PENCON 2015 starts tomorrow! I am so excited about this convention! It is the second annual freelance editorial convention of The Christian PEN—and the only conference of its kind in Christian publishing.

The speaker line-up is amazing; experts in the publishing industry from all over the US are convening in Austin, Texas, to teach, encourage, inspire, and collaborate with one another. I am teaching two workshops: “AP vs. CMOS: When Style Guides Conflict,” which I am co-teaching with the wonderful Kathy Ide, and “Building Client Relationships.”

Here’s a sneak peek of a few key points from the “AP vs. CMOS” workshop:

• The Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) is the industry standard for US book publishers.
• The Associated Press Stylebook (AP) is the industry standard for journalistic-style publications.

COMMAS

CMOS: In a series of three or more elements, separate the elements with commas. When a conjunction joins the last two elements in a series, use a comma before the conjunction.

For example: I love apples, bananas, and grapes.

AP: Leave out the comma before and (or another conjunction) in a series unless doing so would cause confusion or ambiguity.

For example: I love apples, bananas and grapes.

DASHES

CMOS: No space before or after em dash (—) or en dash (–).

(Note: the em dash is made by pressing shift+option+hypen; the en dash is made by pressing option+hypen.)

For example: No matter what—she always got her way.

AP: Space before and after dash (—). AP does not use the en dash. (Use a hyphen instead.)

For example: No matter what — she always got her way.

NUMBERS

CMOS: Spell out whole numbers one through one hundred, and spell out round numbers (hundreds, thousands, millions). Spell out times of day in even, half, and quarter hours.

For example: There are ninety-nine reasons I love you!

AP: Spell out whole numbers below 10; use numerals for 10 and above. Use numerals for measurements and spell out the words inches, feet, yards, etc. Use numerals for time of day except for noon and midnight (10:30 a.m., 5 o’clock).

For example: There are 99 reasons I love you!

Stay tuned for more info, news, and reviews of PENCON 2015.

I hope to see you there!