Like most publishers, McGill-Queen’s University Press adheres to a set of guidelines known as “house style.” The instructions that follow are intended for authors submitting a final manuscript to MQUP after peer review, but we encourage you to implement them as early in the process as possible. While these are guides rather than rules and it may at times be appropriate to make different stylistic choices for certain projects, making sure that your manuscript follows these guidelines whenever possible ensures consistency within the book, maintains certain norms of scholarly publishing that signal your expertise and intended audience, and allows your copyeditor to focus on the text of your book rather than the mechanics of house style, helping you communicate your ideas clearly, accurately, and effectively.
Font, format, and spacing
- Use a proportionally spaced, widely available font – Times New Roman 12 point is best.
- Page size should be letter (8.5" x 11"), with margins of at least 1".
- Double-space all material, including preliminary pages, quotations, notes, and bibliographies. Bibliographies should be formatted with a hanging indent.
- Text should be left-aligned, not fully justified.
- The first paragraph in each new chapter, after a heading, or after a section break should begin flush left. Indent the first line of all other paragraphs. Do not use a line space between paragraphs.
- Paginate consecutively throughout, using Arabic numerals.
- Submit the manuscript as a Word document. Include a completed copy of the Final Manuscript Checklist. If relevant, include a completed Art Log & Text Permissions spreadsheet.
Tables
A table, distinct from a figure, is words or numbers arranged in rows and/or columns.
- Type all tables in a Word document or documents separate from the main text.
- Number tables by chapter and order of appearance: the third table in chapter 2 is table 2.3.
- Indicate where in the manuscript each table should appear using a callout in bold text – [INSERT TABLE 2.3 HERE] – between paragraphs. Table location may shift by up to a page in typesetting.
- Include the table number and title, as well as any sources or notes to the table, in this separate document. Notes to a table cannot be grouped with the endnotes to the main text.
- It is important to cite sources for information represented in a table, just as you would do with information contained in the main text. If the data in the table comes from your own research, a description of your methods in the main text may suffice. If you have drawn this data from other sources, include a standard Chicago-style citation of those sources beneath the table.
- Submit a list of tables (by number and title) to appear in the front matter, following the table of contents.
Figures
Figures encompass photos, artwork, charts, diagrams, maps, and any other visual material.
- If figures are dispersed throughout the text:
- Number figures by chapter and order of appearance: the third figure in chapter 2 is figure 2.3.
- Use a callout, in bold and between paragraphs – [INSERT FIGURE 2.3 HERE] – to indicate where each figure should appear. Figure position may shift by up to a page in typesetting.
- Submit a list of figures (by number and title) to appear in the front matter, following the table of contents. This list should include any necessary image credits or permissions information.
- Submit a list of captions to appear next to each image. Captions should be descriptive only and should not include image credits.
- Submit alternative text (alt text) descriptions for each image to make its contents accessible to readers with print disabilities, who often use screen readers or other assistive devices. Alt text should be short and literal (it should not repeat the caption), and you should assume that the person accessing it cannot see the image itself. For information-dense images, you may also need to prepare an extended description. See MQUP's Accessible Image Guidelines for instructions.
- If figures will be grouped in a section:
- Number them consecutively.
- Submit a list of captions to appear next to each image. Captions should include any necessary image credits or permissions information.
- Submit alternative text (alt text) descriptions for each image to make its contents accessible to readers with print disabilities, who often use screen readers or other assistive devices. Alt text should be short and literal (it should not repeat the caption), and you should assume that the person accessing it cannot see the image itself. For information-dense images, you may also need to prepare an extended description. See MQUP's Accessible Image Guidelines for instructions.
- Please ensure that all maps and diagrams are legible in black and white, as most MQUP books are printed in black and white.
- Please consult our Preparation of Final Artwork guide before submitting final figures. At the peer review stage, final image files are not required, but it may be important to supply low-resolution preliminary images – consult your acquisitions editor for more information.
Text
For general reference, consult The Chicago Manual of Style, 18th edition.
