Editors swear by style guides, but do they actually serve a purpose?
Some moons ago, before becoming a freelance editor, I worked in the customer service center of a direct-selling company. My job was to support the people selling the company’s products as they added members to their team (Note: This was NOT a pyramid scheme. It was and still is a legitimate company for people who want to become business owners.). The guidebook that these consultants followed for doing so was called the guidelines. Once after a meeting, I approached my boss about the use of the word guidelines in the book’s title. We both agreed that the guides were just that — guides and not to be taken as law.
As a Christian editor, I approach editing the same way. I believe the references out there at our disposal are for the purposes of guiding. Now please understand that I am not in any way advocating for avoiding style guides. You have not and will not read that The Anointed Editorial does not use style guides. They provide plenty support to ensure that editors are *somewhat* on the same page. However, I don’t look at them as the editor’s lifeline.
Style guides are meant to guide the editing process to a certain point, but there is leeway to deviate where appropriate. So, yes, they are useful.
I’ll say this again for the authors in the back: Style guides are extremely useful as they keep us all on the same page. But there’s space for honoring an author’s writing voice and style that doesn’t compromise the point of the writing.
I’m sharing reasons why style guides are necessary as well as when it makes sense to do your own thing.
Reasons to Rely on a Style Guide
Style guides keep authors, editors, and publishing houses on the same page
Style guides keep everyone who is part of the publishing process on the same page. This is especially true for copyeditors and proofreaders, regardless of their status as freelance or if they work for a publishers.
Style guides facilitate seamless flow through the publishing process
Because everyone in the flow understands the importance of style guides, the publishing process is streamlined for authors. Guidance on what to edit and how to edit it is clear and there’s no confusion. An author will not get to the proofreading phrase only to realize they need more line editing.
Style guides maintain genre expectations (which is important for readers!)
The existence of style guides causes readers to understand and look for commonalities among books in a particular genre. Nonfiction is no exception. Style guides help with maintaining genre expectations to satisfy reader audiences.
When to Deviate from the Style Guide
When editing a work of fiction
I edit nonfiction mostly and I’ve been known to hold hard-and-fast to the style guide when working with these types of books. Fiction, however, is a different ball game. I believe that fiction offers many opportunities for “rule breaking” because of its imaginative nature. This is particularly true when considering how well some punctuation marks translate from nonfiction to fiction and even when addressing dialogue between the two types of writing.
When the style guide leaves room for interpretation
As I mentioned earlier, I look at style guides as just that: guides to get editors and writers headed in the same general direction. This is largely due to the fact that there are gray areas with many “rules” in the guidebook. When a gray area is encountered, the editing team should come together to determine which interpretation of the guidelines should be the prevailing one. In a publishing house, this would be the lead editor or whoever oversees the team of editors; between a freelance editor and an author, the editing team consists of those two.
When honoring author or publisher preferences
Editors have a responsibility to make sure that authors and publishers, employers, etc., are aware of what the guidelines are so that they understand how their style choice diverges from what is considered normal. It is absolutely okay to consider and honor author or publisher preferences, as long as those preferences make sense and serve the benefit of the reader — see more below.
When considering what is in the best interest of the reader
Style changes should feel good to the author but also be made in service to the reader audience. If an author’s preference introduces more clarity for the reader, then by all means, honor that. When the author’s point is more clear, the intended market is likely to better receive the information.
All in all, style guides are a useful writing and editing reference that publishers, editors, and writers should have in their arsenal. Though this handy resource does not hold all the answers to what constitutes effective writing, style guides keep the guidelines up-to-date for consistent results, much to the service of our readers. Their (the readers’) expectations are met and editing choices are made that honor the desires of everyone involved.