The unique number assigned to each new book or book-like product, including each new edition or format (hardcover, softcover, ebook, audiobook). Most everyplace in the book trade requires an ISBN to identify a product and its publisher. Publishers of all …

Dear Style Meister: Isn’t it wrong to begin a sentence with a conjunction? — I Don’t Think So

Dear Don’t Think So: Relax. When it comes to English usage, it’s usually more a case of preference rather than “right” or …

A standard manuscript is typed in a 12-point plain font like Times New Roman. Don’t try to be artistic; that only makes editors cranky! If you’re mailing a hard copy, print it on one side only on plain white or …

Em dash — A dash about as wide as a capital M in a particular font and point size — Often typed as a double hyphen, em dashes can be used to:

1. End an informal greeting in a memo or

…

Dear Style Meister: How do you handle characters’ imaginings in a work of fiction? Do you place them in quotation marks? italicize them? or what? — Introspective Novelist

Dear Introspective: The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago) states that internal …

Need a way to avoid using “he/she” or “he or she”? The simplest solution, using “he” as generic, risks alienating lots of people. And some “solutions” are so awkward, they leave us even worse off. Luckily, you can usually edit …

An electronic file that duplicates the appearance and contents of an entire page or image, regardless of what type of computer or electronic device it’s displayed on. Think of it as a snapshot. Adobe Systems invented PDFs to help people …

Once you have a carefully edited final manuscript and have a high-quality front cover PDF (Portable Document File), you have the basic ingredients needed to publish an electronic book (ebook).

Unlike a manuscript file for a printed book, a manuscript …

Dear Style Meister:  What is the possessive form of Congress? Would you write “Congress’s unanimous acceptance” or “Congress’ unanimous acceptance”? — Possessively Perplexed

Dear Possessively: I’m hard pressed to imagine a situation in which Congress could accept anything unanimously! …

Dear Style Meister: Is it okay to end a sentence with a preposition? For instance, is “What are you referring to” now preferred over “To what are you referring”? — Prepositional Purist

Dear Purist: The old rule about never ending …

Today’s publishing industry offers several options that writers often find confusing. Books may now be produced through offset printing, digital printing, print on demand (POD) or as ebooks.

Offset printing is most appropriate for printing large quantities of books, usually …

Sometimes referred to as advance copy, reader’s copy or reader’s edition — ARCs are formatted bound books that often have a plain rather than final cover. They are extremely important for obtaining the endorsements and book reviews that often …