Front matter
Include all necessary preliminary pages:
- Title page
- Dedication or epigraph (optional; if you plan on adding these at a later date, please include a placeholder)
- Table of contents
- List of tables and figures
- List of abbreviations (optional)
- Preface and/or acknowledgments (optional)
Spelling
North American authors: For general reference, follow the Oxford Canadian Dictionary, 2nd edition. See also the list of specific terms below.
UK authors: For general reference, follow the Oxford Dictionary. See also the list of specific terms below.
Authors in other locations: Most MQUP books follow Canadian spelling and punctuation style. Please consult your acquisitions editor to determine the appropriate style for your book.
Capitalization
Capitalize as sparingly as possible: for proper names of individuals, institutions, or publications, and in cases where confusion might result if lower case were used. Titles used as part of a personal name are capitalized but when used alone in place of a name (other than in direct address) are lowercased (Prime Minister Trudeau, the prime minister).
Punctuation and spacing
Use a serial comma before “or” or “and” in lists of three or more items: bananas, apples, and pears.
Type initials closed up: A.C.H. Koch (not A. C. H. Koch).
After abbreviations that end with the final letter of the abbreviated word (contractions), such as Mr, Messrs, Dr, Sr, St, or in abbreviations such as RMC (acronyms and initialisms), do not use a period. Use a period with Rev., Gen., etc.
Type dashes used to set off one part of a sentence with a space before and after – like this. (This does not apply to hyphens joining words together or to dashes in inclusive numbers, which should be closed up.)
Quotations
Set quotations of ten or more lines of prose (about 100 words) or three or more lines of poetry as block quotations. All other quotations should be run into the surrounding text. Use a line space before and after a block quotation and an indent on the left. The text that follows a block quote should be indented if it begins a new paragraph, or flush left if it is a continuation of the preceding paragraph.
For run-in quotations of verse, use a spaced solidus (slash) to indicate line breaks / like this.
Ellipses, no matter where they occur, should be shown as three unspaced dots with a space on either side ... Do not use ellipses at the beginning or end of quotations except to indicate a quote that has trailed off. Unless the quoted material includes ellipses in the original text, ellipses that have been inserted should not be enclosed in square brackets.
Interpolations should be indicated with square brackets [like this]. The term [sic] is italicized. Use it sparingly, where it is necessary to indicate that the transcription is accurate in case of ambiguity, rather than to highlight errors or differences of style. Using square brackets to silently correct typographic errors in the original text helps to keep the focus on the meaning of the quoted text, and this practice is also a courtesy to fellow scholars.
When quoting handwritten or typewritten documents that use underlining for emphasis, underlining may be silently converted to italics. We recommend using italics rather than underlined or bolded text.
For quoted material made up entirely of a quotation within a quotation, employ only one set of quotation marks: As Smith reports, Jones replied, “I disagree.”
Check all quotations against the original to ensure accuracy in wording, spelling, capitalization, punctuation, etc., before submitting the manuscript. Quotations will not be fact-checked by the press. All corrections to quotations that must be made after the manuscript has been typeset will be charged to the author.
Please consult our permissions page for information on when and how to seek permission to quote material that falls under copyright. Authors must secure all necessary permissions before submitting their final manuscripts for copyediting (this also applies to authors of poetry manuscripts).
North American authors: Use double quotation marks for first-order quotations; use single quotation marks for quotations within double quotation marks. For quotations within block quotes, use double quotation marks. Scare quotes/quotes for emphasis should be used sparingly; use double quotation marks where they do appear. Following the quote, all periods and commas go inside quotation marks, but colons, semicolons, exclamation points, and question marks that are not part of the quoted material should be placed outside.
UK authors: Use single quotation marks (inverted commas) for first-order quotations; use double quotation marks for quotations within single quotation marks. For quotations within block quotes, use single quotation marks. Scare quotes/quotes for emphasis should be used sparingly; use single quotation marks where they do appear. Following the quote, punctuation that is not part of the quoted material should be placed outside the quotation marks.
