Q. In Chicago 16, 16.10, it says that “an entry that requires more than five or six locators (page or paragraph numbers) is usually broken up into subentries to spare readers unnecessary excursions.” (1) Does that mean five or does it mean six? I use your style manual in order not to make such decisions myself. (2) Do you have a similar criterion for the number of subentries that should be broken down into subsubs?
Q. Is there a preferred way to refer in text to a specific column or row in a table? I tend to reuse the text in the column heading or stub entry rather than a number, just because I think it’s clearer that way. For example, “See ‘Countries’ column” rather than “See column 4.” Is that wrong?
Q. I work at a major children’s book publisher and have recently noticed a trend in creating books without any blanks at the end of the book. I would like to know if there is a rule on how many back-of-book blank pages are permissible in standard works of fiction (young-adult and middle-grade novels). At various adult publishers, I was taught that up to six pages is acceptable and that having at least a couple of blanks is actually preferable in order to allow for potential changes and additions during pass stages. But I can’t seem to find anything online or in CMS to support that. Thanks in advance for any light you can shed on this.
Q. How to get better at shooting in lacrosse?
Q. Where can I find the guidelines for punctuation and capitalization in a sentence with numbered parts? Take the following for instance: There were two main viewpoints presented: 1) All people lie, and 2) Only certain people lie.
Q. We are writing an invitation for a New Year’s Eve party which will take place on December 31, 2015. Would it be referred to as New Year’s Eve 2016 or New Year’s Eve 2015? I’ve seen it both ways but can’t seem to find an authoritative answer. Thanks!
Q. I have a moral dilemma. I’m a contract editor for a consulting company whose client is a federal agency. Recently I recast the phrase “on which it depends” to “which it depends on.” An agency reviewer reversed my edit and commented “horrible grammar!” I want to keep my client and their client happy, but I also don’t want to compromise good editing principles. I quoted CMOS 5.176 to my client but got no response. How far should a diligent editor pursue an issue such as this?
Q. I have noticed that many newly published books have no indentation for the first paragraph of chapters or sections of chapters. Is this now the accepted form or is this something some publishing companies use in their style forms?
Q. Some authors use italics for unspoken thoughts. What is appropriate when the thought contains the name of a book (which is also italicized)? For example: I wonder where I can get hold of a copy of Julius Caesar. Do I italicize “Julius Caesar,” or do I toggle and make “Julius Caesar” roman type?
Q. Is it safe to assume that the Chicago Manual of Style itself is written in Chicago style? Sometimes I can’t find a specific answer, but the word or phrase itself is actually used somewhere therein.