30 Style Guide
Before adapting an existing book, or creating a new one, it’s important to establish a road map that will guide the style of the work. This Style Guide, developed by the B.C. Open Textbook project, will provide a framework from which to begin. In addition to this guide, you can create a Style Sheet that outlines the specific characteristics of your book.
Manuals and Dictionaries
- Canadian Oxford Dictionary, 2nd ed.
- Editing Canadian English, 2nd ed.
For in-text citations and reference lists, consult style manual particular to the discipline of the specific book (e.g., MLA Handbook, APA, Chicago Manual of Style).
Citation Style
Select the citation style to be used for referencing material in your book and note this on your Style Sheet. If you are writing for a specific discipline, select the citation style appropriate for your area. If you are adapting an existing book, use the citation style chosen by the original author.
Use the citation style you’ve selected to set out rules for your book and record them in your Style Sheet to ensure consistency. Some basic questions to ask yourself:
- What will in-text citations look like?
- When inserting direct quotations, is a page number required?
- How will you list multiple authors for an in-text citation or entry in a reference list?
- Where will the reference list be located?
- Will you use footnotes instead of a reference list?
- How will you ensure that all in-text citations are noted in full in the reference list?
If you are creating a table, chart or graph, see “Citation vs Attribution” in Images: Captions, Attributions and Citations for information on how to add in-text citations.
If you are adapting a work and remove an in-text citation, remember to remove this reference from the reference list at the end of the chapter.
If you want to indicate sources used for writing that have not been specifically cited in the text, add these items to a Bibliography at the end of the chapter.
Pay close attention to the punctuation used for the citation style you’ve chose, such as:
- How periods are used
- Use of italics
- Use of brackets
- Use of quotation marks
- Use of spaces
Note: No periods should be used after URLs when they end a reference list entry.
Captions
See Images: Captions, Citations and Attributions
Spelling
In general, Canadian spellings should be used. Consult Canadian Spellings for first-choice spelling preferences. List any exceptions in your Style Sheet.
Punctuation
Consider how punctuation will be handled in your book. Below is one standard to use as a model. If you choose one or more different styles, enter these on your Style Sheet.
- Use a serial comma, i.e., a comma placed immediately before the coordinating conjunctive (and, or, nor) in a series of three or more terms.
- Serial comma: There were cows, horses, and pigs in the barn.
- No serial comma: There were cows, horses and pigs in the barn.
- Use commas in numerals over 999 (e.g., 1,000; 45,000)
- In displayed lis