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CloudCrowd Editing Style Guide

The purpose of this page is to outline the expectations for writers and editors. This style guide should be referenced frequently by workers to help reduce conflicts and illustrate the standardization of punctuation and style within a document.

 

Index

 

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. If there is more than one accepted spelling in a listing there, feel free to use either, but always be consistent within a particular document. For example, either health care or healthcare is acceptable, as long as the same spelling is used consistently. Checking the full document can be helpful for this purpose.

As an abridged dictionary, dictionary.com will not include all spellings, but it will have many of them. For many proper terms that do not appear on dictionary.com, Wikipedia can be considered a useful second source. Some scientific and uncommon terms might not appear in either place, so try to find a legitimate authoritative source for these.

Note that just because something 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.). Look for legitimate, highly credible sources to ensure spelling is correct.

 

Punctuation

Ampersand:

  • Do not use an ampersand (&) unless it is part of a brand name, in which case it must be used, as in Proctor & Gamble or Arm & Hammer.

 

Apostrophe:

  • Acronyms: Do NOT use an apostrophe when making these terms plural (TVs, VCRs, DVDs).
  • Single capital letters: Use an apostrophe to make these plural (A’s, B’s, C’s / “X’s and O’s”).

 

Percentage:

  • Unless it’s the start of a sentence, always use the numeral (including single-digit numerals). The non whole-numbers should be represented in 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 the document consistently uses it. While using the sign, always use numerals (except when beginning a sentence) and leave no space before the sign.
    • e.g.: 50%, 8%, 45.2%, a 20% tip

 

Possessives:

  • These should be used to specify size by gender and take the plural possessive. Examples:
  • Men’s ties, women’s shoes, boys’ jeans, girls’ tees, infants’ and toddlers’ separates, adults’ in-line skates
  • Years: Use the following format: 1960s, ‘90s

 

Colon:

  • The first letter following a colon is lowercase, unless it’s a brand name or proper noun, or if what follows the colon is a complete sentence. (This is because an introductory sentence or clause can precede a complete sentence.) Only one space follows the colon.
  • Semicolons and colons that are part of a direct quote go outside the closing quotation mark. Example: Mr. Smith commented, “Cheese is so good to eat with every meal”; however, he did not mention that it is a very fatty food.

 

Capital Letters

  • Use 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.”)
  • Use for nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs in book, DVD and CD titles.
  • Do not capitalize prepositions of less than four letters, articles or conjunctions in titles.

 

Comma: 

Serial comma (aka “Oxford comma”): The editor should defer to the original author’s preference on the use of serial commas. If the document consistently uses the serial comma (or does not), try to remain consistent with that style. If the overall document is inconsistent in serial comma use, make sure use is at least consistent within that document portion.

Note: Reviewers should not reject over serial comma use, but are expected to correct for consistency within a particular document portion.

  • Independent clause: A comma is required to separate two independent clauses that are joined by a conjunction. Example:
  • This cordless drill is durable and versatile, and it makes a great gift for Dad.
  • Before “too”: Using a comma before the word “too” and at the end of a sentence is optional. Examples provided below.
  • It saves you money too. / You’ll like the low price, too.
  • However, it is often preferable to replace “too” with “also,” e.g., “It also saves you money.”

 

Dashes:

The most common use of the dash is 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—and a hyphen cannot be used in place of a dash. (This is a very common error in documents.)

The use of double hyphens (--) to represent a dash is archaic, a holdover from the days of typewriters and ASCII text, and should be replaced in Word documents with an em dash (—), the longest dash. Always use the em dash for parenthetical elements. For consistency do not include a space on either side, for example: “We celebrated Dad’s birthday—just as we do every year—at Red Lobster.”

The shorter dash, the en dash (–), is rarely needed. It can be used to indicate ranges of numbers, for example (“15–20”), but a hyphen is also considered acceptable for this use. For most situations, you’ll want to use the longer em dash.

