Style Sheets for Books:
what they are and why you need one
In your search for an editor, you might have seen style sheets included in their services. A style sheet is a list of the preferences you and your editor make for your book's spelling, punctuation, numerals, and much more.
Traditionally publishing writers will have their books edited toward their publishing house's style guide. Every publishing house will have a slightly different preference for how to handle editing, though most in the US follow The Chicago Manual of Style.
Newspapers tend to follow the Associated Press Stylebook. But like publishing houses, they'll have their own unique styles.
For instance, The New Yorker prefers to abbreviate Dungeons & Dragons as D. & D.
This same preference would be listed on your style sheet, which you get to choose if you're self-publishing.
Do you hate semicolons, want to use American English but also "axe," or prefer your sign names entirely capitalized? Your style sheet will reflect each one of these choices.
Why you need a style sheet
Preferences start stacking up. You don't want to be digging through the first book's manuscript for the one-visit tavern the group returns to in the second book.
Was it Bartleby's Mead & Mutton Tavern or Bartlebee's Mead and Mutton Tavern?
And did you italicize it the first time?
Style sheets are invaluable to book series. They help you and your editors (especially if you change editors) stay consistent between each edit level and between each book.
When your readers are devouring your series' box set, you don't want them noticing that later books have some weapon stat numbers spelled out that were numerals the first time around.
And style sheets give you a quick reference point for the spelling of "Galacticspeke" and not "Galacticspeak."
Sidenote: In the making of this blog post and my example style sheet, I sent up quite a few sympathetic thoughts for the editor of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. That style sheet would have been a novel on its own.
Are you working with an editor on your RPG manual? A style sheet here will be almost as important as the editing of the actual book. Your team will need guides on when an ability should be lowercased vs. capitalized, or when a skill is increased by 2 but a bonus roll grants a +1 to an ability.
Future games for your RPG system will follow the style sheet created for the core rulebook, eliminating any concern of player confusion.
You don't want the switch-up of a + symbol causing a rule war between the GM and players.
What to include on a style sheet
The Book Foundry's style sheets are created from a simple Word Doc template.
My style sheets for each book of a series is expanded off the first to maintain full-series consistency in the end. As I include the page number of when each entry is first seen, I also create a shorthand of the titles to pair with the page number on style sheets for book two and up.
Each sheet includes:
Book Title and Series Title
This may seem obvious, but I've come across many a style sheet that only names the series and not the book. Confusion occurs when I'm not sure if the third book of the series was treated differently than the first book, and I need to crosscheck within the manuscripts themselves (if I have them) rather than between style sheets.
Working with a single editor from book one through book seven is ideal, but not always possible. If you create your own style sheet or have your first editor create one, make sure it lists the book title for your future editor's benefit.
This is also where I'll create a shorthand for the book title if it's part of a series. Page 29 of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy will have an entry of: Starship Heart of Gold, HGG 29.
Style Sheet Creation Date
This detail is key for knowing when a global change in the book was made. If you end up with multiple style sheets for the same book, the latest date for any preference edits will be your best friend.
Treatment of Numbers
If you're working with fiction and the Chicago Manual of Style, numbers will usually be spelled out from one to one hundred. But each book will have their own exceptions that should be listed here for quick reference. Some examples I've listed on past style sheets:
Spell out numbers up to one hundred (two feet), but:
Specific dates ('60s, 1985, August 10),
Time (8 o'clock and 2:10 p.m.),
Dollar amount ($20 million),
Percent (15 percent).
Numerals under one hundred in narrative with traditional context (size 45 shoe, Type 2 diabetes).
Numerals in dialogue to avoid awkward construction ("Doctor, she has a temperature of 100.7 degrees!", "Meet me at the exit to Route 1.").
General Rules and Punctuation
This is where you list which dictionary should be used, when italics are preferred, if the ellipses and em dashes are open or closed, and if the Oxford comma should be eschewed at all costs. Using the Hitchhiker's Guide style sheet as an example:
Italics for book titles (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (pg. 39)), but roman for book titles within entries (Encyclopedia Galactica (pg.6)).
Closed em dash for parentheses and sentence interruptions ("To confront an ancient night—" (pg. 364)).
Do not use serial (Oxford) commas.
Word List
The word list is probably the most important area of the style sheet. Here is where you list the words you've created and any preferences that contradict with your preferred dictionary. This list will help you maintain a level of consistency on spelling, capitalization, grammar, and italics across the book and series. Some entries I've included in the past:
Algolian Suntiger (species), 19.
axe, not ax (AU [author] preference).
dived, not dove (AU preference).
good-bye (AU preference).
pollo sorpreso, 35.
sneaked, not snuck (AU preference).
Sub-Etha Sens-O-Matic, 21.
Locations
Locations are a straightforward section. I like to include any areas mentioned and their relevant details to maintain consistency in spelling and information. For instance:
Damogran (home of the Heart of Gold), 29.
Guildford (not Ford's home), 11.
Betelgeuse (Ford's home), 11.
Characters
This section is where I list the characters' spellings, physical details, titles, relationships, etc. Part of copyediting is maintaining consistency that Bob's blue eyes on page 14 don't turn into Bob's green eyes on page 126. The character section will help you quickly crosscheck where you said that person was born in book one when you're writing book five. Some examples from Hitchhiker's Guide:
Marvin (robot on the Heart of Gold), 66.
Slartibartfast (on Magrathea), 112.
Zaphod Beeblebrok (President of the Imperial Galactic Government), 29.
*****
When you're looking around for your next copyeditor, find out if they offer a style sheet along with the edited manuscript. Having one for your series will make a positive difference in your readers' experiences.
Even better, consider building your own style sheet of created words, characters, and locations for your editor. They'll certainly be grateful!
Lauren Donovan is a freelance editor offering developmental editing, copyediting, and proofreading. She specializes in Fantasy, Horror, and Sci-Fi for indie authors and small press publishers.
Lauren is a member of the Editorial Freelancers Association (EFA) and Society for Editing (ACES).
If you're ready for your 1,000-word sample edit and project estimate from The Book Foundry, click here.