We adhere to the Chicago Manual of Style, the University of Chicago’s exhaustive “reference work for authors, editors, proofreaders, indexers, copywriters, designers, and publishers”; the Diversity Style Guide, “a resource to help journalists and other media professionals cover a complex, multicultural world with accuracy, authority and sensitivity” out of San Francisco University; The NIH Style Guide, primarily for medical and related language; and the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s “Words Matter: Terms to Use and Avoid When Talking About Addiction.”
When spelling is in question, we refer to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
We do not run trigger/content warnings, unless contributors would like us to include one with their piece. There are numerous excellent examinations of, discussions about, and research on trigger warnings/content warnings available to read online, with strong arguments on both sides, which we encourage writers and readers interested in this topic to seek out.
When counting to 100 at time of copyediting, we pop a piece into Word and, if short or long, into Google Docs. If the word count is still off, we hand count. If none of these methods adds up to 100, we go back to the writer for a fix. Some programs count a hyphenated word as one; others as two. When seeking to achieve 100, we go with whatever lands us at 100.
As always, if you have questions related to Five Minutes, our editorial guidelines or otherwise, please ask! We want Five Minutes to be a space where our writers and readers feel respected, and part of that effort involves listening. Pipe up! susanna@fiveminutelit.com