NIC Style Guide.pdf

Guidelines for Preparing and Submitting Manuscripts for Publication

Appendix

Updated: October 2013 45

Contents

General Conditions

Preparing Manuscripts

Parts of a Manuscript

Formatting

Electronic Files

Writing and Editing Manuscripts – General

Style Guides

Laws and Mandates

Writing and Editing Manuscripts – NIC Style

Electronic Sources

Terms and Spelling

Updated: October 2013 47

General Conditions

The conditions in this guide apply to all National Institute of Corrections (NIC) cooperative agreements, contract awards, and technical assistance projects that involve the preparation of materials for publication and public dissemination. NIC documents are available in both print and electronic forms, including PDF, e-book, and mobile application. All manuscripts submitted for publication must meet the federal government’s requirements for plain language and accessibility.

NIC funds may not be used to produce any publication or announcement unless—

• Such production is included specifically in the approved application and budget.

• The Director of NIC reviews and approves of the document for publication.

• The document adheres to the conditions described in these Guidelines.

Any material to be published with NIC award funds must relate to administrative aspects of the project. This means the publication is necessary to conduct the greater project (e.g., printing of survey forms or handout materials). The awardee must submit the material to the NIC project manager and have it approved by NIC before preparing a final draft.

Documents, brochures, announcements, certificates, pamphlets, and other materials developed for public dissemination must adhere to the following general conditions:

Funding

• All documents prepared with NIC funds must include U.S. Department of Justice and NIC identification on the cover (unless they are for internal use only by the author’s agency).

The NIC writer/editor will advise the author(s) of any other applicable administrative requirements.

• Federal policy restricts the use of U.S. government funds for printing (or engraving) stationery, business cards, memo pads, etc., with the names of individuals. NIC policy prohibits the use of federal funds for the printing of these items with the names of projects or programs unless specific, written permission has been granted by NIC.

• NIC funds are not to be used for the preparation, printing, or reproduction of newsletters unless the newsletters are specifically described in the approved plan and budget.

Acknowledgment

• The cover page of brochures or the title page of other publications must include the date (month and year) of release for that publication.

• Names of authors are not to appear on the covers of publications, but they may appear on the title page.

• No advertising of any type is to be included in material produced with federal funds, nor is it to be implied that the government endorses or favors any specific commercial product, commodity, or service. Generic terms should be used instead of names of commercial products.

• Signed releases from any identifiable individuals appearing in a photograph must be provided before any documents containing that photograph are disseminated.

• News releases announcing or reporting on NIC-funded activity must be approved by NIC prior to release.

Copyright

• Authors may copyright work produced under NIC auspices unless specifically restricted from doing so by NIC. If authors copyright materials, the following statement will appear immediately under the copyright notice on page ii (reverse side of the title page):

The National Institute of Corrections reserves the right to reproduce, publish, translate, or otherwise use and to authorize others to publish and use all or any part of the copyrighted material contained in this publication.

The author(s) must furnish a letter granting permission to NIC to publish the material, to authorize others to do so, and to post the material on the Internet.

• Authors using material(s) copyrighted by others in a product developed under NIC auspices must identify the source of the material, whether it is being used verbatim or paraphrased. This rule applies to both published and unpublished source material of any kind—text, tables, graphs, photographs, illustrations, etc. Resources for identifying the correct format for citing source material is presented in this guide under Writing and Editing Manuscripts - General.

• Include a list of all copyrighted material used either in the acknowledgments, on the inside front cover, or in other front matter. When a document contains materials that did not originate in the performance of the NIC-funded activity and that are copyrighted by a person other than the author(s), a copyright notice is not included.

• If the material being quoted or paraphrased in a manuscript is longer than a brief quotation, the author(s) must provide NIC with written permission of (1) any copyright holders (usually the publisher) and (2) of the author(s) of the material to publish and use it, to authorize others to do so, and to post the material on the Internet. A sample letter for requesting permission to use copyrighted material is included below. If the copyright holders do not want their material posted on the Internet, the author(s) must indicate this to NIC when submitting the final material for printing. Payment of any fees associated with using copyrighted material is the responsibility of the author(s). For detailed information on copyright matters, such as how to request permission and what is considered fair use, refer to Writing and Editing Manuscripts - General.

