Avoid widows. The first line at the top of a column of text must be at least one complete line (paragraph indents are OK).
Avoid orphans. The last line of a column of text should not be the first line of a new paragraph .
There is a two-line minimum under subheds near the bottom of a column.
Columns
End bugs
Jump lines
Line breaks
Running titles
Some words and phrases, through excessive use, lose the force of their meaning and become clichés.
Below is a list of some expressions that are overused in Better Homes and Gardens® publications and should be avoided. Words Into Type lists more than 400 overused expressions to avoid.
a cozy fireplace, niche
adults and children alike
a good way to
a great variety
and best of all
a vast array
a wide range
a wide variety
believe it or not
be sure to
bright and cheery
cost an arm and a leg
cost a small fortune
curb appeal
down to brass tacks
every inch of space
fits like a glove
flea-market find
floods the room
for a painterly effect
for best results
free flowing
home front
kids of all ages
labor of love
natural light
not only … but also
one good solution
on the other hand
open and airy
outside the box
quick and easy
roll up your sleeves
seamlessly
serves double duty as
tackle the job
there’s no better way to
there’s nothing like it
unique
user-friendly
vast array
very
visually expands
When creating bulleted lists in main text or sidebars, follow these guidelines:
• Use a fixed thin space (In InDesign, command-option-shift-M; or, control-click where you want to insert the thin space, choose “Insert White Space/Thin Space” ) after each bullet symbol.
• Make each item in the list parallel to the others. For example, all should be imperative sentences (as in
this list), noun phrases, declarative sentences, a single word, or other similar item as appropriate.
• Place a period after each item if the individual items are made up of one or more complete sentences.
• Use no punctuation at the end of each item if the individual items are made up of phrases, not complete sentences.
• Include a period after every item in the list if, for some compelling reason, the list includes a combination of phrases and complete sentences. If one item in a list requires a period, then a period must follow every item in that list.
Examples:
Columbine, Aquilegia
• Zones 3–10
• Height: 18–36 inches
• Sun to part shade
• Well-drained, light, fertile soil
• Spring to early summer flowering
Clutter Busters
If your organizational skills are stuck in the throw-it-all-in-one-big-box stage, take these steps to bring the pieces together into a more usable format.
• Tag-along: Carry a spiral notebook with you. Jot down ideas or make lists.
• The great divide: Use a three-ring binder with clear dividers and pocket folders or an accordion folder with labeled sections to store household data.
• Routine maintenance: Can’t manage continuous organization? Go through your paperwork once a
month to stay on top of the clutter.
• Together again: Keep all records for large-ticket items together. Staple or paper-clip warranties with owner’s manuals.
• Match it up: Tape business cards to the owner’s manual or product brochure, and keep them in the appropriate folder.
Top Picks for a Pacific Northwest Garden
• Vines: Clematis, sweat peas (“the more you cut ’em, the better they grow”), passion vine, and morning-glory (Ipomoea tricolor ‘Heavenly Blue’).
• Easy annuals from seed: Nicotiana, Scabiosa, sunflowers, and Lavatera.
• Tender annuals for containers: Datura ‘Angel’s-trumpet’ and Plectranthus.
• Bulbs: Oriental lilies.
• Shrubs: Hibiscus, boxwood, hydrangea, and Tibouchina urvilleana (princess flower), a shrub with light purple flowers.
• Ornamental grasses: Any variety works because “they’re always fun.”
A jump line is necessary when a story is interrupted by an ad. A jump line is not necessary when a story runs on consecutive pages. (clarified 1/21/15)
Place jump line “Continued on page XXX,” flush right, at the end of the text before the jump.
On the page on which the story resumes, “Continued from page XXX,” flush left, should precede the text.
Jump lines are italicized and capitalized, and do not end with a period.
Columns
End bugs
Jump lines
Line breaks
Running titles
Don’t hyphenate the last word on a page.
Don’t hyphenate rag-right or rag-left copy.
Don’t hyphenate proper nouns.
Don’t let two lines in a row end in hyphens.
Don’t break a word at the end of the second-to-last line of a paragraph or at the end of a column.
When a word breaks, make sure at least three letters appear on the second line.
When possible, keep a prefix or suffix from breaking from the rest of the word.
Columns
End bugs
Jump lines
Line breaks
Running titles
End bugs should be placed at the end of the main body of text—or in a caption-only story, after the final caption. When the end of the main body text occurs on a page with a sidebar, the end bug should go at the end of the main body text.
In some cases, an end bug may be used on a final spread with no main text but with multiple other text elements (captions, blurbs, sidebars). In those instances, place the end bug in the most logical spot and make sure end bugs on all similar stories throughout the issue are treated in a consistent fashion.
End bugs are NOT necessary for preview pages, tables of contents, or editor’s letters.
An end bug should be preceded by a fixed/thin space.
In rare cases, no end bugs are used in an issue. If you wish to omit end bugs, please consult with the copy chief first.
Columns
End bugs
Jump lines
Line breaks
Running titles
SIM captions are hardworking, essential elements to the overall message we develop for our readers. The style should strive to be straightforward, with short and simple sentences. We should not simply regurgitate what has been stated in the main text of a story, but expand on the individual elements within the photograph, explain some relationship to the story as a whole, or provide some context with a direct quotation from the homeowner or story character.
Captions should be written in the present tense.
Use full name in the first caption that refers to a homeowner or professional.
Capitalize Before and After when used to name photos in text as well as for photo labels and captions.
Captions
Directionals
Capitalize words that Webster’s 11th and Webster’s Third New International capitalize. Also capitalize words that these dictionaries lowercase, when the words or specific meanings of the words are followed by “cap,” “usually cap,” or “often cap.” Lowercase words that are followed by “sometimes cap.”
Capitalization
Acronyms
After colons
Company names
Directions and regions
Generic terms
Headlines
Job titles
Product names
Websites
Zones
