What is a Writer's Style Guide and Why Would I Need One?


by Paul Docherty - Date: 2007-03-10 - Word Count: 496 Share This!

A style guide is a means of documenting your approach, as a writer, to the main elements of writing style that you believe need to be consistent. Style guides are generally associated with specialist types of writing like technical writing, commercial or business writing, journalism and web copywriting. In each of these cases, there is a need to ensure that the writing style is consistent and so guidelines are usually published to allow more than one author to contribute while ensuring that the finished piece does not carry or exhibit the personal style of a writer but that of the publication, company or website.

For publications or companies with a large number of contributing authors, a style guide is essential if the completed publication is to be coherent and consistent.

Many creative writers eschew the need for a style guide, believing that the ability to follow a standard English writing style should be an innate quality for any writer. While to a certain extent this could be argued to be true, a style guide provides a means of documenting basic rules or features of your writing that will allow you to ensure consistency in your written output. Technical writers, for example, will generally have a style guide for a particular customer or project to ensure that the data they deliver will be in an acceptable form and will be in keeping with previous deliveries or other publications that the customer already has. In many cases, this style is dictated by a recognised standard.

The lack of a single authoritative source on style for written English means that there is, and will always be, healthy debate on the elements of style. The use of punctuation and correct grammar is well established but style is much more than just the correct usage of punctuation, grammar and vocabulary.

Each publication, company or writer will have a view on any number of elements of the style of their writing. Creative writers may not be worried about headings, lists, trademarks or the use of special terminology, whereas a bid proposal writer or a technical writer may need to take heed of all such considerations in their daily work.

For any writer, but particularly for the freelance writer, a style guide should be an invaluable tool. Freelance writers should continually develop style guides for each customer or publication type that they work with. It is important that, as a freelancer, you can demonstrate an ability to follow a prescribed style, but equally that you can learn and record what your customers prefer from their comments and feedback. This will help increase your customers' satisfaction in the long term and will help place you as their supplier of choice for written material or content.

But what's wrong with a creative writer using their own style guide? Well, nothing. Can you imagine how much time it might save in proofreading and correction if a creative writer knows that they've followed a set style from the outset in certain areas?


Related Tags: guide, writing, writers, style, grammar, writer, freelance, editing, proofreading, punctuation

Paul Docherty has over 13 years experience of technical and business related writing, as well as operations management and project managing complex technical writing projects. For more free advice and articles on how to make the most of your writing either as a hobby or as a career, try visiting http://www.freewritingadvice.com and http://www.freewritingadvice.com/articles/

Your Article Search Directory : Find in Articles

© The article above is copyrighted by it's author. You're allowed to distribute this work according to the Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs license.
 

Recent articles in this category:



Most viewed articles in this category:


  • Don't Put Off Writing that Book! by Linden Gross
    If writing that book you've always had in mind tops your list of resolutions or regrets, hiring a wr
  • How To Write A Better Press Release by Brian Konradt
    A press release is the most effective way to generate free publicity for your business or organizati
  • Writing on the Hoof by Rick Chapo
    Finding inspiration when you are writing is often a haphazard affair. When you are physically ready
  • Focus On Nigeria by Andrew Sandon
    Focus on Nigeria Nigеria is a natural gas and oil rich country that is bordеrеd b
  • How to Write Great Dialogue in Your Book by Steve Manning
    Dialogue isn't so much read as it is heard by the reader. The eyes see the words on the page, the b
  • Women SUV Driver from www.thefrap.com by Eric Schmidt
    Why do so many women drive around in the oversized SUV's, the Tahoe, Excursion, Escalade
  • How To Write Good Articles by Jonathan White
    As a writer you may be ready to cash in on the need for web content. There is a lot of money that c
  • NEWS FLASH: Technical Communicator Saves World by Peggy Bennett
    I had a boss several years ago who was amused by my earnest and relentless preaching about the impor
  • Writers Resources by Josh Riverside
    Writers use certain inherent talents to come up with their pieces of writing. However, they do need
  • Popular Articles by Roel Sundiam
    Articles are those that are available in plenty these days in the internet. The articles are written