 

About Hyphens

Many terms that used to get hyphens, especially for prefixes such as “non-,” “multi-,” etc., are no longer hyphenated. When in doubt, check all hyphenated words at dictionary.com. If this site does not hyphenate the word, neither should you.

(Note that many British dictionaries often still include hyphens for these words. Unless the document is clearly one that consistently uses British/Canadian spellings, the words should not be hyphenated.)

Hyphens also are used in compound adjectives that precede the object noun, e.g. “back-to-back games” or “hard-boiled” eggs. Most compound adjectives are not hyphenated when they follow the object, as in: “You have well-behaved children. / Your children are well behaved.”

However, certain specifically defined compound adjectives are always hyphenated, as in the preceding “hard-boiled.” When in doubt, check dictionary.com to see whether the term is specifically defined and thus always hyphenated. It only takes a few seconds.

Also note that not all two-word modifiers are compound adjectives. Many double noun modifiers often do not get hyphens, even when they precede the object noun, e.g., “health care debate” or “flag football tournament.”

 

Ellipses:

The proper use of ellipses in academic papers is to indicate that words have been omitted in quoted/cited text. In CC style, the 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:

Dave said, “I love this place … it serves meatballs.”
Dave said, “I love going to Spain. … Traveling is lots of fun.”

 

An ellipsis can also indicate a pause in thought, but this should be used sparingly. In either case, include a space on either side.

 

British vs American Wording:

Whilst and learnt: These are British terms for while and learned that incorrectly pop up often in American documents, or in edits by new British editors. They are both incorrect in standard American copy. Always use while and learned.

Most documents we receive are American in origin and intent. These documents should always default to American spellings and punctuation. Downloading the full document often helps you be certain that it is American.

We sometimes get documents for/from countries that use British spellings or a combination of American and British spellings (such as Canada). If the overall document clearly is British/Canadian/Australian and/or consistently uses British spellings (e.g. it doesn’t alternate between specialise and specialize), you should retain British spellings.

Here’s where the problem pops up: Some of our customers learned English outside America or from a variety of sources, so they occasionally pepper incorrect British spellings in along with American ones. It is not correct to retain British spellings in this circumstance. This sometimes can be a bit of a judgment call, but please take a few seconds to know what you’re editing and make an informed decision. If you retain a British spelling, it’s often a good idea to leave a comment for the reviewer explaining this.

 

Quotation Marks:

Be conservative with quotation mark use. Quotation marks should almost always be used only 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.

Quotation marks also can be used around individual words to indicate irony, but only retain these if they are essential to communicating the ironic nature of the term. This is an extremely abused punctuation usage, so as an editor you should be very careful the original writer wasn't making a mistake when placing a standalone word in quotes. When in doubt, it’s almost always best to leave the quotes out.

If quotation marks are being used by the author to introduce a new term, italics are often better for this purpose. When completing a quote, almost every situation will result in punctuation such as commas, periods and exclamation points being inside the quote.

Example: The boy said, "I love you, Mom."
Example: The boy said, "I hate eating candy; however, I love going trick or treating."

The only major exception to this is when a question is asked. Example: Did you see "Gone With the Wind"?
Note that quotes also can be introduced with colons, e.g.: Dave asked: “But who ate the cake?”

 

Double quotes should almost always be used, because that is standard American formatting. Single quotes are used 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!’”

Put commas and periods inside quotation marks. Put semicolons and colons outside quotation marks.

Use quotes for the following:
Poems, short stories, skits, commercials, an individual episode of a TV or cartoon series, photographs, an article or chapter of a book

 

Semicolon:

  • Semicolons are used to separate two thematically related independent clauses that are not joined by a conjunction. For example: “We have no food left in the kitchen; Dave is running to the store.”
  • Semicolons are also properly used in a sentence that has list items with internal commas. Example: “This picnic set includes plastic cups, saucers, and plates; an aluminum teapot; and utensils.”

 

Slash:

  • Use to separate alternatives (e.g., AM/FM stereo, AC/DC, audio/visual).