Numbers and dates
Type dates as 1 January 2020; Wednesday, 1 January 2020; 1 January; January 2020.
Decades: 1940s; forties; 1940s and ’50s.
Inclusive years: 2020–21; 2005–06. In lifespans, use all four digits: Viola Desmond (1914–1965).
For all other inclusive numbers use the briefest possible form: 25–6; 100–4; but 18–19. Avoid ff (for following pages), instead giving precise page numbers wherever possible. Do not use f (for following page).
Spell out numbers up to one hundred and round numbers thereafter, except numbers indicating percentages or referring to numbered parts of a book: The conference had eighty-seven attendees; the questionnaire received 362 responses; there were four hundred examples; 42 per cent agreed with this statement; see chapter 2 for further discussion.
Languages other than English
All passages in languages other than English must be translated, with the source of the translation noted. Our preference is for the English translation to appear in the main text, either alongside the original or with the original moved to an endnote.
Specific terms
- acknowledgement (UK)
- acknowledgment (North American)
- adviser
- aging
- artifact
- Black/black: the capitalized form is preferred, but lower case is acceptable according to author’s preference
- focusing
- Indigenous: capitalized when referring to Indigenous Peoples in North America
- judgement (UK)
- judgment (North American)
- Montreal
- per cent
- program (North American)
- Quebec
- World War I or First World War (but one must be used consistently; not World War 1 or World War One)
- World War II or Second World War (but one must be used consistently; not World War 2 or World War Two)
Notes and citations
Note placement
Most MQUP books use endnotes, whether for citations or for digressions that do not belong in the main text. Footnotes may be permissible in special cases; please consult the managing editor. Notes must be inserted using Word’s automatic note function, not keyed manually. In edited collections, notes will appear at the end of each chapter in the finished book. In monographs, notes will appear at the end of the book. In the manuscript, however, notes may be left in either position; we are able to move them in typesetting.
Citations
MQUP follows the Chicago Manual of Style for the formatting of citations. You may use Chicago-style notes (with or without a bibliography, depending on how the notes are formatted) or Chicago-style author-date references.
Edited collections
Volume editors should alert contributors to the style selected; when the final manuscript is submitted, all chapters must follow the same citation style. Note that end-of-chapter bibliographies in edited collections create extra bulk without adding much utility and are discouraged. Acceptable citation styles for an edited collection:
- Long-form endnotes alone
- Short-form endnotes with a combined bibliography for the entire volume
- In-text author-date references with end-of-chapter reference lists
- In-text author-date references with a combined reference list for the entire volume
Notes and bibliography
Note-style citations, with or without a bibliography, are more commonly used by authors working in the humanities. If a bibliography is not included, full reference for a work should be made with the first mention of a work in each chapter’s endnotes:
1 L. Harrison Matthews, Sea Elephant: The Life and Death of the Elephant Seal (London: MacGibbon & Kee, 1952), 140–63.
2 Sven Gillsater, Life and the Sea, 2 vols. (London: Allen & Unwin, 1964), 2:120–2.
3 Harold Taggart, "Sealing on St George Island and Its Ecological Implications," Pacific Historical Review 28, no. 3 (1959): 352–8.
In second and subsequent references in a chapter, use a short form that includes the author’s surname, an abbreviated title (up to about four or five words), and a page number if applicable:
4 Gillsater, Life and the Sea, 1:14–16.
When two consecutive endnotes refer to the same source, simply repeat the short-form note:
5 Matthews, Sea Elephant, 16.
6 Matthews, Sea Elephant, 18.
If a bibliography is included, use a short-form note for all citations that correspond to an entry in the bibliography:
1 Matthews, Sea Elephant, 140–63.
2 Gillsater, Life and the Sea, 2:120–2.
3 Taggart, "Sealing on St George Island," 352–8.
Bibliographies should be divided as little as possible; to make it easier for readers to find a complete entry based on a short-form note, the only division should be between archival and printed sources. Archival material, newspaper articles, interviews, and website materials are usually best cited in full in an endnote, with archives and newspapers consulted listed in separate sections at the beginning of the bibliography.