Updated: October 2013 49

Sample Copyright Permission Letter

[Date]

Dear ———:

I am writing to request permission to reprint the following material in a manuscript that I am submitting for publication to the National Institute of Corrections, U.S. Department of Justice:

Requested Work [Author, title, publisher, date of publication, ISBN or URL, location and number of pages to be used]

Proposed Manuscript [Author, title, type of publication, number of print copies estimated, future website URL]

Appropriate credit will be given in the form of a complete citation. Thank you in advance for considering this request. For your convenience, a short signature block is provided below.

If you are not the copyright holder or worldwide rights must be obtained elsewhere, please let me know who I should contact.

Sincerely, [Applicant’s signature]

Permission is granted: ___ Yes ___ No

Signature:

Date:

Updated: October 2013 51

Preparing Manuscripts Authors can avoid lengthy delays in the publication of their manuscripts by preparing their document according to NIC guidelines. In general, authors should ensure they have included all required parts of a manuscripts in their submission, that they have adhered to NIC’s formatting instructions, and that their submission is in a file format that NIC can work with. Manuscripts that do meet NIC guidelines will be returned to the author for correction or otherwise delayed during the editing process. Layout of the manuscript will not begin until all parts of the manuscript are available for editing.

Parts of a Manuscript The following are core elements that most manuscripts are expected to have upon submission.

Research briefs and similar documents of less than 10 pages are not required to include many of these items. At a minimum, all manuscripts must include the document title, cooperative agreement number, author name, and bibliography.

Abstract

Provide a brief abstract of no more than 200 words that summarizes the manuscript. It should convey the document’s purpose, outline its contents, and, if applicable, provide a preview of its research methods and findings or test results.

Title

There is no requirement regarding the length of titles, but it is best to be succinct while also accurately describing the manuscript. Whenever possible use common keywords in your title to help readers find it electronically.

Subtitle

Optional to the title is the subtitle. Use it only when it is not possible to succinctly describe the purpose of the manuscript by using a title alone.

Cooperative Agreement Number

Identify the cooperative agreement number used in developing this project. Contact your NIC project manager if you do not have the number.

Author(s)

Be sure to check the spelling of author name(s).

Table of Contents

Cross check the accuracy of chapter and section titles between the table of contents and the manuscript contents. Do not include page numbers because they will change during layout.

Foreword

Often provided for review and approval by the NIC director, the draft of a foreword should include mention of the purpose of the manuscript and why it is needed for the field. It takes the form of a letter signed by the director.

Preface

Written as a letter from the author to the reader, the preface should provide background on why the manuscript was written and any additional information about the topic that the author would like to share with readers.

Acknowledgments

Written from the author’s perspective, the acknowledgments includes reference to those who aided in seeing the manuscript to fruition.

Chapters

Include a unique title for each chapter and cross check it with the table of contents to ensure they are the same. Chapters should always begin with an introduction, whether it is a brief paragraph or sentence.

Section Headings

Use level 1, level 2, and level 3 headings only. For each heading level, there may be either no subheading or at least two subheadings beneath the main heading. Never begin a section with another section. Always begin with text.

Notes

Use endnotes rather than footnotes. Consult the latest edition of the Chicago Manual of Style for information on how to format notes. Use the shortened citation style when the manuscript also contains a bibliography.

Appendix

For multiple appendixes, label as appendix A, appendix B, etc. and give each a title. Each appendix should be submitted in a separate Word file.

Bibliography

Include full bibliographic information for all references cited in the endnotes. Provide the bibliography in a Word file separate from the last chapter of the manuscript.

Formatting The following are general rules for formatting manuscripts for publication.

1. Manuscripts should be:

• saved as a Microsoft Word file (save charts/graphs as Microsoft Excel files and images as Illustrator, Photoshop, or JPEG files)

• double spaced (not 1½-spaced)

• left justified with 1-inch margins

• separated by chapter (each chapter has its own Microsoft Word file)

2. The text font should be:

• 12-point

• Times New Roman. A sans serif font such as Ariel may be used for headings and exhibits.