 

Words vs. Numerals:

Spell out numbers zero through nine in general copy. Use numerals for numbers 10 and up, except when beginning a sentence. Use a comma for all numbers four digits or larger, e.g. “We have 1,500 soldiers” or “The car costs $24,500.”

When using the dollar sign, the term dollars is redundant and should be omitted.

Note that numbers can be used for numbers below 10 when referring to mathematical equations, figures, ratios, etc., as in “a 1-to-3 ratio” or “a 1-in-8 chance.” Try not to mix written-out numbers and numerals: Clarity is what’s most important.

 

Abbreviations

Units, Measurements, Quantities

Following the rules outlined within “Words vs. Numerals,” you should spell out all numbers less than 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.

Under no circumstance should you spell out numerals when associated with a unit, size or quantity. The numeral and the unit should be separated by a single hyphen. Examples follow:

  • "This 20-pc. dish set..." or "This 20-piece dish set..." are both acceptable.
  • "This twenty-piece dish set..." and "This twenty-pc dish set..." are both unacceptable.
  • "The two hundred piece LEGO set..." is unacceptable.


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.

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Formatting:

Unless specified in the task instructions, you are not responsible for correcting major formatting issues.

We do not market our editing services as a formatting service and so do not expect our editors to correct formatting. The expectations are for you to maintain formatting consistency. If a certain word or phrase is consistently italicized, continue to italicize that word or phrase.

Incorrect spacing between words is a grammatical issue, not formatting. Extra spaces and missing spaces are grammatical errors. For all tasks, you are responsible for making sure that the spacing between words and after a comma is correct (one space).

Two spaces between sentences is an archaic practice. That said, a reviewer should not reject a document for having two spaces between sentences, but the reviewer can (and should) correct it. Editors must get in the practice of ensuring proper spacing.

Note: Ensuring that paragraphs are clearly distinguished is a grammatical issue, not formatting. Paragraphs should be distinguished between each other in some way, either with a full line break between them, or by being indented. If the author did both, you may retain that style. If there is no break or indentation between paragraphs, add a break between them. Unnecessarily lengthy paragraphs that crowd together a variety of themes should be separated by the editor at natural thematic points. When editing dialogue, the editor must ensure that a new paragraph is used each time the speaker changes.

Using bolding:

The best and most acceptable usage of bolding is for section headings. There is very little need to use bolding, especially in formal documents. The responsibility of the editor is to identify section headings correctly and to bold them if not already bolded. Be very sparing with bold type.

Using italics:

Italics are used for citing books and journals. It is common practice to use italics for emphasis, though this is considered incorrect outside informal communications or very occasional use. If the document you're editing is clearly a work of fiction and the author is using italics to provide emphasis, feel free to use this same style. For formal, business-oriented documents, italics should only be used for making book or journal citations.

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 like The Bible or The Koran (note spelling here)
  • Buildings and monuments

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Word Choice

Typos That Are Real Words

A typo often will cause a word to be correctly spelled, but result in the wrong word being used. Example:
I went to the park to cheek out the geese migrating from Canada.
Versus
I went to the park to check out the geese migrating from Canada.
This is considered a spelling error, and the presence of even one spelling error is grounds for rejection. Make sure your document does not have incorrectly used words. Many authors have become reliant on the MS Word spell check, leading to many errors of this sort.

Split Infinitive

Do NOT reject work because of split infinitives. The belief that this is a grammatical error is an anachronism from the early 19th century. Modern English frequently splits infinitives for improved (i.e., more natural) speech patterns.

Starting a Sentence With the Conjunctions And or But

These are acceptable in informal correspondence or narrative writing, but should be rarely-to-never used in academic papers, business correspondence, etc. You often can simply remove and from the start of the sentence and it will be fine, or replace it with also and a comma. You can replace the conjunction but with the correct however, followed by a comma: “However, the team didn’t lose another game all season.”

Which vs That

This error occurs often in documents. In American English, that is used to introduce a restrictive clause. Which is used to introduce a nonrestrictive clause and is always preceded by a comma when used this way. Typically the restrictive clause is used when the subject is referred to generally, while the nonrestrictive clause is used when the subject is referred to specifically.

