A

t The Michigan Daily copy 
desk, we contour articles 
before they’re presented to 

the public — or, rather, the Daily 
Stylebook does. We comb through 
each article, checking for every-
thing as obvious as getting the facts 
right and as seemingly insignificant 
as the use of a semi-colon, pausing 
repeatedly to consult the Stylebook. 
The final product stands alone, 
though stripped of Oxford commas 
and laced with abbreviated titles, 
and almost always at least slightly 
different from how it came in.

Between the reliance on the style 

guide and the precision of the end 
product, I’ve realized copyediting 
an article isn’t so different from 
copyediting yourself. Think before 
you speak, check yourself before 
you wreck yourself — however you 
want to say it, everyone has a meth-
od for filtering their actions and 
words. We work hard to create and 
maintain an image for ourselves, 
constantly building from and refer-
ring back to our own personal style 
guides.

What makes up a style guide, 

though? Clearly, not everyone fol-
lows the same one. And it’s not 
possible for everyone to follow the 
same one, since different back-
grounds and opportunities deter-
mine what different people have 
been exposed to. But we build onto 
these when we start to choose our 
own experiences and communities, 

and we adjust the way we filter.

One of my chosen communities 

was the Residential College. My 
first semester there, I had a nagging 
worry that the things I was doing 
and saying weren’t quirky or pro-
gressive or eco-conscious enough. 
These traits, which the people 
around me seemed to have in abun-
dance, worked themselves into an 
RC Style Guide, which I worked into 
my own. I started tailoring specific 
actions to it, and they’ve become 
ingrained in me the same way rules 
regarding when a certain hyphen 
is appropriate or when to write out 
numbers have become ingrained in 
me at the copy desk — I don’t look it 
up, I just fix it.

Individuality, forward thinking 

and creativity are all characteris-
tics I found in the RC that I valued 
highly before college. By purpose-
fully putting myself in a setting 
where those traits became part of 
my filter, I’ve been able to strength-
en them. In turn, being aware of 
the way they’ve affected me has 
allowed me to challenge and devi-
ate from certain ones. Likewise, 
the Daily uses the AP Style Guide 
as a base, and though we revere it, 
it’s been necessary to make certain 
changes and additions to fit our 
own Stylebook. We have different 
guides, specific to the University of 
Michigan setting, playing into the 
equation.

The importance of realizing the 

guidelines we choose for ourselves 
is not a new idea, and neither is the 
importance of finding ourselves 
within them. But they’re both ideas 
I tend to forget. When I think about 
why I present and filter myself 
the way I do, I remember to make 
adjustments, to pick and choose 
for my own style guide instead of 
completely adapting to another. So 
think about it. What makes up your 
Stylebook?

2B

Magazine Editor:

Karl Williams

Deputy Editors:

Nabeel Chollampat 

Lara Moehlman

Design Editor:

Shane Achenbach

Photo Editor:

Zoey Holmstrom

Creative Director:

Emilie Farrugia

Editor in Chief:

Shoham Geva

Managing Editor:

Laura Schinagle

Copy Editors:

Emily Campbell

Alexis Nowicki

Taylor Grandinetti

the statement

Wednesday, September 21, 2016 / The Statement

Copy That: My Stylebook
B Y M A R I S A F R E Y

the
tangent

EMILIE FARRUGIA/DAILY

T H O U G H T B U B B L E : CHALLEN GE S

“I’d say the biggest challenge this year will be 

managing all of the different things I need to do 

before I graduate, like making an awesome thesis, 

getting a job for post-grad (a girl can wish), earning 

decent grades, the list goes on. All this while still 

having fun in final year of college!”

– Art & Design Senior Jacqui Frey