
• For scientific and uncommon terms, find a legitimate authoritative source (.edu or .gov are preferred).
• Do not use a word just because it gets a lot of hits on Google; that’s not necessarily the correct spelling. All sorts of misspellings get tons of hits on Google (or Bing, Yahoo, etc.).

 

Punctuation

• Abbreviation:
  • Spell out all numbers below 10 as well as numbers associated with units, sizes and quantities. You may use abbreviations for units, sizes and quantities, or you may spell out the unit type.
  • Do not spell out numerals when associated with a unit, size or quantity. The numeral and the unit should be separated by a single hyphen.
    • Correct: 20-piece dish set
    • Incorrect: twenty-piece dish set, two hundred piece LEGO set
  • Note: Dimensions do not refer to clothing item sizes. Clothing sizes (e.g., size 12 shoe, XL shirt, 32 x 32 size jeans) are acceptable.
• Ampersand:
  • Do not use an ampersand (&) unless it is part of a brand name or keyword, in which case it must be used.
    • e.g.: Proctor & Gamble, Arm & Hammer
    • e.g.: Zoloft & alcohol
• Apostrophe:
  • Do not use an apostrophe to make acronyms plural (TVs, VCRs, DVDs).
  • Do use an apostrophe to make single capital letters plural (A’s, B’s, C’s / “X’s and O’s”).
  • Always use smart apostrophes for all CloudCrowd copy.
• Capital Letters:
  • Use initial caps for:
    • Specifically named regions, e.g., the Southeast, the Middle East. (When simply referring to a direction that is not a specifically named region, use lowercase: “She headed north.”)
    • Nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs in book, DVD and CD titles
  • In titles/headings/subheadings, do not capitalize prepositions of fewer than four letters, or articles or conjunctions.
• Colon:
  • Use lowercase for the first letter following a colon, unless it’s a brand name or proper noun, or if what follows the colon is a complete sentence.
  • Use only one space after a colon.
  • Place semicolons and colons that are part of a direct quote outside the closing quotation mark.
    • e.g.: Mr. Smith commented, “Cheese is so good to eat with every meal”; however, he did not mention that it is a very fatty food.
• Comma:
  • Use or do not use the serial comma (aka “Oxford comma”) consistently throughout your content.
  • Use a comma to separate two independent clauses that are joined by a conjunction.
    • e.g.: “This cordless drill is durable and versatile, and it makes a great gift for Dad.”
    • e.g.: “I really want to go to the show, but I’m almost out of money.”
  • Do not use comma before the words "too", "also", "as well" and any synonymous terms.
    
