Those Style Guides!!

I wanted to give a shout-out and a big thank you to my Professor, Dr. Leta Frazier, now Professor Emeritus from Bethel University, and my Aunt, Carol A. Taylor, from Minnesota. Both gave excellent advice regarding the various writing and style manuals. During my master’s program, Dr. Frazaier had us complete papers in multiple styles, APA, MLA, Turabian, and Chicago. I thought it was too much and over the top at the time; you know how students are. Well, I am thankful that she was insistent and made us do it and do it correctly.

Before leaving to earn my doctorate at Howard University, my Aunt Carol said,

“you need to memorize that APA style guide; it will save you a lot of time.” Aunt Carol was so right about that! I could focus on content and not so much on formatting rules. I should also add that the American Medical Association has its style guide, and yes, I have had to spend some time with that style manual too.

I had to give thanks because I have found myself writing for different publishers that follow various style guidelines in the past few years. I am thankful for the experience and advice from my elders.

Happy writing!

Dr. Annette