Bibliography entries corresponding to short-form endnotes should be formatted as follows:
Matthews, L. Harrison. Sea Elephant: The Life and Death of the Elephant Seal. London: MacGibbon & Kee, 1952.
Taggart, Harold F. "Sealing on St George Island and Its Ecological Implications." Pacific Historical Review 28, no. 3 (1959): 351–60.
For multiple entries by the same author, simply repeat the author’s name. Do not use a dash to replace the name in subsequent entries.
For guidelines and further examples, please consult The Chicago Manual of Style, 18th edition.
Author-date references
The author-date system is more commonly used by authors working in the social sciences. Books with many primary sources are usually better suited to the notes and bibliography system.
In the author-date system, citations appear in the main text, enclosed in parentheses: (Matthews 1952, 140–63).
Reference list entries corresponding to in-text citations should be formatted like this:
Matthews, L. Harrison. 1952. Sea Elephant: The Life and Death of the Elephant Seal. London: MacGibbon & Kee.
For multiple entries by the same author, simply repeat the author’s name. Do not use a dash to replace the name in subsequent entries.
For multiple entries by the same author and with the same year, append a letter to the year of publication and ensure this lettering corresponds between in-text citations and the reference list:
Petersen, Anne Helen. 2020a. “Viral Video Seemed to Show BLM Storming a Church. The Real Story Is Much Darker.” BuzzFeed News, 9 August 2020. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/annehelenpetersen/viral-video-seemed-to-show-blm-storming-a-church-the-real.
Petersen, Anne Helen. 2020b. “Why the Protests in Small Towns Across America Matter.” BuzzFeed News, 3 June 2020. http://buzzfeednews.com/article/annehelenpetersen/black-lives-matter-protests-near-me-small-towns.
Please note that access dates for online sources are not required unless no publication date is available.
For guidelines and further examples, please consult The Chicago Manual of Style, 18th edition.
Other end matter
In trade or literary books, acknowledgments may appear ahead of any other end matter instead of in the front matter.
Any appendices should be placed before the endnotes.
For edited collections, include a list of contributors to appear at the end of the book. This list should include brief biographies written in the third person, including title, institutional affiliation, recent publications, and/or research interests.
Other responsibilities of the author
Authors are responsible for securing permission to reproduce images, tables, charts, and certain quoted material. If your manuscript includes material you have previously published in another form, you may also need to secure permission from the original publisher. Please consult our permissions guidelines for more information.
Artwork
At the peer review stage, MQUP would prefer to have artwork for maps, figures, and graphs presented in rough to allow the press to advise the author about type and size necessary for finished graphics.
When the final manuscript is submitted, all illustrations, including photos, drawings, maps, charts, figures, and graphs, must be submitted in a form suitable for reproduction, prepared according to our specifications. MQUP will not redraw graphs, maps, or other illustrations. The final version of any figures or illustrations can only be as good as the copy supplied, so please be sure you are pleased with the quality before sending them. In general, submit graphs, charts, and maps as original, editable files or as vector PDFs (PDF files that look smooth, not pixelated, when highly magnified). Submit photos and illustrations as high-resolution TIFF or JPG files, 300 DPI when they are at least five inches wide (that is, they must be at least 1500 pixels wide). Please consult our Preparation of Final Artwork page for more detailed instructions.
Final version
Submit all final materials to your acquisitions editor, retaining a duplicate set of files for yourself.
Other resources
Gregory Younging, Elements of Indigenous Style: A Guide for Writing by and about Indigenous Peoples, second edition (Edmonton: Brush Education, 2025).
“Chicago-Style Citation Quick Guide,” Chicago Manual of Style, https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html.
For bias-free language: The Conscious Style Guide, https://consciousstyleguide.com/.
Further information
If you have any questions not covered in this guide or in The Chicago Manual of Style, 18th edition, contact the Managing Editor.