Updated: October 2013 53

3. Apply heading styles to titles and sections. Apply headings using the Microsoft Word styles function or distinguish heading levels typographically by designating the level in brackets following the heading. Then highlight each bracket. For example:

Chapter Title [chapter title]

First Heading Under Chapter Title [L1] Subheading [L2] Subheading under level 2 heading [L3] Second subheading under level 2 heading [L3] Subheading [L2] Second Heading Under Chapter Title [L1]

Subheading [L2] Subheading [L2] Third Heading Under Chapter Title [L1]

4. Number all pages.

5. Place all exhibits, charts, and figures in separate files. Use placeholders in the text to show placement (e.g., in brackets write “Insert exhibit 1 here.”).

6. Separate textboxes, sidebars, and callouts with bracketed text, and then highlight the brackets. For example:

[Begin text box]

The text for your text box goes here.

[End text box]

Electronic Files Authors may submit manuscripts for publication via e-mail. When the file size is too large, please burn the manuscript to a disc and submit it with the manuscript title, contents, software program/version, and contact information. The disc should contain only the final version of the manuscript.

Acceptable photograph or graphic submissions may be submitted as Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, or JPEG files. Photographs should have a resolution of at least 300 dpi.

Do not submit manuscripts in .epub, .mobi, .azw, .gif, .tif, postscript, PDF, or PowerPoint.

When a manuscript includes a presentation (such as one that would be delivered via PowerPoint), place the content of the slides in a Microsoft Word document. Separate the start and end of each slide with brackets. Then highlight the brackets. For example:

[begin slide 1]

This is the text that will appear on slide 1.

[end slide 1]

Writing and Editing Manuscripts – General Manuscripts prepared with NIC funds must be free of grammatical and typographical errors at the time of publication. Authors and editors can facilitate the smooth production of manuscripts from draft to publication by applying the following suggested tips and resources.

Style Guides NIC uses style guides for writing and editing as well as spelling and usage. Information on stylistic items not covered in the guides can be found by consulting the section below titled Writing and Editing Manuscripts – NIC style.

For Writing and Editing (Print/E-Books)

Edit NIC materials according to the latest edition of the Chicago Manual of Style: The Essential Guide for Writers, Editors, and Publishers. Be sure that when citing resources, you apply the system of notes and bibliography (rather than author-date) to the manuscript.

For Writing and Editing (Online/Mobile)

When writing for an audience online, consult the latest edition of the Yahoo! Style Guide: The Ultimate Sourcebook for Writing, Editing, and Creating Content for the Digital World for writing tips. All chapters are relevant except for the those under section 4. Authors and editors should consult the Chicago Manual for information on the mechanics of writing.

For Spelling and Usage

Consult the NIC Terms and Spelling list or a dictionary to ensure accurate spelling. NIC uses the latest edition of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary.

For questions about the proper use of words, consult The Careful Writer: A Modern Guide to English Usage.

Laws and Mandates Legislative mandates require that government communications be clear, free of jargon, and accessible to the broadest range of audiences. Of primary importance for authors and editors are the Plain Writing Act and Section 508 legislations.

Plain Language

Through the Plain Writing Act of 2010, the U.S. Congress requires that federal documents be easy to use and that their language be easy to understand. Exceptions to this requirement are few and do not affect most manuscript submissions. Therefore, unless otherwise directed, authors and editors should assume that their manuscript is covered under Plain Writing Act requirements.

To comply with the Act, authors and editors generally need to apply best practices for organizing

Updated: October 2013 55 documents logically, improving document usability with structural aids like headings and bullets, and using plain language whenever possible. Plain language is the stating of concepts in a way that is easy for people to understand. Following are some general guidelines:

• Avoid lengthy, overly complex sentences. Sentences that are more than three lines long usually can benefit from being broken into two or more sentences.

• Use the active voice whenever possible.

• Avoid jargon. When using statistical or other technical terms, provide straightforward, easy-to-understand explanations of such terms.

• Maintain an objective, professional tone. Do not use words or phrases that sound demeaning or show personal opinion. For example, avoid “of course,” “naturally,” “needless to say,” “obviously,” etc.

• Avoid using personal pronouns.

• Avoid headings beyond the third level, because such an intricate level of detail can confuse readers. Try “upgrading” the heading levels or combining detail sections under a single heading.

