(Marilynne Rudick and Leslie O'Flahavan)
And now, for one of the burning questions of our day: is website one word or two? Do you capitalize Web? Is it Internet or internet?  E-Mail, e-mail, or email? The answer: all are correct, depending on the style you choose. While many absolute rules govern spelling and punctuation, much of style is governed by convention. Writers and editors choose whether a word will get a hyphen, a cap, or be followed by a comma. These conventions vary depending on the purpose of the document, the audience, and the organization.

What is Style?

Fiction writers think of style as the writer's voice, his use of language. Designers think of style as the layout and format of a document. Editors think of style as the conventions for capitalization, punctuation, and usage: "Can I end a sentence with a preposition?"

But regardless of how style is defined, writers and editors care about style for the same purpose: to produce a readable document. In print documents, attending to style is an expected phase of the publication process. But in the online world, style considerations are often overlooked in the rush to post timely content. The result is the editorial equivalent of mismatched socks. A lot of online writing makes a poor impression.

You're Going To Need A Style Manual

If your web pages are going to display a uniform style, you'll have to define your style. You'll have lots of questions to answer: How many levels of headings will appear on a page? How far will you indent bulleted lists? At your site, is website one word or two? And the writers at your site could probably use a little guidance on how to write for the web. They probably need some help with writing scannable text, advice about putting their message up front, and rules for writing hypertext links.

For readable web writing, you're going to need a style guide. If your organization already has a style guide for its print publications, you can use it as a starting point and alter the guide so it addresses web writing. Familiarize yourself with these style bibles to learn about different schools of thought on language.

Style Guides for Print Documents

Book publishers tend to use The Chicago Manual of Style or Words Into Type as their bible. These manuals recommend using more punctuation rather than less. For example, they recommend the comma before the and in a list of three or more items. They advise writers to set off an introductory phrase with a comma. The AP Style Guide is the journalist's Bible. It recommends sparse punctuation and favors lowercase rather than caps for important words: government, not Government; Middle Ages, not middle ages.

Academics rely on The Publication Manual of APA, or the MLA Style Guide. These manuals pay particular attention to formats for citing sources and for bibliographies.

Can a Classic Style Guide Work for Online Writing?

Which one to choose? The informal style of the web argues for the AP Style Guide. But style is a reflection of your image, your brand. An old-line company may be more comfortable with a more traditional approach to language. If you're targeting graying CEO's Chicago, or Words into Type may be a better fit.

The limit of these classics is that they are print style guides. A style guide for online writing must address specific issues: hypertext links instead of footnotes, the download time of tables and charts. How do we punctuate or spell the new words spawned by the cyber world?

Style Guides for Online Writing

Several style guides have grappled with the changes in online style and language. Published by Wired Magazine, Wired Style: Principles of English Usage in the Digital Age (Constance Hale) looks at how the digital revolution has changed literary style and editorial style. It's taken a stab at codifying cyber speak by providing rules for web compounds and "e" prefixes.

EEI Press, a source of solid advice on print writing, weighed in on online language in E-What?  A Guide to the Quirks of New Media Style and Usage.  The guide makes sense of cyber speak, and provide rules that can be applied to words not yet invented. It will also offer up guidance on readability and good web writing.

APA has compiled its style guidelines for electronic resources into a downloadable guide (PDF): APA Style Guide for Electronic Resources. This short guide gives guidelines for citing electronic sources. 

Even with these new guides, chances are you'll still have to customize for your organization:

• Should you use a British English style to connect with your global audience?
• How will you present the words, phrases, or terms of art that apply only to your company or field? How will the name of your organization appear? When do you use your acronym?
• What are your boss's style rules? Is he always Dr. Richards, never Bob? Does he hate sentences that start with however?

If developing your organization's online style guide seems daunting, be encouraged. Read Part 2 of Is Website One Word? to learn about creating your own style guide. And until you read Part 2, keep the words of W.C. Fields in mind: "Anyone who can spell a word only one way is an idiot."

In Brief

Is website one word? It depends on your editorial style. Find out why a uniform style matters and how to create a style guide for your website. To learn about published style guides, read Part 2 of this article series.