Certain words and phrases rise to prominence every year, capturing the zeitgeist. Every December, I love reading the words of the year from the major dictionaries. For 2024, Merriam-Webster chose “polarization” as its word of the year, Oxford University Press…
Have some professional development fun with our Twelve Days of Christmas changes in the new edition of The Chicago Manual of Style.
A list can be a powerful plain-language tool to help readers find information they might otherwise miss. When used effectively, lists help busy readers skim content so they can grasp ideas quickly and efficiently. Increasingly, however, lists are overused and…
October 13 to 18 is International Plain Language Week! Whatever you’re writing right now—email, report, manual, web page, or some other informational document—think of how you can make it easier for your readers to find, understand, and use the information…
One of the most common issues we run into as editors is capitalization—starting certain words with a capital letter or using capital letters for entire words.
Partner Merrie-Ellen Wilcox's inspiring new book is here.
In workplace writing, addressing readers as “you” and “your” will help them understand and use information.
The hearts of editors beat faster in April when the University of Chicago Press announced that a new edition of the Chicago Manual of Style, number 18, would be released in September. It’s come a long way since the 1st…
On a sunny, breezy evening in Montreal, my two daughters, my nephew, and I walked through the front door of an unassuming-looking restaurant named Onoir.
All of us at West Coast Editorial Associates (WCEA) are looking forward to the Editors Canada conference “Present Progressive: Passion, Precision and Purpose,” which will be held June 21 to 23, 2024, in Vancouver. The annual conference is always a…