Editorial Guide

The structure of the University of Tennessee is complex, representing a number of geographic and programmatic entities. UT editors have to be advocates both for our targeted readers and for our institution. Adopting a uniform style gives consistency and unity of voice to our publications. Uniform style also allows copy to be shared among publications without the need for extensive re-editing.

The editorial guide (300kb PDF) is maintained by the Creative Communications Group and was developed by its staff in collaboration with writers, editors and designers from across the university. It will be reviewed and updated as issues arise.

Style Guides

Besides this guide, the Creative Communications Group uses several other guides, among them Words Into Type (“WIT,” Prentice-Hall), The New York Public Library Writer’s Guide to Style and Usage (“NYPL,” HarperCollins), A Manual of Style (“Chicago,” University of Chicago Press), and the Associated Press Stylebook (mainly for press releases and other informational pieces aimed at news outlets).

For choices between alternate spellings and to resolve some usage issues, we use Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition (“WNW,” 2004, Wiley) as our prescriptive dictionary. (If you have a pre-2004 version of the 4th edition published by Macmillan USA, a Windows-compatible update is available on the Wiley website, www.wiley.com.) Two other good choices of prescriptive dictionaries are the Random House Dictionary and the American Heritage Dictionary.

As issues arise in your copyediting, check this guide first for a house-preferred styling. If this guide doesn’t meet your needs, check the other guides. (We usually consult Words Into Type and The New York Public Library Writer’s Guide to Style and Usage.)