Write It with Style
By G. Miki Hayden
Setting forth your message in proper English has as much to do with selling a short mystery story as "flair." Of course, talent is a plus, but a way with language will not overcome improper form. With editorial staffs stretched thin, very little of what is called "line editing" (meaning word-by-word copy editing) goes on at many publications. The editors you hope will purchase your creation are looking for a story that is already "clean"--that is, that does not contain many obvious errors.
Be assured that every author has doubts about the correct use of words or phrasing. English is a complex means of communication with many arcane precepts. No one has to feel embarrassed at being uncertain in some areas of the writing craft. This is a given. And that is why the style book was invented. The style book is the reference work that will give you the definitive answer as to usage. The more rules of grammar about which you are unsure, the more compelling the need to have a style book by your side.
For most of my writing career--and I have made a living at writing for the last 20 years--I managed without any style book whatsoever. And a few years ago I found I was still making stylistic errors. There's a 99 percent probability that I continue making numerous slips, but I do now have a style book for those moments of hesitancy.
Because I work as a journalist, I use the AP (Associated Press) style book. There are a number of others in popular use--such as the Chicago Manual of Style, used most frequently in academic settings. It doesn't matter which book you choose for reference in a pinch--even if it is not called a style book, or is actually a basic primer on English usage. Still, you ought to have one.
The mistakes that I was still making as of a few years ago, when I was stopped cold by new fellow editors, were common goofs. One was the incorrect use of the word "which". For instance, I would write: "His elegant rolltop was the desk which he used every day when he did the accounts." That sentence is incorrect (check your style book if you don't believe me). It should read "the desk that he used". Whereas, you could say. "I sat on the desk, which was actually Robin's."
The other error I always made was the use of the word "where" for the phrase "in which". I would write, "This was the trial where the defendant was finally judged `guilty.'" The correct form, however, would be: "This was the trial in which the defendant was finally judged guilty."
These are the fine points of grammar that can be found in any style book.
Other questions of style may vary, according to what is called by a publication, "house style" or can differ from book to book (magazines are called "books" in publishing) within one house. If you are assigned to write an article for a particular publication or are targeting a publication on spec, it doesn't hurt to pick up an issue and follow the style as you write. Matters of style in this regard would include questions of abbreviation and capitalization, among other elements. For instance, in an article, the house style might be to spell out the name of the state--Florida--or, abbreviation might be the accepted form--FL.
Similarly, one publication might like to refer to the Chief Operating Officer of a company. Another might call the position that of chief operating officer--with no capitalization. Or, again, a publication might prefer the first reference to be Chief Operating Officer (COO). These are very picky concerns, obviously, but the writer who intends to earn money from his or her skill, will pay attention to these matters.
When it comes to fiction, the more important question is that of consistency. If you have chosen a style for your story, so long as it's correct, just be sure to use exactly that form throughout your work. This applies even to an offbeat use. For instance, you might choose, as I sometimes do, to spell out a number, such as twenty-nine. The "normal" use of 29 is as the Arabic numeral. Sometimes in fiction, however, there is a reason to spell out that number. But if you spell the number "twenty-nine" in the first paragraph, when you come to the last paragraph, you must spell out the number "fifty-seven" as well.
I have given you some of the details to which you must attend, but I have learned so many over the years. The important thing is to try to be conscious of what you are doing to a greater and greater extent. For instance, when referring to the reader (you) of this article, I had to decide at the first reference whether I would want to use "you" or to say "the writer." I decided to seize the luxury of using the word "you" and have employed it unabashedly. Frequently, however, a publication will prefer that the writer not point so "personally" to the reader by calling him or her, "you." Business writing generally requires the use of third, rather than second, person.
These are truly the nitty gritty tricks of the trade. You must take great care in your writing that you look to the rules. An experienced editor can tell by reading one or two paragraphs of your work how carefully, clearly, and cleanly you write, and whether the editor's time will be well-spent in reading beyond the first page. Keep your style book by your side and check the rules often. Writing well is difficult, but to the person longing to express his or her ideas and to be understood, it is well worth the effort.
G. Miki Hayden doesn't write quite so formally in BY REASON OF INSANITY, the first of the Dr. Dennis Astin mysteries, or in PACIFIC EMPIRE, an alternate history of World War II and beyond.
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