[U.S. Government Printing Office Style Manual]
[Chapter 1 - Advice to authors and editors]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


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                    1. ADVICE TO AUTHORS AND EDITORS

  1.1. This Style Manual is intended to facilitate Government 
printing. Careful observance of the following suggestions will 
aid in expediting your publication and also reduce printing 
costs.
  1.2. Changes on proofs add greatly to the expense of and 
delay the work. Therefore, copy must be carefully edited before 
being submitted to the Government Printing Office.
  1.3. Legible copy, not faint reproductions, must be 
furnished.
  1.4. Copy should be on one side only with each sheet numbered 
consecutively. If both sides of reprint copy are to be used, a 
duplicate set of copy must be furnished.
  1.5. To avoid unnecessary expense, it is advisable to have 
each page begin with a new paragraph.
  1.6. Proper names, signatures, figures, foreign words, and 
technical terms should be written plainly.
  1.7. The chemical symbols Al, Cl, Tl are sometimes mistaken 
for A1, C1, T1. Editors must indicate whether the second 
character is a letter or a figure.
  1.8. Footnote reference marks in text and tables should be
arranged consecutively from left to right across each page of 
copy.
  1.9. Photographs, drawings, and legends being used for 
illustrations should appear in the manuscript where they are to 
appear. They should be on separate sheets, as they are handled 
separately during typesetting.
  1.10. If a publication is composed of several parts, a scheme 
of the desired arrangement must accompany the first installment 
of copy.
  1.11. To reduce the possibility of costly blank pages, avoid 
use of new odd pages and halftitles whenever possible. 
Generally these refinements should be limited to quality 
bookwork.
  1.12. Samples should be furnished if possible. They should be 
plainly marked showing the desired type, size of type page, 
illustrations if any, paper, trim, lettering, and binding.
  1.13. In looseleaf or perforated-on-fold work, indicate folio 
sequence, including blank pages, by circling in blue. Begin 
with first text page (title). Do not folio separate covers or 
dividers.

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  1.14. Indicate on copy if separate or self-cover. When 
reverse printing in whole or in part is required, indicate if 
solid or tone.
  1.15. Avoid use of oversize fold-ins wherever possible. This 
can be done by splitting a would-be fold-in and arranging the 
material to appear as facing pages in the text. Where fold-ins 
are numerous and cannot be split, consideration should be given 
to folding and inserting these into an envelope pasted to the 
inside back cover.
  1.16. Every effort should be made to keep complete jobs of 
over 4 pages to signatures (folded units) of 8, 12, 16, 24, or 
32 pages. Where possible, avoid having more than two blank 
pages at the end.
  1.17. Indicate alternative choice of paper on the 
requisition. Where possible, confine choice of paper to general 
use items carried in inventory as shown in the GPO Paper 
Catalog.
  1.18. If nonstandard trim sizes and/or type areas are used, 
indicate head and back margins. Otherwise, GPO will determine 
the margins.
  1.19. Customers should submit copy for running heads and 
indicate the numbering sequence for folios, including the 
preliminary pages.
  1.20. All corrections should be made on first proofs 
returned, as later proofs are intended for verification only. 
All corrections must be indicated on the ``R'' set of proofs, 
and only that set should be returned to the Government Printing 
Office.
  1.21. Corrections should be marked in the margins of a proof 
opposite the indicated errors, not by writing over the print or 
between the lines. All queries on proofs must be answered.
  1.22. The following Government Printing Office and 
departmental publications relate to material included in the 
Style Manual. Most may be purchased from the Superintendent of 
Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. 
For lists of these and other such publications, request SB-077, 
Graphic Arts, and SB-087, Communication and Office Skills.

Word Division, a supplement to Government Printing Office Style Manual, 
    144 pages. 1987. GP 1.23/4:St 9/supp.976. S/N 021-000-00139-2.

    Basic rules for division of words; division into syllables of about 
    20,000 words.

Government Paper Specification Standards, Volume 11. 1999. Discontinued 
    as a subscription service. Sold as a single sales publication, 
    beginning with S/N 021-000-00174-1. O/N 99-20.

    Basic manual in looseleaf form. Should be of value and interest to 
    paper manufacturers, printing establishments, and others concerned 
    with paper standards. Contains standards to be used in testing and 
    definitive color standards for all mimeograph, duplicator, writing, 
    manifold, bond ledger, and index papers.

Technical and scientific guides

American National Standard Guidelines for Format and Production of 
    Scientific and Technical Reports, 16 pages. American National 
    Standards Institute, Inc. ANSI/NISO Z39.18-1995.


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    Prescribes the order and specifications of the elements of a 
    report. Takes into account the growing use of microform and 
    electronic storage and abstract services. Contains guidelines that 
    will help the researcher in locating, referencing, and comparing 
    source information. Covers type and page size, tables, formulas, 
    paper stock, and binding.

Data base publishing

Publishing From a Full Text Data Base. Graphic Systems Development 
    Division, Government Printing Office, 184 pages. Illustrated. 1983, 
    2d edition. S/N 021-000-00116-3.

    Describes GPO's concept of full text data base development and 
    discusses such factors as design, application, and job control.

Microfiche specifications

National Standard Microfiche of Documents, 15 pages. National 
    Micrographics Association. ANSI PH5.9-1975 (NMA MS5-1975).

    Specifications provided for microfiche intended for direct use by 
    the customer: ``distribution fiche.'' Offers definitions of some 
    terms.

Guide for Selecting Microfiche Requirements and Quality Attributes for 
    Microfiche Contract. Available from GPO, Manager of Quality Control 
    and Technical Department.

Correspondence style

U.S. Government Correspondence Manual, 92 pages. 1992. Book. S/N 022-
    000-212-1.

Also helpful to writers and editors are such publications as:

Bartlett, John. Familiar Quotations: A Collection of Passages, Phrases, 
    and Proverbs Traced to Their Sources in Ancient and Modern 
    Literature. Edited by Justin Kaplan. 16th ed., revised and 
    enlarged. Boston: Little, Brown, 1992.

The Chicago Manual of Style, University of Chicago Press. 14th ed., 
    revised and expanded. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.

New York Times Manual of Style and Usage. New York: Contains a 
    dictionary of names and terms primarily for newspaper writers.

Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, 
    Unabridged. Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1964.

Words into Type. Based on studies by Marjorie E. Skillin, Robert M. 
    Gay, and other authorities. 4th ed. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: 
    Prentice-Hall, 1992.

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    1.23. Corrections made to proofs by authors, editors, or 
readers at departments should be indicated as follows:



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    Note.--The system of marking proofs can be made easier by the use 
of an imaginary vertical line through the center of the type area. The 
placement of corrections in the left-hand margin for those errors found 
in the left-hand portion of the proof and in the right-hand margin for 
right-side errors prevents overcrowding of marks and facilitates 
corrections.

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                             NOTES