The Pub Hub

• When you type, please use only one space after periods.
• Learn how to use em-dashes—the long ones used around appositives. Microsoft Word will create them for you automatically. Just type two hyphens, and the program will replace them with an em-dash. WordPerfect requires three dashes, so check your software. Never use spaces around it.
• Use active verbs. If you see the letters “-ing” in your sentence, try replacing that word with a simple, direct active verb. E.g. not “the team will be playing,” but “the team will play.”
• Watch for the word “that.” It can usually be eliminated. E.g. Sorensen said…. not Sorensen said that…
• Newspaper paragraphs are short, generally no more than two sentences.
• Majors are not capitalized, expect for languages. E.g. communication studies, English, Spanish, political science.
• Gender: Women, not females, girls or ladies; Men, not males, guys/
• Never use the word “very” except in quotes. If you need the word very, you haven’t the right adjective---that’s lazy writing. Take the time to find a stronger word.
• Times: 4 p.m. notice the space between the 4 and the p, the periods after the letters, and the lowercase of the letters.
• Dates: Generally use the date, not the day of the week. E.g., “Nov. 1,” not “Friday.” Also, use the month names rather than relative terms. E.g. “in November,” not “next month.” Abbreviate months with exact dates, spell out when standing alone, as in previous examples.
• Do not use apostrophes with decades—they’re not possessives. E.g. Music of the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s.
• Numbers” spell out numbers under 10 use numerals for 10 and higher.
• When counting items, use more or fewer, mot over or less. E.g. not “over 30 cents,” but “more than 30 events;” not “less than eight people,” but “fewer than eight people.”
• Never say “here at APU.” We know it’s here at APU unless you tell us otherwise.