• Use simple words and eliminate redundant words. For example:

Use rather than some, several a number of now, currently at the present time improve effect an improvement consider give consideration to to in order to if in the event that use make use of, utilize before prior to until until such time as use of utilize utilization of 3 a.m. 3 a.m. in the morning inmates incarcerated offenders whether whether or not

Learn more about the Plain Writing Act and plain language through these online resources:

• NIC Plain Language webpage (http://www.nicic.gov/plainlanguage)

• PlainLanguage.gov (http://www.plainlanguage.gov/)

• Center for Plain Language (http://centerforplainlanguage.org/) http://www.nicic.gov/plainlanguage http://www.plainlanguage.gov/ http://centerforplainlanguage.org/

• Plain Language Association International (http://www.plainlanguagenetwork.org/)

Section 508

Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act was created to ensure that the electronic information and technology that the federal government provides is accessible to people with disabilities. Generally, following the rules of plain language will go a long way in helping you to create a document that is Section 508 complaint. Additional tips include the following:

• For all visual items—such as photographs, infographics, charts, and tables—provide alt text or a brief written description that explains all the pertinent elements of the visual item.

• Include transcripts for all audio/visual material accompanying manuscript submissions.

• For hyperlinked text, tag it as a hyperlink. Then test the link to ensure the URL is correct.

Learn more about Section 508 through these online resources:

• NIC Section 508 webpage (http://www.nicic.gov/Section508)

• Section508.gov (http://www.section508.gov)

• U.S. Access Board (http://www.access-board.gov/)

Writing and Editing Manuscripts – NIC Style As technologies change and the English language evolves, it sometimes happens that among the Chicago Manual, Merriam-Webster’s, and The Careful Writer, none of them have information on how to style text for new types of references, spell new words, or provide guidance on the use of words that are specific to the field of corrections. It may also happen sometimes that the information presented in one of these resources will conflict with the other. In these instances, authors and editors should consult this section of the guide or contact the NIC writer/editor directly for guidance.

Electronic Sources The following guidelines are based on styles for citing electronic sources used by the American Psychological Association (APA), the Modern Language Association (MLA), the Library of Congress, and the International Organisation for Standardization (ISO), whose style is supported by the Chicago Manual.

Formal publication lodged on a website

Published document:

Elias, Gail, and John Milosovich. 2005. Resource Manual for Transition to a New Jail.

Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Corrections, www.nicic.gov/pubs/2005/020159.pdf, accessed July 18, 2005.

Unpublished document accessed from a database:

Esbensen, Finn-Aage. 2001. “National Evaluation of the Gang Resistance Education and Training (G.R.E.A.T) Program.” Final report for National Institute of Justice, grant number 94–IJ–CX–0058. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice,www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles1/nij/grants/196477.pdf, accessed July 14, 2005.

http://www.plainlanguagenetwork.org/ http://www.nicic.gov/Section508 http://www.section508.gov/ http://www.access-board.gov/

Updated: October 2013 57

Sources available in electronic format only

Website or page on a website:

University of Kansas. “Community Tool Box,” http://ctb.ku.edu, accessed October 7, 2005.

Database accessed via the Web: U.S. Census Bureau. 2006. “American Community Survey, Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS),” www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/PUMS/, accessed February 12, 2008.

Online Forum or Discussion Board Posting

Reference Miller, John S. 2010. "As We Know It" [Msg 12]. Message posted to http://www.paperless.com/subpage_topics.html, accessed August 14, 2010.

Note John Miller, "As We Know It" [Msg 12]. Message posted to http://www.paperless.com/subpage_topics.html, accessed August 14, 2010.

(Note: If the author's name is not available, use his or her screen name)

Blog Posting

Reference Miller, John S. 2010, April 23. "One Mission" [Blog Post].

http://www.e-missions.com/subpages_topical.html, accessed January 12, 2010.

Note John S. Miller, "One Mission" [Blog Post].

http://www.e-missions.com/subpages_topical.html, accessed January 12, 2010.

(Note: If the author's name is not available, use his or her screen name)

Video Blog Posting

Reference Miller, John S. 2010, April 23. "One Mission Video" [Video Blog Post].

http://www.youtube.com/onemissionvideo, accessed January 12, 2010.

