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Thursday, December 19, 2013

A US Copy Editor's Perspective: Italics


Of course there are many rules and exceptions regarding the use of italics. Authors, whether trad-pubbed or Indie-pubbed, by learning these assorted 16CMS rules, add polish and a professionalism to their manuscripts, making them easier to copy edit (and less time spent by the copy editor handling all the other 16CMS rules means less you have to pay your copy editor, at least for Indie authors).

So here are a few italics rules. Pick the easiest one and begin using it.

  1. Published book titles are italicized (no quote marks). 16CMS 8.161.
  2. Not-yet-published books take quotation marks and roman type. 16CMS 8.184.
  3. Names of ships are italicized. 16CMS 8.115 (but not the USS in front of some, along with other exceptions).
  4. Italicize foreign words not found in Web11. 16CMS 7.49 and 7.52.
  5. However, if you continually use a foreign term throughout your work, like jefe (Spanish for "chief"), then italicize the first occurrence and roman set the rest. 16CMS 7.49.
I won't get into whether to italicize punctuation marks because 16CMS 6.2 and 6.4 contradict. As I've noted before, it depends on whether you have a publishing house's rules to consider or are an Indie using CreateSpace's guidelines. Regardless, follow the respective instructions. If you are uploading e-books only at the present time, read these two 16CMS rules and decide for yourself how to handle same. That's just one of the many great things about being an Indie: you are in charge.



"If your vocation isn’t a vacation, then quit, leap, change careers."

Denise Barker, Author, Blogger, Copy Editor
Books that Build Character(s)



What lies behind you and what lies in front of you pales in comparison to what lies inside of you. Ralph Waldo Emerson
When you give someone a book, you don’t give him just paper, ink, and glue.  You give him the possibility of a whole new life. Christopher Morley
The best inheritance you can leave your kids is an example of how to live a full and meaningful life. Dan Zadra

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