That's Just Our Style
The editors at the Office of Creative Services have no problem with being described as "style geeks." Our weekly meetings consist, in large part, of intricate analyses of the finer points of punctuation, grammar, clarity, and other burning questions (to our way of thinking) related to writing style. We all have strong opinions, but we also rely on a few external "big guns" such as Merriam-Webster Online, The Chicago Manual of Style, and The Associated Press Stylebook. Each of us has one or two personal favorite sources as well. Mine would have to be The Slot, a Web site (no, we haven't switched to "website" yet) maintained by Washington Post business copy editor Bill Walsh. (Walsh is also the author of some entertaining books; my favorite is The Elephants of Style.)
Over the past decade we've synthesized all of these influences and our own best judgments into four editions of the Indiana University Style Guide. The most recent edition is now available online. If you're a style geek like us (or even if you're not), we hope you'll check out the new edition.
We also hope that you'll let us know your opinions. (For example, is it time for the big switch to "website"? Should we stick with "advisor," or return to "adviser," which is favored by many spelling purists? How can we defend the lowercasing of "zip" in "zip code"? Which is better, "a historic" or "an historic," and why?)
Our comment board is always open, and we're eager to talk style with you.