Note John S. Miller. "One Mission Video" [Video Blog Post].

http://www.youtube.com/onemissionvideo, accessed January 12, 2010.

(Note: If the author's name is not available, use his or her screen name) http://www.paperless.com/subpage_topics.html http://www.paperless.com/subpage_topics.html http://www.e-missions.com/subpages_topical.html http://www.e-missions.com/subpages_topical.html http://www.youtube.com/onemissionvideo http://www.youtube.com/onemissionvideo

Terms and Spelling To reduce variations in the use and spelling of common terms among NIC publications, this section of preferred usages and spellings has been compiled. Questions about words and terms and not covered in this or other resources should be directed to the NIC writer/editor.

PREA-Related

The sensitive nature of both sexual topics and the field of corrections requires that authors use discretion in their use of sexual and PREA-related terms. The guidelines below are intended to assist with that process and help authors avoid the pitfalls that result from the misuse, however unintentional, of key terms.

For terms not listed below, authors should consult the proposed rules1 issued by the U.S.

Department of Justice on National Standards to Prevent, Detect, and Respond to Prison Rape, released February 3, 2011.

Sex vs. sexual: Use “sex” as a noun and verb. As an adjective, use “sexual.”

Examples: The sex (noun) of the witness is female. The officer is accused of having sex (verb) with a subordinate. The facility is being sued for sexual (adjective) discrimination.

Sexual abuse, sexual assault, sexual activity, and sexual behavior: When only a general reference is required, use sexual behavior as an umbrella term that encompasses all the meaning combined in sexual abuse, sexual assault, and sexual activity. For precise definitions of related terms, refer to the PREA commission proposed standards.

PREA: use only in reference to the law or history of the work of the Prison Rape Elimination Act, not as a euphemism for staff sexual misconduct and its forms.

Examples: The officer is filing a complaint because he realized that a PREA violation may have occurred when he found a colleague engaged in sexual behavior with an inmate.

Staff Sexual Misconduct: Use this umbrella term to describe staff/inmate relations and staff/staff relations

Inmate/Inmate sexual abuse: Use this term to describe coercive, abusive, nonconsensual sexual behaviors among offenders under supervision.

Transexual/Transsexual vs. transgender: Use “transgender” as the appropriate term to describe someone whose gender identity does not correspond to his or her anatomical sex.

Gay vs. LGBTI: “Gay” should not be used an umbrella term to mean LGBTI or to denote members of that group. When referring to men or women, use the terms “gay,” “lesbian,” or “bisexual” depending on how the individuals self identify.

1 http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=DOJ-OAG-2011-0002-0001 http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=DOJ-OAG-2011-0002-0001 http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=DOJ-OAG-2011-0002-0001

Updated: October 2013 59

General

A acknowledgment Act (federal, state, or foreign) ADAM (Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring) administration

Clinton administration Food and Drug Administration (capitalized as part of title) adviser advisor (law) African-American (v.)/African American (n.)

aftercare Alaska Native amendment

First Amendment 14th Amendment

America (do not use as synonym for the United States) anticrime antidrug, but anti-drug-abuse (v.), Anti-Drug Abuse Act antiviolence

(Write words with the prefix “anti-“ as a single word except when they are hyphenated in the title of a book, periodical, or statute.)

appendix A (text), Appendix A (title) appendixes (not appendices) ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) [Note: No comma after “Firearms”] at-risk (v.) Attorney General (U.S.), but State attorney general

B benefited bill (but Bill of Rights) bingeing bisexual (no hyphen) Border Research and Technology Center (BRTC) broken windows (no quotation marks)

C canceling catalog (not catalogue) CD-ROM (use a hyphen, not an en-dash; this is contrary to GPO rule 8.73) civil rights (v. and noun) cleanup (v. or noun; two words if a verb) coauthor community-based (v.)

community corrections/community corrections agencies community-oriented (v.)

Community Oriented Policing Services, [Office of] (COPS) community planning (v./n.)

community policing (v./n.)

communitywide correctional (adj.)