    • e.g.: It saves you money too.
  • Do not use a comma on either side of "Inc." The rule applies even if the official name of the company includes a comma. The only exceptions are the names of works of art, such as films, books, or song titles. In those cases, the comma before Inc. will be retained, but there will be no comma after Inc.
    • e.g.: The annual report showed that Acme Parts Inc. had increased its market share.
    • e.g.: Monsters, Inc. was the only movie she saw during summer vacation.
• Dash:
  • Use dashes to indicate a change in thought and explanation or a parenthetical element.
  • A hyphen (-) is not a dash—despite the resemblance, these are entirely different punctuation marks.
  • Do not use double hyphens (--) to represent a dash; instead, use an em dash (—).
  • Always use the em dash for parenthetical elements. For consistency, do not include a space on either side.
    • e.g.: “We celebrated Dad’s birthday—just as we do every year—at Red Lobster.”
  • Do not use the shorter en dash (–). It is unnecessary when writing for CloudCrowd.
  • Do not use a dash or hyphens in place of a colon to introduce text.
    • Incorrect: “I have a question-- When is the interview?”
    • Incorrect: “I have a question - When is the interview?”
    • Correct: “I have a question: When is the interview?”
• Ellipsis:
  • Use ellipses to indicate that words have been omitted in quoted/cited text.
  • An ellipsis is three consecutive periods (…) with a space on either side. Note that if the omitted text comes at the end of the sentence, the ellipsis follows a period.
    • e.g.: Dave said, “I love this place … it serves meatballs.’”
    • e.g.: Dave said, “I love going to Spain. … Traveling is lots of fun.’”
  • An ellipsis can also indicate a pause in thought, but this typically is only for creative/fiction writing.
• Exclamation Point:
  • Do not use exclamation points unless absolutely necessary (e.g., to indicate that someone is shouting). With rare exceptions, exclamation points are not appropriate in professional text.
• Hyphen:
  • Always use hyphens in a compound adjective that precedes the object noun. Never use hyphens in a compound adjective that follows the object noun.
    • e.g.: machine-washable towels
    • e.g.: Are those towels machine washable?
  • Certain specifically defined compound adjectives are always hyphenated, even following the object noun, as in the preceding “hard-boiled.” When in doubt, always check Dictionary.com.
    • e.g.: “I like my eggs hard-boiled.”
  • Some types of compound adjectives never get hyphens. These include compound adjectives with the –ly construction and those that use the superlatives more, most, less or least.
    • e.g. “fully formed,” “broadly defined,” “less active,” “more noticeable”
  • Always check the hyphenation of terms at Dictionary.com. Note, many terms that used to get hyphens, especially for prefixes such as “non-,” “multi-,” “pre-,” etc., are no longer hyphenated.
    • e.g.: “nonstop, multifaceted, pregame”
  • Exceptions to Dictionary.com:
    • Long Term/Short Term: Hyphenated when used as an adjective [Example: We are in a long-term relationship.]. Not hyphenated when used as a noun [Example: The plan worked in the long term.].
    • Up to Date: Hyphenated when used as an adjective [Example: We need up-to-date projections for how many yards Tom Brady will pass for this year.]. Not hyphenated when used as a idiom [Example: I had better make sure my fantasy football rankings are completely up to date.].
• Percentage:
  • Unless it’s the start of a sentence, always use the numeral (including single-digit numerals) and the word percent. Use decimals, not fractions. When used as an adjective, do not hyphenate.
    • e.g.: 18 percent, 5 percent, a 30 percent raise, a 4.5 percent return
  • Do not use the percentage sign (%) unless it’s specifically noted in the task instructions. If instructed to use it, always use numerals (except when beginning a sentence) and leave no space before the sign.
    • e.g.: 50%, 8%, 45.2%, a 20% tip
• Possessive:
  • Examine the following examples for making certain plural terms possessive.
    • Men’s ties, women’s shoes, boys’ jeans, girls’ tees, infants’ and toddlers’ separates, adults’ in-line skates
  • For decades, use the following format: 1960s, ‘90s.
  • Use an apostrophe + S to make a word or name ending in S possessive (“This is LeBron James’s kitten.”)
• Quotation Mark:
  • Set your Microsoft Word options to use the curly (aka smart) quotation marks (“_”), not the straight quotation marks ("_"). (This can be found in recent Word versions under Word Options ==> Proofing ==> AutoCorrect Options.)
  • Use double quotes (“_”). Only use single quotes (‘_’) when needed for quotes inside quotes (see below).
  • Use quotation marks to indicate a direct quote or to cite a journal, periodical, newspaper article, poem or short fiction. Italics are used for longer works, such as books, plays, films, etc.
  • Do not use quotation marks to introduce a new term; instead, use italics.
  • Quotation marks can be used around a term to indicate ironic use, but do so only sparingly. If the ironic use can be understood without the marks, omit them.
  • When completing a quote, almost every situation will result in punctuation such as commas, periods and exclamation points being inside the quote.
    • e.g.: The boy said, “I love you, Mom.”
    • e.g.: The boy said, “I hate eating candy; however, I love going trick or treating.”
  • Use single quotes when another speaker is quoted within a larger quotation.
    • e.g.: The little boy walked up to the young girl and said, “I was talking to Albert when Ms. Smith shouted, ‘Be quiet, young man!’”
  • Do not place semicolons or colons inside quotation marks.
• Semicolon:
  • Use semicolons to separate two thematically related independent clauses that are not joined by a conjunction.
    • e.g.: “We have no food left in the kitchen; Dave is running to the store.”
  • Use semicolons in a sentence that has list items with internal commas.
    • e.g.: “This picnic set includes plastic cups, saucers, and plates; an aluminum teapot; and utensils.”
• Slash:
  • Use slashes to separate alternatives (e.g., AM/FM stereo, AC/DC, audio/visual).

 

Common Issues

• Who vs. That
  • Use "who" when referring to people and "that" when referring to nonhuman entities.
    • e.g.: Companies that hire seasonal workers may benefit from the services of a temp agency.
    • e.g.: Individuals who work as contractors do not receive company benefits.
• Singular vs. Plural Pronouns
  • When referring to an organization, company, group, or website, use the singular pronoun. Use the plural pronoun only when referring to multiple companies.
    • e.g.: As soon as the YMCA opened its midtown center, it began to offer self-defense classes.
    • e.g.: Many book publishers are adding ebooks to their product lines.

 

Final Notes

• No style guide is entirely comprehensive. If you have an important style question that is not answered here, please post it on CloudCrowd's Get Satisfaction forum. We will be adapting and improving this guide as we go, and your feedback will help with that.
• Some rules in this guide differ from those in the CloudCrowd Editing Style Guide. Be certain to refer specifically to this guide for all writing tasks (whether authoring or reviewing), and the other for editing tasks.
• Have fun!