MAJOR CHANGE IN THE WORLD OF PROOFREADING
I just found out that The Chicago Manual of Style is coming out with a new edition in September.
Here are just a few changes in the 17th edition:
- E-mail will become email (no hyphen).
- Internet will become internet (lowercased).
- The chapter on grammar and usage will contain more than thirty new sections on syntax.
- The use of ibid. for repeated citations will no longer be preferred.
- The use of singular they (in place of he or she) as a singular pronoun is still not recommended for formal prose; however, it is acceptable for informal writing.
You can preorder your hard copy now. Or sign up for the online edition and get the 17th edition automatically when it’s released.
Members of The Christian PEN: Proofreaders and Editors Network can get a group discount on the CMOS online subscription. Visit www.TheChristianPEN.com for details on that.
As soon as I get my copy, I will be poring over it to find other differences. Then I guess I’ll need to start working on a 2nd edition of my Proofreading Secrets of Best-Selling Authors!
If you hear of other changes in the new 17th edition, or if you notice them once you receive your copy, please let me know so I can get them into my revised version.
In the meantime … what do you think about the new rules for email, internet, ibid, and they?
May 8, 2017 @ 10:08 am
The AP Stylebook has been using email and internet for a while.
May 8, 2017 @ 10:16 am
Those are some very interesting changes. I’m especially interested in this gradual shift toward using “they” as a singular pronoun. Some style books now call it acceptable in any prose. It sounds like the Chicago Manual of Style is headed in that direction but just can’t quite fully commit to it! I think it’s inevitable that eventually it will be fully acceptable since that’s the way people talk and since alternatives such as “he or she” are so cumbersome. Thanks for this overview.
May 8, 2017 @ 5:12 pm
Unfortunately, I have been using they as singular since I was in elementary school. It’s nice to see grammar has caught up with me. I like email and internet lower case. Actually, I didn’t know internet was upper case until my autocorrect showed it upper case.
Thank you for being a wealth of information. You keep us updated on what we need to know.
May 11, 2017 @ 6:55 am
I’m happy to lose the hyphen in e-mail.