[In general, use as adjective instead of corrections. Examples: correctional agencies, correctional executives, correctional leaders, correctional staff, but community corrections agencies.] cost-effective (v.)/cost effective (predicate adjective) cost effectively (adv.)

cost-effectiveness (n.)

cost-recovery (v.)

county, but Montgomery County, Prince George’s County (with apostrophe), Fairfax and Loudoun Counties Court (U.S. Supreme Court); otherwise court:

The U.S. Supreme Court adjourned. The Court adjourned.

The New York Court of Appeals adjourned. The court adjourned.

crimefighter, crimefighting Crime File criminal justice-related crossfire curricula

D D.A.R.E.® (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) data (pl.)

database (v./n.)

dataset decisionmaker, decisionmaking desktop dialogue (not dialog) discreet (using discretion); discrete (separate entities) district attorney/district attorney’s office do’s and don’ts driveby (v.)

drug dealer, drug dealing (n.); drug-dealer, drug-dealing (v.)

drug-free drug seller, drug selling (n.); drug-seller, drug-selling (v.)

E e-book (but .epub as a file extension) e-mail (within text; capitalize E-mail in an address/telephone list) ensure (“insure” only when referring to insurance coverage) epilogue (not epilog) ex-convicts exhibit 1 (text), Exhibit 1 (title) ex-offenders

F fact sheet Fax-on-Demand (cap as proper name) fax-on-demand (lower case as generic) FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) federal, federally female (OK to use as adj., e.g., “female offender,” and noun, e.g., “the females in the jail”; also use

Updated: October 2013 61 noun “women”) flier (not flyer) followup (v./n.; two words if a verb) for-profit (v.)

fundraiser, fundraising

G gender (use instead of “sex” in tables) government Governor graffito (sing.), graffiti (pl.)

grievable

H hardcopy (v.); hard copy (n.)

health care (n.); health-care (v.)

highrise high school (v./n.)

home page hotline hotspot (n.) (no quotation marks)

I indepth (v.)

indexes (not indices) in-house (v.)

in-kind inner-city (v.);

inner city (n.)

inpatient inservice intake the Internet, but an internet or intranet

J judgment just deserts JUSTINFO (NCJRS Internet listserv) Juvenile Justice Clearinghouse (JJC) Juvenile Justice Resource Center (JJRC)

K kidnaping, kidnaper

L listserv

M male (OK to use as adj., e.g., “male offender,” and noun, e.g., “the males in the jail”; also use noun “men”) marshal (but U.S. Marshal) mayor (l.c. unless used before a surname)

Metropolitan Washington (but Washington metropolitan area) middle school (v./n.)

moneys (not monies) multiagency multicultural multijurisdictional multisite

N nation (U.S.) (in general use instead of country), national nonprofit NW (not NW. or N.W.)

O offsite online (v./n.)

onsite outpatient

P paralleling PAVNET (Partnerships Against Violence Network) policymaker, policymaking pre-incident private-sector (v.); private sector (n.)

problem-solving (v.); problem solving (n.)

proved (past participle: You have proved your point.) proven (adjective: A proven remedy.)

public-sector (v.); public sector (n.)

Q queer (not acceptable; instead use gay, lesbian, bisexual, or LGBTI)

R RAND (all caps) Corporation re-create (to create again) re-election Representative (preferred to Congressman or Congresswoman) résumé

S sallyport screenwriter, screenwriting semiannual, semicolon (close up all others), but semi-independent, semi-automatic weapon sex (use “gender” in tables and when referring to social constructs) Social Security number startup (v./n.)

state state’s attorney, state attorney general, state’s attorney’s office statewide systemwide

Updated: October 2013 63

T timeframe toll-free (v.); toll free (Call toll free.)

totaled toward (not towards) trafficking transgender (adj, not as a noun)

U under way (adv.)

U.S. Attorney, U.S. Attorney’s Office (u.c.)

U.S. Marshal

V versus (in text always write out except in court cases) video cassette (v./n.)

videotape

W website, but World Wide Web, the Web white-collar crime -wide (close up all words ending in “wide,” e.g., systemwide, communitywide) workplace workplan work release (v./n.)

worldwide, but World Wide Web

X x-ray (not x ray)

Y youth (sing./pl.)

Z ZIP Code (not Zip Code)