Examples: I need to catch the train that goes to San Francisco.
I need to catch the 8:25 a.m. train, which goes to San Francisco.

The differences can get a bit complex, so they won’t be addressed in detail here, but there are many great resources on the Internet to help clarify this matter. This is especially important for British or Canadian workers, because which is often used interchangeably with that for restrictive clauses in those countries.

Times and Dates

Write times as a.m. and p.m. (lowercase, with periods). If a time is on the hour, omit the “:00.” In dates, omit the th or rd after the date. If a date is only a month and year, it gets no comma. A month with a date gets a comma and may be abbreviated or written out. A month with no date should be written out.
Examples:
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

Awkward Sentences

Often a writer will struggle to communicate an idea, and as a result the word choice used will result in forced and awkward sentences. It is the job of an editor to understand the meaning of a sentence or paragraph and improve the word choice for clearer, more natural sounding sentences. To accomplish this, an entire sentence or paragraph may need to be rewritten.

CloudCrowd receives work from authors with a broad variety of writing skills. The meaning of sentences in some documents will be hard to interpret. If unsure about a meaning, do your best to clarify it, and feel free to leave a comment for the author to review the revision.

Reviewers should take the original copy into consideration when looking at the editor’s final product. If the editor has made a significant effort to improve the clarity and meaning of extremely poor/ESL copy—but a couple of small errors remain—any remaining errors in the copy should be corrected. If the editor has not made this attempt, retaining numerous problems with clarity and meaning, that’s likely grounds for rejection.

Reviewers should also consider that we get some very difficult scientific and technical documents from time to time and to take the editor’s efforts into consideration with these. Never approve work that has a multitude of errors or unacceptable effort, but do not reject a substantive effort by the editor over a couple of small issues. Correct these if possible.

Clichés

A cliché is an expression that has been over used to the point that the original meaning has either been lost or severely distorted. Clichés are often referred to as being trite. Examples include "Six of one, half-dozen of the other" or "Stuck between a rock and a hard place" or "When pigs fly" to name only a few. Good writing attempts to convey a clear meaning without using platitudes or clichés.

Plural Pronouns

Plural pronouns, such as they/their/etc., should not be used to refer to a single person of unspecified gender. For example, when editing the sentence "If anyone calls, tell them I'll be back at six." revise to "Tell everyone who calls that I'll be back at six."

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Auxiliary Topics

American English vs British English:

By default, the document should be edited using American spelling and punctuation. However, we sometimes get documents that are British/Canadian/Australian in origin. If British spellings are consistently used, retain these spellings. It’s a good idea to flag these with a comment to the reviewer. However, be certain that the document at large is indeed consistent in this use by downloading the entire document.

ESL writers will often incorrectly use a British spelling or two in a document that is American. Downloading the full document and checking the cover page often will clarify the issue. Please download and review this general guide comparing British spellings to American spellings. Wikipedia also provides a good overview of the subject.

Editing Direct Quotes

If a document is quoting someone, with citation, the best practice is to not alter the quotation. A special exception to this rule is reserved for cases in which there is an obvious typo or grammatical error that may be attributed to the author erroneously copying the quote.

Editors are not responsible for fact-checking, so they are not expected to look up the quote. Some quotes will appear without a direct source citation. In these situations, it is fine to correct the quote slightly, as long as the corrections are reserved for comprehension. It’s recommended to leave a brief comment for the author when you do this.

Regardless of the nature of the edit, it is of the utmost importance that any edits remain minimal and do not impact original meaning or intent.

Note that when editing dialogue in a work of fiction, the “voice” of the characters should be retained whenever possible. This often means retaining less-than-optimal, or even technically incorrect, grammar and spellings. It’s a good idea to leave a comment to the reviewer when you retain these, so everyone is on the same page. Again, always ensure that all comments are professional.

Regardless of the nature of the edit, it is of the utmost importance that the edits remain minimal and do not impact original meaning or intent.

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