Copyediting style guide consistency standards

Master copyediting skills using style guides and maintaining consistency standards. Major style guides: 1. AP (Associated Press): journalism, news writing, web content. 2. Chicago: books, academic publishing, historical writing. 3. MLA: literature, humanities, language arts. 4. APA: psychology, education, social sciences. 5. AMA: medical, scientific, health-related content. Style guide application: 1. Numbers: spell out vs. numerals (AP: spell one-nine, numerals 10+). 2. Dates: format consistency (March 3, 2024 vs. 3/3/24). 3. Capitalization: headlines, titles, proper nouns. 4. Punctuation: serial commas, quotation marks, hyphenation. 5. Abbreviations: periods, spacing, first usage definitions. Consistency tracking: 1. Style sheets: document decisions for project-specific issues. 2. Character names: spelling, titles, relationships. 3. Technical terms: definitions, usage, formatting. 4. Timeline: chronological accuracy, age calculations. Quality markers: 1. Parallel structure: consistent formatting for similar elements. 2. Tone consistency: formal vs. casual throughout document. 3. Tense agreement: past vs. present, narrative consistency. Fact-checking process: 1. Statistics: source verification, current data. 2. Citations: complete, accurate, properly formatted. Professional standards: client style preferences, industry conventions, deadline management.